FINALLY GOT IT RIGHT!! after using at least 4 different recipes for these squares, this one is the only one that worked!! I did make sure I read all reviews first for this any other same type recipe. After reading I did a couple different things, I didn't have almond so used same amount of extra flour, poked holes in base before baking, came out fine. I did use non stick paper with non stick spray so it would come out of pan. I let the base get stone cold before adding caramel. I did boil caramel center for the full 7 minutes and yes I got the brown flecks in it, but you couldn't notice on the end product. Still not sure it would take I poured it on the base, let it sit in fridge for 30 mins or so then went directly to freezer until stone cold. The top I used half semi chips and half milk chocolate and added tbsp of crisco to make top shiny. As caramel was very cold, chocolate started to harden almost immediatly..which was great, b/c I then was able to score the chocolate at that time. Put it back in fridge, couple hours later, it removed from pan, cut along score lines, no broken chocolate, base was fine and didn't fall apart....yummy....I love these aquares and have finally found a recipe that works.

Fantastic!! My sister calls these "Fake Twix bars". I've made this recipe a couple of different ways including the original and every batch got rave reviews. If you do not have ground almonds, you can substitute 1/4 cup additional flour. It's not as tasty but it still turns out delicious. Also, here in the States it might be hard to find Lyle's Golden Syrup so you can substitute light corn syrup if need be. Again, not as good but most everyone won't notice a difference. On another batch I added 1/2 tsp. of salt to the caramel mixture so there's more of a sweet/salty taste to these and they came out terrific. Thanks for the recipe!

Thanks for sharing this recipe. It is a pleasant surprise to find that it doesn't end up sickly sweet. I made this for a function at work and everyone wanted the recipe. Needless to say there wasn't a crumb left. This is a keeper!

These were great! The shortbread was a little dry and crumbly but they were a big hit

these are really awesome. to ensure a good crust USE REAL BUTTER. trust me it helps and you dont need to butter your pan. make sure when you put the dough in the pan you poke holes all over it with a fork. and make sure each layers is cooled completely before adding the next layer. I didnt have light corn syup so I used golden syrup and its turned out great. Thanks for the recipe

I have two problems with this recipe: the shortbread crumbles when you try to cut it, and the carmel is waaay too sweet. It smelled great on the stove until I added the sweetend condensed milk and it just ruined it. I used brown sugar as other suggested which really gave it a carmel smell, but again the condensed milk just made the carmel mixture gross. If for some reason I tried this again I would find something other than the condensed milk and use another shortbread recipe. Great idea, and it set up well but just way too sweet. I'll stick to the Twix bar.

Really good. I also have trouble with things like caramel, but the cooking time stated was perfect on medium heat. I used semi-sweet chocolate chips and agree that milk chocolate would have allowed the caramel flavor to emerge more. My only other piece of advice is that after chilling to set the chocolate and cutting into squares (not easy because the chocolate and caramel are VERY firm when chilled) you should let them sit at room temperature for a few hours to soften them up a little--in fact, next time I will probably also wait until then to even cut them into squares.

Every one said this was a great recipe i think i must of done something wrong as my carermel was never able to spread and never set and the base fell apart. would love be able to make them my self please help! i have now re made this recipe and i love it will be making it again!

I LOVED THIS! Well worth the effort! I can't stop eating it!

As is, the recipe is a 4-star, but I think it can be made into a 5-star. Other reviewers didn't mention having any trouble with an excess pool of butter forming after the caramel was cooked, but I sure did; I drained at least 1/4c of butter from the caramel before spreading it on my shortbread crust; otherwise, I would have had a mushy crust, and the gooey caramel that some complained of. I melted semi-sweet chocolate chips for the topping as I had no milk chocolate in the house; even though I'm a bigger fan of semi-sweet, I think milk chocolate may be better with this so it doesn't mask the flavor of the caramel so much; next time, I would definitely sub brown sugar for white in the caramel mixture to further bring out the flavor. Also, I had to cook the caramel mixture much longer than 5-7 minutes; it was more like 20-25 minutes to get it to the nice golden color I was looking for. This may have been because I had to use light corn syrup as it was all I had. This recipe does take some time; to speed things along, I put the shortbread in the freezer for 20-30 minutes to help with the cooling process, and again to help cool and firm up the caramel, and again to harden the chocolate top. Love the combo of shortbread, caramel, and chocolate; it is somewhat like a Twix bar! Thank you for sharing your recipe, Mary!

I keep this recipe a secret from everyone, and nobody understands why it is better than any they've ever had. I leave out the almonds on top, and sometimes just use a basic shortbread crust without ground almonds, but whichever way I make it, I have friends and relatives queuing at my door for a square! Gorgeous.

thanks to the person who suggested brown sugar instead of white. i cooked the shortbread a little too long by accident, but it turned out great because instead of twix bars, they're like skor bars (the cookie part is crunchy, not the caramel). didn't have corn or golden syrup, so i substituted honey for it. worked well. thanks for the recipe!

I have made this recipe every year now for 3 years and each year I'm asked to share it. I've made one change - I substitute brown sugar (lightly packed) for the white sugar, which I feel gives it more of a caramel flavor. I haven't had any problems with the caramel setting up, but I do cook it for the full 7 minutes suggested. I use light corn syrup in place of the golden syrup.

was searching for something close to what i grew up with in scotland. it was close but not exact. this recipe is quite sweet but good! but the carmel didn't settle all the way, so it was quite gooey. for those of you who don't know what GOLDEN SYRUP is, it's a sweet syrup used for cooking. can be found in the international isle of your grocers if they carry items from the UK. might also be available to order online? you will need this to complete the recipe though.

This is so rich and delicious. The recipe is easy to make, but watch the caramel because is can stick to the pan while cooking. I am going to put a heavier nut topping and powdered sugar on top to reduce the stickiness so I can cut and put in cupcake papers for guests and gifts.

My best friend in Missouri sent this to me as a Christmas gift...This has to be the finest gift I will recieve..The flavor and texture is perfect! I hope he wont make me wait until next year to make and send me more! Thank you Kevin for this wonderful shortbread dessert!!!

I first tried caramel shortbread while living in Northern Ireland. I've wanted the recipe for years!!! This recipe is delicious and soooo easy. Everyone who tried it was ranting and raving about how rich and yummy this dessert is.