Sweets! Much like the salted caramel donuts, these delicious toffee shortbread cookies offer a sweet and salty flavor to any party setting. I thought these were very easy to make. Believe it or not, the caramel topping was harder to make than the shortbread. A coworker gave me the recipe for these cookies; after reading it, I knew I had to make these Toffee Shortbread Cookies!
Most of this time was spent waiting for something to cool off; the shortbread, the caramel, the chocolate. WARNING: If you’re going to make these cookies for a party, make them a day ahead of time.
Toffee Shortbread Cookies
Shortbread Cookie mixture:
- 1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
Directions for the shortbread:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Cream the butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add the flour and beat on low speed until crumbly, making sure not to over-mix the dough.
- Press into the bottom of an 8 x 11-inch baking dish and cook for 18 to 20 minutes, or until light golden brown – took me about 15 minutes.
Toffee topping:
- 2 sticks salted butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 (10 ounce bag) good-quality bittersweet chocolate chips
- Sea salt (optional)
Directions for the toffee:
- Combine the butter, sugar, condensed milk, and maple syrup in a medium saucepan.
- Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.
- Once the mixture is boiling, continue to stir until it is thick and golden brown (but not burned), about 5-7 minutes.
- Pour over the cooked shortbread and allow to set at least an hour or as long as overnight. (If you love caramel flavor, use all of the sauce, or use less for a thinner layer.)
- Melt the chocolate chips in a small saucepan over low heat. Spread over the cooled caramel layer, sprinkle with sea salt (if using), and cool completely. Cut into squares before serving.
