Caramel shortbread, also known as caramel squares, caramel slice, millionaire's shortbread, millionaire's slice, chocolate caramel shortbread or Wellington squares is a biscuit confectionery composed of a

shortbread Shortbread or shortie is a traditional Scottish biscuit usually made from one part sugar, white sugar, two parts butter and three to four parts plain flour, plain wheat flour. Shortbread does not contain leavening, such as baking powder or bakin ...

biscuit base topped with

caramel Caramel ( or ) is a range of food ingredients made by heating sugars to high temperatures. It is used as a flavoring in puddings and desserts, as a filling in bonbons or candy bars, as a topping for ice cream and custard, and as a colorant ...

and

milk chocolate Milk chocolate is a form of solid chocolate containing Chocolate liquor, cocoa, sugar and milk. It is the most consumed types of chocolate, type of chocolate, and is used in a wide diversity of chocolate bar, bars, tablets and other confectione ...

. Variations exist which substitute or add ingredients to cater to different tastes, dietary requirements or ingredient availability.

History

Caramel shortbread is an adapted form of the original Scottish shortbread. Scottish shortbread originated around the 12th century, but its modern refined form is attributed to the efforts of

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legit ...

in the 16th century. The practice of adding additional topping or ingredients to shortbread to create unique variations dates back to at least the 19th century when candied orange peel and

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', Synonym (taxonomy)#Botany, syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree from the genus ''Prunus''. Along with the peach, it is classified in the subgenus ''Amygdalus'', distinguished from the other subgenera ...

s were added. Combinations of shortbread with caramel topping dates to at least the early 1950s. A recipe for Chocolate Caramel Crunch (Millionaires' Shortbread), with a caramel layer and chocolate top coat, was published in the Scottish Association of Young Farmers' Clubs book ''Recipes'' in 1972. The recipes in this book were contributed by Scottish members of the organisation. Recipes for the dish with a chocolate topping also appeared in Australia in the early 1970s in ''

The Australian Women's Weekly ''The Australian Women's Weekly'', sometimes known simply as ''The Weekly'', is an Australian monthly women's magazine published by Are Media in Sydney and founded in 1933. For many years it was the number one magazine in Australia before bein ...

''. The earliest of these recipes appears in 1970 in an issue of ''The Australian Women's Weekly'' under the name "Caramel Shortbread", but this version lacks the distinctive chocolate topping. Later recipes such as one from 1981 include the chocolate layer. The treat is still commonly associated with the cuisines of

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

and

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

(as well as

British cuisine British cuisine consists of the cooking traditions and practices associated with the United Kingdom, including the regional cuisines of English cuisine, England, Scottish cuisine, Scotland, Welsh cuisine, Wales, and Northern Irish cuisine, Nort ...

more generally) and is still consumed in these countries regularly. In Scotland it is often served to the first visitor to a house on New Year's Day. It is also consumed around the world, where it is known by different names. In 2018 the dessert was featured in an episode of the American television show ''

America's Test Kitchen ''America's Test Kitchen'' (originally ''America's Test Kitchen from Cook's Illustrated Magazine'') is a half-hour long American cooking show broadcast by public television stations and Create and distributed by American Public Television. Orig ...

''.

Naming

The name of the dessert varies by different regions and has varied throughout its history. This includes the aforementioned names of caramel shortbread and chocolate caramel shortbread, as well as millionaire's shortbread, caramel slice, caramel squares, or millionaire's slice. The name "millionaire's shortbread" appears to have originated in Scotland. The "millionaire" prefix to millionaire's shortbread or millionaires slice implies a level of decadence and wealth to the sweet treat, that it is an upgrade from regular shortbread.

Variations

Many different variations of caramel shortbread exist to cater to different tastes, dietary requirements, and ingredient availability. Some variants include using

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

rather than milk chocolate for the topping, adding

espresso Espresso (, ) is a concentrated form of coffee produced by forcing hot water under high pressure through finely ground coffee beans. Originating in Italy, espresso has become one of the most popular coffee-brewing methods worldwide. It is cha ...

and

hazelnut The hazelnut is the fruit of the hazel tree and therefore includes any of the nuts deriving from species of the genus '' Corylus'', especially the nuts of the species ''Corylus avellana''. They are also known as cobnuts or filberts according to ...

, substituting shortbread for Anzac biscuits, adding

raisin A raisin is a Dried fruit, dried grape. Raisins are produced in many regions of the world and may be eaten raw or used in cooking, baking, and brewing. In the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia and South Afri ...

s to the shortbread, or topping with

peanut butter Peanut butter is a food Paste (food), paste or Spread (food), spread made from Grinding (abrasive cutting), ground, dry roasting, dry-roasted peanuts. It commonly contains additional ingredients that modify the taste or texture, such as salt, ...

instead of chocolate. Some recipes adjust the recipe to cater to dietary requirements.

Gluten-free A gluten-free diet (GFD) is a nutritional plan that strictly excludes gluten, which is a mixture of prolamin proteins found in wheat (and all of its species and hybrids, such as spelt, kamut, and triticale), as well as barley, rye, and oats. ...

and

vegan Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products and the consumption of animal source foods, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. A person who practices veganism is known as a ve ...

versions exist.

References

Biscuits Shortbread {{Australian cuisine Australian cuisine Scottish cuisine New Zealand cuisine Australian desserts Scottish desserts New Zealand desserts British desserts

History

Naming

Variations

See also

References