Yesterday's moral dilemma

Is it wrong to eat an entire batch of Millionaire's shortbread in 2 days??

I thought probably yes so have slowed down my consumption of it! After neither of my last two attempts at cakey stuff (a variation of this recipe with real banana [not great - they come out too much like mini sponge cakes!] and banana and peanut butter muffins) turned out to be particularly sweet L asked for something a bit more indulgent.

So I had a go at a Mary Berry millionaire's shortbread recipe - it is soooo good! I suspect this has something to do with the 2 tins of condensed milk in the caramel (I was very restrained and most of the tins made it into the mix, although I did end up scraping them out with a spoon when realistically there was no need for the last little bits to go in the bowl....). The caramel came out quite soft (I may not have let it boil enough before simmering) so we've kept the tub in the fridge and this has worked marvellously.

L was quite amused by the scare-mongering directions given at the start of the recipe - "Do make sure you stir the caramel mixture continuously. If you leave it for even a second it will catch on the bottom of the pan and burn (see photograph on pages 154-5)" - note to self, not an easy part of the recipe when Z is in a grumpy, needing to be held kind of mood...

Sadly the photo was of the finished article, not a burnt pan! I had a go at marbling the chocolate topping - not entirely successfully! It's just a weird melange of the 3 chocolates. Still can't really go wrong with that!



For the shortbread :
9 oz (250g) plain flour
3 oz (75g) caster sugar
6 oz (175g) butter, softened

For the caramel :
4 oz (100g) butter or margarine
4 oz (100g) light muscavado sugar
2 x 14 oz (397g) tins of condensed milk

For the topping :
7 oz (200g) plain or milk chocolate, melted

Pre-heat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Lightly grease a 13" x 9" (33 x 23 cm) swiss roll tin.

Shortbread - mix the flour and caster sugar in a bowl. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Knead the mixture together until it forms a dough, then press into the base of the prepared tin. Prick the shortbread lightly with a fork (I forgot this bit and L was highly amused when I leapt from my seat out of the room screaming "I forgot to prick it!"). Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until firm to the touch and very lightly browned. Cool in the tin.

Caramel - measure the butter, sugar and condensed milk into a pan and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil, stirring continuously for about 5 minutes or until the mixture has thickened slightly. Pour over the shortbread and leave to cool.

Chocolate - pour over the cold caramel and leave to set.

Cut into squares.