Rich, sweet caramel sandwiched between two layers of buttery shortbread; these little Caramel Crumb Bars are just perfect for when you need a sweet fix!
Boy do I have a recipe for you today! This is one of those recipes that’s just perfect for those of us who have a hardcore sweet tooth! These Caramel Crumb Bars are super sweet and rich. Sticky, crumbly… everything that is right about baking.
I used Carnation Caramel for these crumb bars, so you don’t have to make the caramel either, making these ultra quick to make and meaning you’ll be biting into one of these bars in about 45 minutes.
Mind you, I would advise not being too hasty with grabbing a spoon when they first come out of the oven because I still have the burn on the roof of my mouth from the molten caramel. Ah well, it was worth it because these taste utterly divine!
Now, you may think that there are a lot of steps to this recipe compared to ingredients, but let me tell you; it’s actually so simple. All I did was press 3/4 of the shortbread mix into a lined pan, baked it for 12 minutes and then spread the caramel on the top. The last step was to crumble the remaining shortbread mix on the top before placing them back in the oven for 30 minutes.
After that you have bubbling caramel and crumbly shortbread just begging you to cut into it and devour a slice.
Sometimes I wonder how something so simple can taste so amazing. But I think it really is true sometimes that the best things in life are the simplest. This Crumb Bar recipe is also super adaptable; you could try Biscoff or Nutella as the middle layer… Biscoff is calling to me! If I wasn’t allergic to peanut butter, I’d try that too!
I’m off to make Strawberry and Mango Shortcakes; hope you enjoy these bars!
Caramel Crumb Bars
Rich, sweet caramel sandwiched between two layers of buttery shortbread; these little bars are just perfect for when you need a sweet fix and super easy to make!
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (226g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup (120g) icing/powdered sugar
- 2 1/4 cups (315g) plain/all purpose flour
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2/3 can Carnation caramel (397g/14oz can)
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 160C/325F and grease and line an 8x8 inch square pan. I spray my pans with cooking spray and then place two strips of grease proof paper into my pan; one across, and one top to bottom. This makes removal later on really easy!
Place butter and sugar into a large bowl, or the bowl of your stand mixer and beat until light and fluffy, around 2 minutes on medium-high speed.
Add in the flour, salt and vanilla, scraping down the sides as necessary, then mix on low speed until the mixture begins to come together. Turn up the mixer to medium speed until you have a soft, smooth dough.
Place 3/4 of the dough into your prepared pan and press into a level layer. I use a measuring cup sprayed with cooking spray to press mine in as it's easy and you get an even layer!
Place in the oven for 12-15 minutes until slightly puffy.
Spread 2/3 of a can of Carnation Caramel into an even layer on top of the caramel.
Crumble the remaining 1/4 of your shortbread mixture over the top of the caramel; it's perfectly fine that it doesn't completely cover the caramel, in fact that's what you want!
Place in the oven for 27-32 minutes until the caramel is bubbling and the shortbread on top is very lightly browned, but looks matte and feels a little firm to the touch.
Leave to cool completely in the pan, before running a knife around the edge of the pan and lifting out. Slice into 9-12 bars and dig in!
Caramel Crumb Bars will keep in an airtight container, at room temperature, for 5 days.
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Annie is a self-taught baker, recipe developer and food photographer. When not in the kitchen, she can be found with her head in a book or jotting down recipe ideas! 
Theses bars sound super delicious! Can’t wait to bake some.
Thanks Dan!
Holy moly those loo amazing! I should have eaten before looking at these photos. Now I want caramel for breakfast!
Haha caramel for breakfast…? Now I’m wondering how I can make caramel into a breakfast food!
I am drooling, these look delicious
Thanks so much!
My friend would love these! Especially the caramel part 🙂
Thank you! 😀
OMG these look so good!
Thanks so much Jean! 😀
These look so good! A must-make for dessert at my next BBQ!
Thanks so much Whitney, let me know if you try them!
Those look totally decadent! I’m giving these a try! Love the shortbread for the crumble and crust!
Thanks so much, somehow having shortbread on the top and bottom blew my mind and I was like “WOAH these are good!”
Oh wow! Caramel is a favorite of mine and it sounds perfect layered with shortbread. I would love to try these with biscoff too!
I’ve made them with Biscoff too and they’re just as good! Oh my gosh, I love biscoff so much!! :O
Anything sweet and especially caramel has my heart. This looks easy to make too. Thanks I’ll have to make this for the family.
Very easy! Hope you give them a try 🙂
Oh they look so yummy! Would like one right now 😉
Thanks so much! 😀
These look really amazing! I am totally going to have to try these out!
Thank you! 😀
omg these look delicious. I can’t wait to try the recipe
Thanks so much!
Those look so so good!! I love shortbread and my hubs loves caramel, so we’d both enjoy these!!
Best of both worlds! Hope you give them a try, let me know how you like them!
I don’t think these pictures could be any better! Looking forward to trying these, burned mouth and all!
Thanks so much Sandra! 😀
These look delicious! Perfect with coffee or a glass of milk milk. 🙂
Thank you so much! 😀
Oh yum, these look great and I like how easy they are to make! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Thank you!
I gotta bookmark this, I just told Aunt Lily I’m craving for a caramel bar and this is exactly what I meant! Gee, thanks!
Pammy – joyfulsource.com
Hope you get to try them some time!
Your pictures are gorgeous! And these sound like a treat my husband would love!
Thank you so much Lisa! 😀
These sound so good right now. I have started making desserts for ‘game night’ and this is now at the top of my list. Also, thanks for sharing how long they will keep for, you know, for when I hold a few back to keep for myself 🙂
I like the way you think! I always keep back desserts for myself haha!! 🙂
These Caramel Crumb Bars look amazing! Thanks so much for sharing your great post with us at Full Plate Thursday, I really appreciate you sharing with us!
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen