Espresso Caramel Bars & a "Clayton's" Post

Back in the late '70s/early '80s, here in New Zealand, we had a non-alcoholic beverage called Claytons, which at the time was marketed as "the drink you have when you're not having a drink". Pretty soon, the word "Claytons" passed into common usage to describe anything that was considered a poor imitation of, or poor substitute for, the real thing.  So I'm bringing you today a Claytons post - a poor substitute for a witty and engaging post, but I hope you will agree is better than no post at all.

Somehow this has been a very "spare time deprived" week, and I now have a back log of posts to try and churn out over the next couple of days.  So, I'm sorry to deprive you of some interesting dialogue to entertain you with, but in the interests of sharing a great recipe with you, I'm cutting straight to the chase.

This is my weekly post for I Heart Cooking Clubs, where we are cooking along with Giada de Laurentiis, who I'm pleased to see appears to be gaining popularity already with those who were initially not so enthusiastic about sharing this time with Giada.  Our theme for the week was chocolate, which was just the excuse I needed to make these Espresso Caramel Bars that I've had bookmarked for months.  As is so often the case when you keep eyeing up a recipe for months on end, you have high expectations, and of course it very often follows that the higher your expectations the greater your disappointment when you finally get around to making it.  In complete contrast to the norm however, these Espresso Caramel Bars exceeded all my expectations, and I will definitely be making these again.  Let's face it - crispy, biscuit crumb base;  ooey, gooey, slightly chewy, caramel centre;  fudgy, espresso chocolate topping - what's not to love?

Notes: 

We don't have graham crackers here in New Zealand, so I substituted digestive biscuits in the base and, in actual fact, I didn't have quite enough of those so I added a few vanilla wine biscuits in as well.  I imagine you could also make this recipe gluten-free by substituting with some gluten-free biscuits in the base.

Also, the chocolate topping calls for instant espresso powder, which I don't have.  I substituted with a 1/4 cup strong espresso which worked just fine.  I also used dark, bitter chocolate instead of the semisweet called for in the original recipe - I think this could be a bit sickly sweet with semisweet chocolate.

Lastly, I didn't sprinkle the suggested smoked sea salt over the top, because I simply didn't have any, but I can imagine that would be a nice addition.  I did, however, use regular butter instead of unsalted in the base and the caramel, which I think balances out any potential this has for being too sweet.

Espresso Caramel Bars

Adapted slightly from recipe by Giada de Laurentiis

Click here for a printable copy of this recipe

For the crust:

vegetable cooking spray

170g (6 oz) graham crackers or digestive biscuits

1/4 cup sugar

170g (1-1/2 sticks) butter, melted

For the caramel:

1/2 cup cream

113g (1 stick) butter, room temperature

1-1/2 cups brown sugar

1 tablespoon water

For the topping:

2 cups semisweet (or dark) chocolate chips

1/2 cup cream

1-3/4 teaspoons instant espresso powder or 1/4 cup strong espresso

1 teaspoon smoked sea salt, optional

Preheat oven to 175 degrees C (350 degrees F).  Spray the base of a 23 cm (9 inch) round springform tin with cooking spray, line with baking parchment, then spray the paper and sides of the tin.

Break the biscuits into the bowl of a food processor, add the sugar, and process both together until you achieve the appearance of fine breadcrumbs.  Add the melted butter, and continue to process until the mixture forms into clumps.  Tip the mixture into the prepared baking tin, and using your fingers spread it out and press gently into an even layer.  Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until the crust is just golden.  Remove and cool for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine all of the ingredients for the caramel in a medium-sized, heavy-bottomed pan.  Set over medium heat and stir until the mixture is smooth.  Bring the mixture up to a boil and then, without stirring, cook until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F (use a candy thermometer) - about 7 minutes.  Very carefully pour the hot caramel over the still warm crust.  Cool for 20 minutes, then freeze until firm - about 10 minutes.

Now to the topping.  Combine the chocolate and cream in a small bowl, set over a pan of simmering water, and stir until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth.  At this stage add either the espresso powder or liquid espresso, stirring to combine well.  Remove the baking tin from the freezer, and pour the chocolate over the top of the caramel, smoothing with a spatula.  Sprinkle the smoked sea salt over the top if you're using it, and refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm.

Remove from the fridge, and allow about 30 minutes for everything to come to room temperature.  Run a slightly wet, warm knife around the sides of the tin, between the tin and the chocolate layer, and then release the side of the tin.  Lift out of the base, remove the paper, and cut into bars or squares.  Store in an airtight container.

Interested in getting to know Giada a bit better?  Then do go and visit my friends at I Heart Cooking Clubs and see what they've all been cooking up ....

.... or check out Giada's Kitchen and many of her other titles, available from Amazon, Book Depository UK and Fishpond NZ