Toasted Almond Shortbread Bars:
I love poking through old recipes in search of a gem of a recipe. I think I found a gem, and a real treat when I saw this recipe in a stack of hand-written recipes from another era. These toasted almond shortbread bars have one of my favorite sweeteners – honey. There is something very satisfying about the combination of almonds and honey. Once I made these bars, I knew my hunch was correct. They have just the right amount of sweetness and are delicious. Another delicious bar is the Chocolate Caramel Crunch Bars or my Chocolate Layer Bars.
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What ingredients do I need for these Toasted Almond Shortbread bars.
You will need the basic sugar, flour, and butter plus an egg yolk for the shortbread. This is the base for the bar. Press the bottom layer into the pan. Make a little lip around the edge of the pan. This keeps the topping from running down the sides of the pan. This results in your bars sticking to the pan.
The topping is butter, milk, sugar, honey, almonds. You can use either sliced (my favorite) or slivered almonds. Don’t use whole almonds.
How to Make Toasted Almond Shortbread Bars.
Shortbread Layer
- Make the bottom layer (shortbread) by mixing together the flour, sugar, and butter in a food processor. You want the mixture to resemble coarse crumbs. If you overmix it a bit, break the dough back into pieces.
- Add the egg and vanilla and mix in. Scatter the dough in the bottom of your baking pan.
- Then press the crumbs or pieces onto the bottom of the pan to form a shortbread layer.
- Bake this layer until golden brown
Toasted Almond Layer
Make the Toasted Almond Layer:
- Combine the butter and milk in a saucepan. Heat on medium until the butter is melted.
- Add the sugar, honey, and almonds – stir to mix together.
- Spread the mixture over the browned shortbread and bake another 20 – 25 minutes until the topping is a golden brown.
- Let cool for about 10 minutes and cut into pieces while it is still warm and a little soft to make it easier to cut.
- If you let it cool completely, it will be very crunchy when you cut it. I recommend using a parchment sling if you want to let it cool completely before cutting it. The parchment sling lets you easily remove the toasted almond shortbread bars from the pan.
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Toasted Almond Shortbread Bars
Equipment
Ingredients
Shortbread
- ½ cup salted butter (113g)
- 1¼ cup all-purpose flour (150g)
- ¼ cup sugar(50g)
- 1 egg yolk beaten
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Filling
- 3 tbsp butter(42g)
- 2 tbsp milk
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 cup sliced almonds(86g)
Instructions
Shortbread
- In a food processor add the butter, flour, and sugar. Process until mixture just starts to come together.
- Put the mixture in a bowl and add the beaten egg yolk and vanilla. Form a ball with the dough, wrap in plastic wrap, and put in the fridge for 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 325°F.
- Press the dough evenly onto the bottom and sides of a 9 X 9-inch baking pan. Form a ½ inch rim.
- Bake until golden brown about 30 minutes.
Filling
- In a small saucepan heat the butter and milk until the butter is melted.
- Add the sugar, honey, and almonds. Stir to mix in.
- Spread filling over the warm shortbread.
- Bake another 20 - 30 minutes until it is a rich brown color.
- Let cool for 10 minutes and cut into triangles in the pan.
- If you use a parchment sling you can let the bars cool completely, then easily remove them from the pan and cut into triangles.
