A few months back I bought The Sweet Melissa Baking Book on complete impulse after seeing a baking group using it. I participated in the group for two weeks and then the next recipe called for ricotta. At that point, the thought of ricotta made me nauseous so I dropped out of the group and I haven’t picked up the book since then until recently.
I was thumbing through the book looking for holiday-ish recipes (because having a newborn isn’t going to be enough to keep me occupied in December apparently) and these butterscotch cashew bars called out to me. They looked so simple and I’m a sucker for anything with cashews. And a shortbread base? Oh man, I went to the store that day to get the ingredients.
I made them on a football Sunday and the pan was gone by the time our guests left. They were just gobbled up and everyone raved about them.
Butterscotch Cashew Bars
- ½ pound 2 sticks, or 1 cup butter
- 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1 & ¼ teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 & ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 11 ounces butterscotch chips
- ¾ cup light corn syrup
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon water
- 2 cups roasted salted cashews
- Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 9″x 13″ pan with cooking spray. Using two sheets of parchment paper, line the pan’s width and length, creating a parchment “sling.†Spray parchment paper with cooking spray.
- Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter, brown sugar, and salt for 1 to 1 & ½ minutes. Decrease mixer speed to low and add the flour. Mix just until combined. Lightly press dough evenly into the prepared pan. Poke holes in the dough with a fork. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the crust is a golden color. Remove to wire rack to cool.
- In a heavy saucepan over low heat, stir together butterscotch chips, corn syrup, and water. Stir until mixture comes to a simmer and butterscotch chips are melted. Pour over crust.
- Sprinkle cashews over the butterscotch caramel. Bake for 5 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack. After cooling, remove from pan and use a very sharp knife to cut into bars.
Jenny says
These look terrific – thank you for posting this!
pamela says
Great shot! I loved these bars. Thanks for reminding me that I wanted to make them for Christmas.
Eliana says
I loved making these. They were super tastey. Yours look delicious!