Shortbread + Caramel + Chocolate=Bliss

I found this great recipe in my favorite online recipe source allrecipes.com for caramel shortbread squares, it looked good and was fairly easy to make plus I had all the ingredients on hand. Tweaked it a little by adding rice krispies to the caramel layer for added crunch. I baked the shortbread and then cooled it in the freezer, then cooked the caramel layer and poured it on the crust and chilled it for 8 hours before melting chocolate chips and spreading a very thin layer. I took one bite and gave the trimmings to my brother. Oh what bliss!!! The saltiness of the butter in the shortbread cuts through the sweetness of the caramel and chocolate--yummy!!!

SHORTBREAD:

2/3 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup white sugar

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees farenheit. Line bottom and sides of a 9 inch square pan with aluminum foil. In a stainless steel bowl, Mix together the ingredients until they are crumbly being careful not to overwork butter. Press evenly on the bottom of lined pan. Bake for 20 minutes. Cool and set aside, do not take out of baking pan.

CARAMEL CENTER:

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

2 tablespoons corn syrup

1/2 cup condensed milk

Combine butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and condensed milk in a pan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. Do not leave pan--mixture has tendency to burn. Cook until mixture is thickened, about 5 minutes. Take off heat and pour in rice krispies. Mix well. Pour over cooled shortbread. Refrigerate to make it firm for at least 2 hours.

TOPPING:

1/2 cup chocolate chips

Melt chocolate chips in the microwave for 1 minute. Spread evenly on caramel layer. Cut into small squares.