Homemade Twix Bars

NOSTALGIA ALERT. The holidays are some of my favorite childhood memories. I grew up in a household that celebrated both Christmas and Chanukah. Singing carols, lighting candles, watching It’s A Wonderful Life, and opening one present before bed are just a few of the things that were a tradition in my household. Although each holiday is different, one thing was always consistent: the presence of chocolate. So, in honor of the holidays, I teamed up with Aldi to create a homemade version of one of my childhood favorites. HOMEMADE TWIX BARS. The best part? All the ingredients, down to the cookware I made the Twix in, are all from ALDI. HOW CUTE is this mini copper cookware set!? It is perfect for making candy in small batches and I am obsessed with displaying it on my bookshelf. My other favorite use is for jams and sauces that I’ll add to a holiday cheese or fondue board. They’re available for a limited time starting Dec. 4th, and they’re each under $5, what a great (affordable) holiday gift for someone you know that loves to cook. It’s so awesome to be able to get everything I need in one place, save money and not worry about skimping on the quality of ingredients. That’s truly what makes ALDI so special.

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Homemade Twix Bars

Serves: 6-8 people

Active Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 25-30 minutes

Ingredients

HOMEMADE CARAMEL:

  • 3/4 c heavy Cream

  • 1/2 c sugar

  • 1/4 c brown sugar

  • 2 tbsp plus 2 tsp honey

  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

  • 1 tsp salt

SHORTBREAD:

  • 1/4 c sugar

  • 1 cup Ap flour

  • 6 tbsp butter room temp

  • 1/2 t salt

CHOCOLATE:

  • 1/2 c chocolate

  • 1/4 c heavy cream

  • Flaky sea salt

Steps:

MAKE THE SHORTBREAD: Preheat your oven to 350°F. Combine butter and sugar in a stand mixture, about 1 minute. Add in flour and salt, combine until crumbly. Turn out a surface and continue to mix by hand until combined, about 1-2 minutes.

In a small parchment lined pan (I used 7x5 inch but you can also use a cupcake pan but if you do, grease the pan instead of using parchment), add a half inch layer of shortbread.

Cook for 7-10 minutes until lightly golden brown, set aside to cool.

MAKE THE CARAMEL: In a small pot over a medium-high heat, combine sugar, brown sugar, honey, and cream. stir the mixture continuously until all of the solids dissolve into the cream.

When the mixture begins to boil, place a lid on the top of the pot for one minute (the steam buildup will release any sugar sticking to the side of the pot. If you don’t have a lid, use a damp pastry brush and run it along the side of the pot.

Attach a candy thermometer to the pot and continue to cook , do not stir at this point, until the temp is 245°F.

Remove the caramel from the heat and add in the vanilla extract and salt. Carefully stir to combine.

Pour the caramel over the shortbread layer. Let the caramel set at room temp for 4 hrs, up to overnight.

MAKE THE CHOCOLATE: Heat cream in a small pan over a medium heat until simmering, turn off the heat, add in chopped chocolate. It is important to make sure the cream isn’t too hot or it will break the chocolate.

Let the cream and chocolate sit for 2-3 minutes, then stir together to combine. It may look weird at the start but I promise it will come together.

Pour the chocolate over the caramel layer and using an small offset spatula smooth into one layer. Top with flaky sea salt.

Let set in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes. Unmold and slice off the uneven edges. Slice into 8 plank sized pieces or any size you desire. Enjoy!

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Thank you to Aldi USA for sponsoring this post :)

SweetElena BesserComment