Chocolate Dulce de Leche Bars

  

  I'm not going in any order, but these were one of my favorite treats from Dessert Club.  Awfully genius, combining dulce de leche with chocolate, you know?  And then putting it on a shortbread crust.  Nothing wrong, and everything right, with that.  They are simple, but really, really perfect in their simplicity.  I just love them.

Chocolate Dulce de Leche Bars (print recipe)
Shortbread Crust:
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp salt
2 cups all-purpose flour

Chocolate Dulce de Leche:
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup dulce de leche
4 large egg yolks
5 ounces 60%-cacao bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

Make shortbread crust:
Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle. Butter a 9 x 13-inch baking pan. Line bottom and 2 sides with parchment paper, leaving an overhang. Butter parchment.

Blend together butter, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a bowl with a fork. Sift in flour and blend with fork until a soft dough forms.

Spread dough evenly in baking pan using an offset spatula or back of a spoon, then prick all over with fork.
Bake until golden, 15 to 20 minutes, then cool completely in pan on a rack, about 30 minutes.

Make chocolate dulce de leche:
Bring cream and dulce de leche to a simmer in a small heavy saucepan, stirring with a wooden spoon until dulce de leche has dissolved.

Whisk together yolks in a bowl, then slowly whisk in hot cream mixture. Return to pan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until pan is visible in tracks of spoon and mixture registers 170°F on an instant-read thermometer. Remove from heat and whisk in chocolate until melted.

Make bars:
Pour chocolate mixture over cooled shortbread and chill, uncovered, until cold and set, about 2 hours.

Recipe adapted from epicurious.com