Caramel Bars (a la Max’s Restaurant)

You can’t stop eating these chewy, milky and buttery Caramel Bars. These are addictive dessert squares that you need to make right now.

Nothing thrills me like getting recipe inspirations everywhere. We attended a children’s birthday party last month, and one of the desserts is a tray of golden squares, like cookie bars or blondies. I grabbed a couple of pieces and to my surprise, those squares are nothing like cookies or blondies.

They are soft yet chewy, milky, and buttery. Those plain-looking squares nestle a decadent crumb. One that I am craving and yearning for like, forever.

And our friend says they are called Caramel Bars, after our inquiry a few days later. It seems as though I have summoned their existence in my life.

You see, I have been gifted a package of the commercial version of these when I went for a vacation in the Philippines. Since then, I have been trying to re-create them without success. I don’t even know what they were called. But that moment, that night was meant to be.

Caramel bars and I were meant to cross paths. And now my friends, we have the Caramel Bars recipe on the blog. I was so so happy that I ate 70% of the entire batch (Not kidding!)

I hope you enjoy these delicious little gems. They are highly addictive and they are very simple to make. The next time you want a simple treat, You really have to try this.

Let’s Make Caramel Bars

Cream the Margarine and Sugar. In a mixing bowl, cream together softened margarine and sugar until fluffy and creamy. Add in the egg yolks, beating them one at a time, just until combined.

Add the Dry Ingredients and the Condensed Milk. In a bowl, combine the flour and milk powder. Add this mixture gradually into the mixing bowl and beat briefly , alternating it with the condensed milk. Do not overbeat. Beat just until the powders are incorporated.

Pour and scrape the batter into a parchment-lined 9×13 pan. Level and smooth the top with a spatula.Top with flaked almond slices. You can use pili nuts (if its available where you are).

Bake for 30-35 minutes at 350 F or until the top is lightly golden and the edges are starting to brown. Let it cool completely before slicing into squares.

Pointers and Tips

• Milk powder. Milk powder can be very fine ( like Nido, in the Philippines) or a bit coarse, like skim milk here in Canada. Because of this, your batter consistency may vary. Either way, the cake will still come out fudgy and chewy but the batter made with Nido will be more smooth and shiny ( I used skim milk).
• Nuts. I used sliced almonds but you can easily sub cashews, pecans, pili nuts or walnuts. Just make sure they are chopped or sliced into little pieces.
• Let the cake cool completely before slicing. The cake will firm up more as it cools so it slices nicely by then. As it cools, the caramel bars will redistribute its moisture giving it that chewy, fudgy texture.
• Store leftover bars in a glass container with a tight lid. May I recommend again, a glass cake dome! 🙂 It truly keeps your baked goods fresh within reasonable time.

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