This Caramel Slice with Shortbread Base has three seriously good layers: a buttery coconut crust, thick condensed-milk caramel, and a smooth chocolate topping. Chill the whole slab until firm, then cut it into neat little squares for an easy make-ahead dessert.
Three Layers, and Every One of Them Is Doing Its Job.Caramel slice is the kind of dessert where you look at the finished square and immediately know exactly what you’re getting.
A buttery base.
A very generous layer of caramel.
Chocolate.
I’m not sure we need to complicate the sales pitch much beyond that.
The base is somewhere between shortbread and a coconut cookie: buttery, sturdy, and just crumbly enough. The caramel is made with sweetened condensed milk and cooked on the stovetop until thick and glossy. Then everything gets covered in chocolate and sent to the refrigerator until those layers are firm enough to cut.
If buttery bases are your thing, my Shortbread Cookies use an even simpler three-ingredient dough. For more caramel, try my Salted Caramel Sauce, which is excellent when you want something pourable instead of sliceable.
And if condensed milk plus chocolate sounds like your kind of shortcut, my 3-Ingredient Chocolate Fudge is another easy square dessert. I’d happily put either one next to a mug of Homemade Hot Chocolate and call that a very successful afternoon.
Table of contents
Ingredients
How to Make Caramel Slice
- Prep the pan and oven. Line an 8×8-inch pan with parchment paper, leaving overhang for lifting. Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Mix the base. Stir melted butter and brown sugar together, then add the flour and desiccated coconut and mix until a thick, crumbly dough forms.
- Press . Press the base firmly into an even layer in the lined pan.
- Bake until lightly golden, about 18–22 minutes.
- Start the caramel. In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and stir in the brown sugar.
- Add condensed milk and thicken. Stir in the vanilla and sweetened condensed milk. Keep stirring until the mixture thickens and looks smooth and glossy, about 8–12 minutes.
- Pour and set. Pour the caramel over the baked base and spread evenly. Chill until the caramel feels firm to the touch, about 1–2 hours.
- Melt the chocolate. Melt the chocolate and stir in the vegetable oil until smooth.
- Top the bars. Pour the chocolate over the set caramel and spread into an even layer.
- Chill until firm. Refrigerate until the chocolate is set, about 45–60 minutes (or longer for the cleanest cuts).
- Slice and serve. Lift out using parchment, cut into squares with a warm, dry knife, and serve.
What Is Caramel Slice?
Caramel slice is a layered dessert bar made with a baked base, a thick caramel center, and a chocolate topping.
This version uses a coconut shortbread base and condensed-milk caramel.
Why Is My Caramel Slice Too Soft?
The caramel probably needed a little more stovetop cooking.
Before it goes over the base, the mixture should be noticeably thick and glossy—not simply warm condensed milk.
Also give it the full chilling time before deciding that it hasn’t set.
If the caramel is still very loose after several hours in the refrigerator, increasing the chill won’t completely fix a caramel that wasn’t cooked enough in the first place.
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Not lining the pan with parchment paper, which makes the slice harder to remove.
- Underbaking the biscuit base, so it stays too soft.
- Cooking the caramel too quickly and burning it.
- Not stirring the caramel constantly while it thickens.
- Pouring the chocolate layer over caramel that is still too warm.
- Cutting the slice before it has chilled and set properly.
- Using a cold knife without warming it, which can crack the chocolate top.
What To Serve With Caramel Slice
Caramel Slice is delicious served with hot coffee, tea, cold milk, vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, or fresh berries. It also pairs well with shortbread cookies, chocolate desserts, fruit platters, or a simple holiday dessert tray for parties, gifting, and afternoon treats.
FAQs
Yes. The bars will be slightly saltier, which can be really nice with the sweet caramel.
It likely needed a little more cooking time. The caramel should thicken and look glossy before you pour it.
Sugar can start out grainy if it hasn’t fully dissolved. Keep stirring over moderate heat; it often smooths as it cooks.
Yes, but you’ll want to scale the ingredients up and keep an eye on bake time. The layers should be similar thickness for best texture.
Let the bars sit at room temperature for a few minutes, then cut with a warm, dry knife. For chocolate-topped bars, warming the knife helps the chocolate topping slice more cleanly instead of cracking.
The fridge keeps the caramel firm and makes the bars easier to slice neatly.
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CARAMEL SLICE
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Line an 8×8-inch pan with parchment paper, leaving overhang. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
- In a bowl, stir melted butter and brown sugar. Add flour and desiccated coconut; mix until a thick, crumbly dough forms.
- Press the base firmly into the lined pan. Bake 18–22 minutes until lightly golden.
- For the caramel, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in brown sugar.
- Stir in vanilla and sweetened condensed milk. Cook, stirring constantly, until thick, smooth, and glossy (8–12 minutes).
- Pour caramel over the baked base and spread evenly. Chill 1–2 hours until firm.
- Melt chocolate and stir in vegetable oil until smooth.
- Pour chocolate over the set caramel and spread into an even layer.
- Chill 45–60 minutes (or longer) until the chocolate is firm.
- Lift out using parchment, slice into squares with a warm, dry knife, and serve.
Nutrition
Notes
- Use dark brown sugar for a deeper caramel flavor.
- Dark chocolate balances sweetness; milk chocolate makes the bars sweeter.
- Chill fully for the cleanest cuts. Warm the knife under hot water, wipe dry, and slice.
- If caramel is soft after chilling, cook it a bit longer next time so it thickens more on the stove.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
