I like chocolate – in moderation. I’ve sort of chocolate-d myself out lately, so I needed a break from it. I decided to focus on caramel this week instead. These bars were inspired by an ice cream sundae. I found myself ordering the sundae, eating the caramel and cashews, and then just picking at the ice cream. So, I decided to try to recreate the dessert minus the ice cream. Now, it may sound like these bars would be too salty (salted butter, salted cashews, pinch of salt on top), but they need the salt to balance out all of the sugar in these guys. Otherwise, the bars would taste really sweet and sort of flatly boring. The salt keeps interesting. Mini science digression – salt allows you to more fully taste sugar, so it tastes better with a bit of salt. The day that we talked about baking and taste in chemistry was the day that chemistry finally started to be interesting for me. While we’re talking about salt, please don’t use regular table salt on top of these bars. It has smaller grains and is saltier than a finishing salt like fleur de sel, so they may end up too salty if you use iodized (table) salt.
Ingredients
Directions
- Preheat oven to 300 F. Line an 8x8-inch pan with parchment paper. Lightly grease the parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together butter, sugar, salt, and vanilla until well-combined.
- Stir in flour until just incorporated.
- Press crust evenly into prepared pan.
- Prick the crust with a fork all over the base.
- Bake for 25-35 minutes, or until edges are golden brown and middle is light golden brown.
- Remove crust from oven, and top with cashews.
- Pour caramel evenly over cashews and crust.
- Return to oven for 1 minute.
- Remove from oven, and sprinkle with a pinch of fleur de sel.
- Let bars cool to room temperature.
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Many of your dessert recipes call for a mixer w/a paddle attachment…I don’t own a mixer or any attachments, I own a beater and mixing spoons, and that’s it…can anything else be used in place of this appliance?
Yes! I write it that way because that’s what I use, but, many times, a hand mixer or by hand would also work just fine (like on this recipe you could use a hand mixer or stir the crust dough together by hand). For the bread doughs, you could mix many of them by hand, too. If you have any questions on any other recipes, please let me know! You can also email me because sometimes the new comments don’t show up right away on my end. =)
Thank You for the info.! :)
Any time! Like I said, please let me know if you have any other questions! =)
Thank you for entering these at the Top Recipe Showcase for March 2013. My nuts of choice are always cashews so I like this.
Bintu @ Recipes From A Pantry recently posted…Wild Garlic and Chickpea Curry
Thanks!! =)
It looks so sinfully good!
Thanks!! =)
Congratulations!
Your recipe is featured on Full Plate Thursday this week. Enjoy your new Red Plate and have a great weekend.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
Thank you so much! That’s wonderful!! =)
These look awesome. Thanks for sharing on Foodie Friends Friday and I hope you join us again this coming week. Pinning these to my recipes that caught my attention board.
Thanks!! And thanks for pinning and for hosting! =)
You are featured this week on Busy Monday at A Pinch of Joy! I hope you will stop by and grab a Featured Button from the Button Box on the sidebar. Pinned. Can’t wait to see what else you’ve been working on!
Awesome!! Thank you so much!!! =)
They look amazingly delicious! Thanks for linking up to my Linky Party!
Thanks! And thanks for hosting!! =)
Looks wonderful! Thanks for sharing at Two Cup Tuesday at Pint Sized Baker. I’ve pinned it!
Thanks!! And thanks for pinning and for hosting! =)
I’m not sure I’ve ever been chocolated out, but I could totally go for one of these bars! ;)
Thanks for linking up to What’s Cookin’ Wednesday!
Yeah…I tend to go a little crazy with the sweets and overdo it =). Thanks for hosting and for stopping by!
These sound and look delicious. Would love to have you link up to my ‘Saturday Sparks’ party if you get a chance.
Thanks for sharing,
Suzanne
Pieced Pastimes
Thanks!! I’m always up for a new link party!! Thanks for the invite! =)
Hi Kate,
I can’t wait to have this awesome Caramel Cashew Bar, I can almost taste it already. Hope you are having a great weekend and thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
Thanks so much, Miz Helen! I hope you have a great weekend, too!! =)
Yum! Thanks so much for sharing! I’ve featuring this today on my blog.
Thanks so much for the feature! That’s awesome!! =)
Love love love your blog! I love salty and sweet treat, so Im def going to try this recipe….
I hope you will link up with me here:
http://www.thegingerbreadblog.com/2013/03/sweet-saturday-link-party-v-68.html
Thank you so much!! You and I are kindred dessert spirits – I love salty sweet treats, too!! I’d love to link up at your party! Thanks!! =)
Yum, these look so delicious. Thanks for sharing at my weekend link party The Weekend re-Treat!
Hope you have a fantastic rest of the weekend!
Thanks!! Hope you have a great week, too!! =)
Salty and sweet, crunchy and chewy? This is the PERFECT flavor combination! I’m going to have to make this very soon. :)
If you haven’t already, I’d love if you’d come join my How To Tuesday link party, too.
http://housewifehowtos.com/link-party-2/how-to-tuesday-link-party-10/
I hope you enjoy them! The bars are kinda like a giant candy bar. I haven’t linked up, but I would love to come and join your party on Tues! Thanks for the invite and for stopping by!! =)
These look amazing! I love caramel and cashews! Thanks for sharing! PInning! Have a great weekend.
Nici
Thanks!! I hope you enjoy these bars! =)
These sound amazing, to bad hubby is on a diet and I’m supporting him…but I could bring them into work ;) Found you on the Whats Shaken Linky
Good for you for supporting him! These are definitely not diet food (unless you just ate one bite)! Thanks for stopping by! =)
These look spectacular! I want to make some right now even though it is almost 11 at night!
Thanks!! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve started to make something long after I should’ve gone to bed! =)
Seriously, those look like the best thing ever! Caramel and cashews are the best combinations. Beautiful, I had to pin! Thanks for sharing, hope to see you at True Aim!
Thanks so much!! And thanks for pinning! =)
Wow these look and sound amazing. I need to make these for sure! Pinning!
Hugs,
Marcie
Thanks!! I hope you enjoy them!! =)
These look soooooo good – I will have to give them a try but use a gluten free flour. The pictures are making very hungry! Hope you can stop by the enchanted oven for a visit.
xo,
Lisa
Thanks! I hope they work out using gluten-free flour!!! =)
There just aren’t enough desserts out there featuring cashews! Well done. They sound like sweet and salty heaven!
Thanks!! I totally agree – cashews just don’t get the attention they deserve!
Oh, My. These look great and i am making them ASAP. That whole salty sweet thing…LOVE!
Anne @ circusberry.wordpress.com
Me too!! Sweet and salty is the best! I hope you enjoy these bars!! =)
I love that this uses cashews instead of peanuts, my husband’s favorite nut. Thank you so much for sharing with Saturday Spotlight. Have a great week and come back soon!
They’re my husband’s favorite nut, too!! =) I hope you enjoy them! Thanks for hosting, and have a great night!
This looks like something my boyfriend would LOVE (he’s a freak who actually doesn’t like chocolate, but loves caramel and everything cashew). I just wanted to ask, for the salted caramel sauce, how much does the linked recipe yield? Does a batch of it give you pretty much the 2c needed for the bars or is there extra? Thanks :)
That’s awesome! I hope you two both enjoy these!! =) I had extra; it makes just over 3 cups. I just put the extra in a jar in the fridge and heated it up as needed. We ate it pretty quickly, so I’m not sure how long the extra sauce will keep, though.
These look like a winner. I’m going to make them for my hubby who doesn’t like chocolate ~ go figure. But we both love nuts and caramel so we’ll be able to down these, no problem. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Thanks! I love caramel as an alternative to chocolate desserts. I hope you two enjoy these bars!! =)
Wow!! These look so good! My husband would love these! Thanks for sharing:)
Thanks!! I hope you two enjoy them!! =)
ummm yep… those look awesome!!! Thanks for linking up to Tasteful Tuesdays @ Nap-Time Creations. So glad you stopped by! Emily
Thanks!! Thanks so much for hosting =)
I don’t think I could ever chocolate myself out but I sure would love some of these!
Haha! I had really (really!!) overdone it. I hope you enjoy them!! =)
these look fantastic! found you through trick or treat tuesday!
Thanks!! And thanks for stopping by! =)
OHHHH YUM!!!! This sounds amazing!!! Found you through Jam Hands Link Up Party! Looking forward to following along! Would love for you to check out my site… http://lemoinefamilykitchen.blogspot.com
Angela
Thanks!! =) I will pop over and say hi at your site, too!
Over from Flour Me….
these look so good…am bookmarking.
Would follow but don’t see a Google Friends link.
Thanks! I will have to look into Google Friends and get on there! I’m on Hello Cotton, Blog Lovin’, Google+, FB, Pinterest, and have a RSS feed if you would like to follow my blog.
My favorite nut and I love gooey. Thank you for sharing this recipe. I never made this kind of recipe before. There’s alway a first.
We may have met by chance…but we become friends by choice.
http://simpleesue.com/frivolous-friday-soup-kitchen-recipes-best-ever-vegetable-soup
These bars are sort of like a big candy bar. Hope you enjoy them!! =)
Two of my favorite things together–salted caramel and cashews! I have to try them! They look sooooo good.
Thanks!!! I hope you enjoy them!! =)
Yum! Cashews and caramel! Two of my favorite things. How can this not be good? Visiting from a pinteresting party. Just pinned!
Oh my goodness, these look SO good! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you!! =)
I LOVE cashews & these look absolutely delicious! Would love for you to come share this & any other recipes over at Sweet & Savory Saturdays! http://dessertnowdinnerlater.blogspot.com/2013/02/sweet-savory-saturdays-1.html
Hope to see you there!
~Amber @ Dessert Now, Dinner Later!
Thanks! I would love to come by and share this!! =)
These look amazing! I’ve pinned them to try later. I’m visiting from Too Much Time on my Hands.
Thanks so much!! I hope you enjoy them! =)
Y U M ! :)
These are not the kind of recipes that I want to read in the middle of the night. It looks so good! I think I’ll pick up some cashews in the morning ;)
Haha! I thought you were going in a different direction when I started reading your comment. They were pretty delicious – a lot like a big, caramel/cashew candy bar. =)
Wow, my husband would LOVE these! So glad you posted this…. now I can make him a special treat and he’ll think I’m a wonderful wife. Well, he already does but I will be even more awesome in his eyes :)
Thanks!! I hope you both enjoy them! They earned me a few awesome wife point, too!! =)
These sound delicious! I will be making them next week. I’ve made salted peanut bars before and while they were good, none were just right. Some were too sticky and some were too cakey. I love shortbread and love cashews – this combo sounds just perfect with the saltiness. Knowing me, I will also try them with my absolute favorite nut – almonds. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Thanks!! These have a lot of caramel on them, so if you don’t like them to be too sticky, you may want to cut the caramel back by 1/4 or 1/2 cup. Using almonds would be a great idea, too! I hope you like them!!! =)