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Super simple, extra delicious, and perfectly sweet Chocolate Covered Brown Butter Millionaire’s Bars. Easy shortbread, made with nutty brown butter, baked and layered with caramelized sweetened condensed milk caramel, with hints of luscious vanilla throughout. Each sweet bar is then covered in chocolate and finished with a sprinkle of flaky sea salt. Similar to a classic Millionaire’s Bar…but with some extra special touches that make them even more delectable. These sweet little bars are perfect for the holidays so be sure to include them on your Christmas table or in your upcoming Christmas cookie boxes. Your friends and family will be so glad you did!
An extra sweet Tuesday present for you guys in the form of the most delicious brown butter Millionaire’s Bars. Buttery shortbread, topped with chewy, buttery caramel, then covered in rich, creamy milk chocolate, and finished with just the right amount of sea salt.
Two simple words…incredibly delicious.
A Millionaire’s Bar, but better.
And just what is a Millionaire’s Bar? Well, these bars got their name because they taste so rich. From what I’ve read, they originated in Scotland, but have since become very popular worldwide. To me, they seem similar to a Twix Bar or 100 Grand Bar. Either way, they’re truly delicious.
And while my recipe is not traditional, it’s the same concept, just all done up for the holidays.
Soo, that’s the backstory on these bars. But the bottom line – they’re delicious. And very easy to make!!
The idea, the inspiration, and all my thoughts.
As always, I spend a lot of time thinking about what recipes to share with you guys, but especially my holiday recipes. These are my favorite recipes of the year, so I want them to be extra special. Each and every single one. Because of this, I tend to take way too long brainstorming, developing, and styling each recipe, but it’s worth it to me.
And that was the case with these. I had seen Millionaire Bars on Pinterest. I immediately thought about how cute they could be if made as mini chocolate covered presents. And what a great item to include in a cookie box too!
So I did some digging and then some testing and here is where I landed.
Now onto the details.
Start with the shortbread. I just kept it simple, but I did brown the butter, which is really key to adding delicious flavor to an otherwise flavorless base. Don’t skip! The nutty browned butter pairs so nicely with the flavors of the caramel.
Once the shortbread layer has baked, start the caramel. This is not your average caramel. In fact, it’s actually caramelized condensed milk, which might just be better. It’s sweet, chewy, buttery, and made with just the right amounts of vanilla and salt. And the best part? It’s so easy to make. Just boil the condensed milk until thick and golden in color. It takes about fifteen minutes. You need to stir the mixture often, but there’s nothing fancy or complicated about this caramel.
It’s easy and delicious.
Once the caramel has turned thick and golden in color, immediately pour it over the shortbread and spread it in an even layer. At this point, chill the bars to help the caramel set up. Then cut the bars into cute little rectangles or squares and cover them entirely in chocolate.
Yummm. My mom says this recipe might be one of her favorites for the year. She’s been trying to avoid sugar the last few years. But said to me this morning in a text, and I quote…
“So much for me saying…I don’t really eat sugar anymore…your cookies have completely blown that…thanks so much!”
So you see? These really are that good.
A Couple Tips For Success…
Tip one, make sure the bars are thoroughly chilled before dipping them into chocolate. This is probably my biggest tip. If the bars are frozen, the chocolate will quickly set up on the bars and be easier to work with. Trust me, freeze the bars, then dip them through the melted chocolate.
Tip two, if you want a thick chocolate-coated bar, dip your bars once, re-freeze until set (which will only take a matter of minutes), then dip in chocolate again. This is not NEEDED, but it sure is a good idea. Double the chocolate, please.
My initial thought was that these chocolate presents will be great for our Christmas Cookie Boxes. But that’s when I realized how late into December it’s already becoming.
I’m recognizing just now, as I type this, that I’m a little late this year. Late with what? Late with my 2020 Christmas Cookie Box. I’m not sure why, but I was thinking I had time to post this and get it up for you all. But in looking at my calendar, I’m realizing, I am actually behind. My plan is to get my box up by the end of the week, so be on the lookout for that!
Until then, enjoy these cute little “presents” and start prepping them to include in this year’s cookie boxes. Trust me, everyone you gift these to is going to find them delish!
Or? Simply make them for yourself. It’s December and we all need sweet treats! Just one thing…don’t skip that sprinkle of flaky sea salt at the end. Love a good salty, sweet chocolate dessert, you know?
Yes, yes, let’s take some time to do a little Tuesday night baking. It’s cold, so the extra time next to the oven is always welcome. Enjoy!
Looking for other holiday dessert recipes? Here are my favorites:
Salted Caramel and Milk Chocolate Brownies
Salted Milk Chocolate and Peanut Butter Blondies
Slice n’ Bake Bourbon Caramel Pretzel Cookies
Lastly, if you make these Chocolate Covered Brown Butter Millionaire’s Bars be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Chocolate Covered Brown Butter Millionaire's Bars
Servings: 48 squares or 24 bars
Calories Per Serving: 213 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Shortbread
- 2 sticks (16 tablespoons) salted butter, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup dark brown sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
Caramel
- 2 (14 ounce) cans sweetened condensed milk
- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) salted butter
- 1/4 cup real maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 24 ounces semi-sweet or milk chocolate, chopped
- 2 tablespoon coconut oil
- flaky sea salt
Instructions
- 1. Add 1 stick butter to a small saucepan set over medium heat, cooking until the butter begins to brown, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer to a heatproof bowl. Stick in the freezer to chill, 10-15 minutes, but no longer.2. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a 9x13 inch baking dish with parchment paper. 3. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the remaining stick of butter, the cooled browned butter, brown sugar, and vanilla until creamy. Add the flour and mix until fully combined. Press the dough into the prepared baking dish. Bake 20-22 minutes, until lightly golden and toasted. Remove from the oven and let cool.4. To make the caramel. In a medium pot, combine the sweetened condensed milk, butter, and maple. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking consistently. Cook the mixture until it turns golden brown in color and has thickened, about 15-20 minutes. Make sure to stir often to avoid burning the milk. Little brown bits are OK. Remove from the heat and whisk in the vanilla. Immediately pour the caramel over the shortbread and spread in an even layer. Transfer to the fridge to chill, at least 1 hour or 30 minutes in the freezer. 5. Melt the chocolate and coconut oil together in the microwave until melted and smooth. 6. Cut the bars into 24 rectangle bars or 48 square bars. Freeze another 10 minutes to make dipping easier, then cover/dip each bar in chocolate. Return to the freezer to let the chocolate set up, about 10 minutes. Keep stored in a cool dry place or in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
This post was originally published on December 8, 2020
I do not have coconut oil or flaky sea salt
Hey Karen,
You can use butter in place of the coconut oil and skip the flaky sea salt. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
Together with my daughter we tried this recipe. It is not so difficult and tastes amazing. Probably with a second try we can make the bars a bit more rectangular ?
Hey Xavier,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
The crust completely crumbled after I put it in fridge to cool with the carmel on top. I followed instructions exactly so not sure what happened!
Hey Sarah,
So sorry about this! Shortbread does tend to crumble more, next time try using 2 sticks of softened butter in place of the brown butter. I hope this helps, please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
Thank you for clarifying! Given the way the recipe is written it’s unclear (especially given that the quantity of butter is totalled differently) so I was very happy to see it clarified in the comments 🙂
Thanks Fraser!
Loved these! My caramel didn’t turn out as “caramel-y” as I would like, but I attribute that to user error, not the recipe. I will definitely make these again!
Hey Nicole,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am so glad it worked out for you! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
These bars are phenomenal! I gifted them to friends on a cookie tray and everyone is asking for the recipe. Thank you for sharing, Tiegan! It is a keeper! Quick question: do you think I could double the recipe and make them on a jelly roll pan? I know they would be a tad thinner, but just curious about your thoughts. I need to scale up. My husband wants to gift them to his office staff and I need to make quite a few batches. I’m just trying to shorten my prep time. Merry Christmas!
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe, thanks so much for giving it a try! Yes, that should work! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
Hi Tieghen!!
These were delish!! Only issue I had was getting my chocolate to set so they could be put out at room temp. I want to make them for our cookie exchange but don’t want them sweating either. Any ideas? Thank you!!
Hey Kelli,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try! Did you add the coconut oil to the chocolate? This is key for creating the chocolate “shell”. I hope this helps! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
These were so amazing!!!! I’m going to have to make another batch to send to my friends and family because I ate waaaaay to many of them on my own. Posting a pic on Instagram soon. 🙂 Thanks Tieghan!
Hey Emma,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am so glad it worked out for you! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
A bit too rich, I liked the shortbread and the chocolate but felt like the cream/caramel was too much. Also, we struggled with the dipping process.
Hey Kristen,
Thanks for giving the recipe a try!! xTieghan
These taste AMAZING! Quite a few steps with the freezing but worth it and a very simple recipe that looks impressive. The only problem I had was the chocolate seemed to sweat and didn’t stay completely hard once they reached room temperature. Any tips?
Hey Erin,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try! Adding the coconut oil to the chocolate is key to achieve that chocolate “shell”. I hope this helps! xTieghan
These are so easy and addictive!
I would think that they would also be good with coconut added to make them like a mounds bar.
Have you tried making them that way?
When would I add the coconut to the caramel mixture?
Hey Kevin,
I am so glad you have enjoyed this recipe! Sorry I have not tested these with caramel, I would sprinkle it on top of the caramel mixture. Please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
These turned out perfect! I did keep them in the refrigerator overnight. Once cut I placed them in the freezer for about 2 hours before dipping in chocolate. Only one loose crumb made it into the chocolate!
Hey Amy,
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe, thanks so much for giving these a try! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
How long do you microwave the chocolate and coconut oil to melt them without scorching them?
Hey Rebecca,
I microwave on 30 second increments! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
This recipe was so easy to follow! They turned out so well and were so delicious! Was a definite crowd pleaser.
Hey Torri,
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe, thanks so much for giving it a try! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
Hi there,
I just made the shortbread layer and, as others have noted, it’s not enough dough to fully cover the bottom of a 9×13 pan. Are you sure the measurements are correct?
Hey India,
Yes, the measurements are correct, you just have to use your hands to press the shortbread all around the pan. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy Holidays! xTieghan