Salted Caramel Cardamom Shortbread

Makes: 12
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 30 – 35 minutes
Chill time: 1 hour

Ingredients

For the shortbread:

• 175g unsalted butter 75g caster sugar
• 1 vanilla pod, split and seeds scraped out
• 225g plain flour

For the caramel:

• 1 tin carnation caramel
• 1tsp sea salt
• 8 cardamom pods crushed to release seeds

For the topping:

• 400g dark or milk chocolate

How to make

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C (fan assisted) /180°C / Gas mark 4 and line a 20cm square cake tin with greaseproof paper.
2. In a food processor blitz together the flour, sugar, butter and vanilla seeds to make a dough. Press the dough into your tin and prick all over with a fork. Bake the dough for six minutes, then reduce the temperature of the oven to 130°C (fan assisted) /150°C / Gas mark 2 and bake for a further 30 – 35 minutes.
3. For the caramel, warm the caramel in a pan and add the sea salt and crushed cardamom seeds. Pour the caramel mixture over the shortbread. Chill in the fridge until the caramel has cooled and hardened slightly.
4. For the topping, melt the chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Once melted, pour the chocolate over the caramel. Chill in the fridge again until the chocolate has set, then cut into squares.