Cashew Caramel Shortbread Bars
Cashew Caramel Shortbread Bars have a buttery shortbread layer topped with homemade caramel, crunchy cashews, and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt.
If you’ve been around here before, then it’s probably no surprise to you that I love making cookies and bars. I love making them all year round, so when it finally comes time for holiday baking, I get extra excited because it means everyone else is jumping in on the baking bandwagon with me.
Every November and December, I fill my kitchen with recipe successes and failures for every type. Then, I can share the best of what comes out of my kitchen with you. Then, you have all you need to make the best treats, ready to share with your friends and family for the holidays.
Now, it’s not even December yet, but I can definitely tell you that these Cashew Caramel Shortbread Bars are going to be a standout. Buttery shortbread topped with luscious homemade caramel, crunchy Planters cashews, and a sprinkle of sea salt. What more could you want?
I know some folks are anti-nuts in their baked goods, but I love nuts. I can snack on cashews all day…and I definitely did while making this recipe. While they are fantastic on their own, this recipe helps their buttery flavor shine.
The buttery shortbread crust is only made with just three ingredients: butter, sugar, and flour. It provides a delicious base for the bars that is sturdy enough for the caramel but soft enough to melt in your mouth.
We pour homemade caramel over the cashews on top of the cooled crust. A few more minutes in the oven helps the caramel get firm and chewy.
I waited for the bars to cool completely (painful, I tell you) and added a sprinkle of fleur de sel. This adds a hint of saltiness to help play with the sweetness of the caramel.
Of course, if you’re not into the salty-sweet thing as much as I am, skip it! You could also use mixed nuts instead of the cashews if you want more variety in your life and your desserts.
Just one of these Cashew Caramel Shortbread Bars will satisfy your sweet tooth. Add them to this year’s holiday baking list and you can be the star of the cookie exchange. Enjoy!
Want more delicious cookie bars?
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These Brown Butter Shortbread with Dark Chocolate + Sea Salt are made with high-quality ingredients to create a delicious shortbread cookie that’s the perfect addition to any holiday party. Dark chocolate and flaky sea salt make this shortbread even more irresistible!
Chocolate Hazelnut Magic Bars
These Chocolate Hazelnut Magic Bars are a new flavor twist on a classic cookie bar. The crust is kept naturally gluten-free with hazelnut flour. A gooey chocolate hazelnut spread filling and topping made of chocolate chips, flaked coconut, and hazelnuts takes these bars over the top!
Cashew Caramel Shortbread Bars
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 60 minutes
- Yield: 16 bars 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Cashew Caramel Shortbread Bars have a buttery shortbread layer topped with homemade caramel, crunchy cashews, and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt.
Ingredients
For the shortbread
- 2/3 cup butter, softened
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
For the caramel
- 3/4 cups white sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, roughly cut into pieces
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cups salted roasted cashews
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350°F. Line a 9-inch square pan with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, mix together 2/3 cup butter, white sugar, and flour until evenly crumbly. Press into the lined 9-inch square baking pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until light golden brown. Remove from oven but keep it on. Let the crust cool while you prepare the caramel cashew layer.
- Place sugar in a nonstick saucepan over medium-high heat. Let stand until the bottom layer of sugar begins to melt, then start stirring, continuing to stir until sugar has turned light brown in color and smooth in texture.
- Remove the pan from the heat and pour in the heavy cream, being careful of it splattering. Stir constantly until mixture is smooth, about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the butter, vanilla extract, and salt.
- Quickly stir in the cashews while the caramel is still hot. Pour the mixture into pan over the crust. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the caramel is all bubbling.
- Let cool completely before cutting. Cut into 16 bars.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, in the refrigerator for a week, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
I love cashews and these bars look scrumptious!
Such a fan of the shortbread/caramel combo! These look so decadent…I am drooling!
I love the salty-sweet combination so much, and these shortbread bars look so delicious! What a great way to use the Planter’s nuts. Pinned!
Oh god, Rachel. I swear I’ve just gained five pounds by looking at these bars. I LOVE cashews and I LOVE shortbread and I LOVE caramel and I’m just going to continue capitalizing LOVE because I really want to make a point here. Absolutely amazing!!
I absolutely love nuts in baked good. Even when I eat chocolate bars I prefer there so be some almonds in there.. and it’s even better when there’s sea salt. These bars look incredible!
Oh my, these look heavenly!
OMG, yes! These look so amazing. Shortbread and caramel AND cashews, gah! I am only selectivly anti-nut. Walnuts in brownies = no. But cashews anywhere = yes, and especially here.
Thank you Megan!! You’d love them :) Happy Thanksgiving!!
Oh my goodness, NEED to make these! Cashews are one of my faves to bake with, and I can totally see them being incredible in shortbread bars!
Happy Thanksgiving!! Oh my word, this recipe looks amazing! Seriously, so good! I LOVE salted desserts! They’re just the best!
Thank you so much, Cailee! Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!
These bars look wonderful. I love cashews but I’m currently addicted to a cashew and macadamia mix, I reckon these bars would also be great with cashews and macadamias!
I’m a fan of cookies and bars all year round too! What luscious looking caramel!
I need an unlimited supply of this on me at all times! LOVE!
Easy and sooo delicious!
Woohoo!! So happy to hear that, Laurie!
All I can say is omg!
Love these, making them again right now ❤
Yay!! So glad you’re loving them, Elizabeth :)
I tried making these, but the caramel hardened as soon as I mixed in the cashews, and did not spread at all or become gooey in baking. On serving, the caramel layer pulled away from the shortbread. What did I do wrong? The flavor of the bottom and top were great!
Hi Fran, sorry you had trouble! Did you mix the cashews in when the caramel was still hot? And were the cashews cold at all? If the cashews cooled the caramel down a lot, it would cause it to firm up. This could also happen if the caramel was overcooked at all.
I made these yesterday — in two batches. One exactly as written. One using some of my own baking know-how. The first batch worked fine but I did invent some new swear words when I added the cream to the hot sugar over heat — it did loosen up and become smooth again in (about) five minutes. The second batch I pulled the sugar from the heat and drizzled in the cream and the texture remained smooth without seizing up. Also, I scattered the nuts over the shortbread and poured the caramel over the top. Next time I make them (and there will be a next time because they are very tasty), I’d also use parchment paper to ease the removal from the pan. 5 star taste, 3 star for directions/procedure as written.
Thanks for the feedback, Pamela! I’ll look at the instructions and see if I can clarify to help improve ease :)
is it good if you add egg for the base?? (for academic purpose) thanks!!
Hi Denito, I haven’t tried that for this recipe, so I can’t say how it would turn out.