Caramel Bars

 

Ingredients

1    cup    butter ( 2 sticks, softened to room temperature )
1/2    cup    sugar
2    cups    wheat flour, white, all-purpose
1    cup    butter ( 2 sticks )
3/4    cup    sugar
1    Can (8 oz)    sweetened condensed milk
4    tablespoons    corn syrups, light
1 1/2    cups    semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

CRUST: Cream butter and sugar together and then add flour to the mixture. It will be crumbly and seem a little bit dry, but that's perfect! Pat the mixture into a greased 9X13 pan - I'm sure you could use a spoon or something, but I always just use my fingers and it works great. Bake the crust at 350 for 15 minutes.
CARAMEL LAYER: Once the crust is out and cooling, you can begin making the caramel layer. In a sauce pan, bring the 2nd cup butter, 3/4 cup sugar, can of condensed milk, and corn syrup to a boil, stirring constantly, until mixture is a light toffee color. If you have a candy thermometer, the mixture will be ready once the mixture reaches 240 degrees Fahrenheit (soft ball stage). It will take about 10-15 minutes. Pour mixture over baked crust and immediately sprinkle semi-sweet chocolate chips on the top of the caramel layer. I usually use about 3/4 of a bag. You want to sprinkle them as evenly as possible so that there is a single layer of chocolate chips - if you have chocolate chips on top of other chocolate chips, they will not melt properly. Wait a couple of minutes, until all of the chocolate chips are "shiny" and then they will be melted enough to spread. Spread the chocolate chips evenly into a smooth layer on top of the chocolate layer. Chill in fridge and cut into bars when set.