Oh my.... I think I just had a dessert orgasm....

It looks totally fantastic!

What time should I be there for dinner?

Rita

Ann, I have the most perfect way to use up dulce de leche! Ok, maybe it's not the MOST perfect, but it's something I've never heard any complaints about... Snickery Squares from Dorie Greenspan. Think dressed up snickers bars, but omg they're good. When I bring them to work, they disappear within about 10 minutes because they've developed such a reputation.

Bri

Snickery Squares

For the Crust:

1 cup all-purpose flour
cup sugar
2 TBSP powdered sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and chilled
1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten

For the Filling:

½ cup sugar
3 TBSP water
1 ½ cups salted peanuts
About 1 ½ cups store-bought dulce de leche

For the Topping:

7 ounces semisweet, coarsely chopped
½ stick unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces, at room temperature

Getting Ready:

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter a 8 inch square pan and put it on a baking sheet.

To Make the Crust:

Toss the flour, sugar, powdered sugar and salt into a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Toss in the pieces of cold butter and pulse about 12 times, until the mixture looks like coarse meal. Pour the yolk over the ingredients and pulse until the dough forms clumps and curds-stop before the dough comes together in a ball.
Turn the dough into the buttered pan and gently press it evenly across the bottom of the pan. Prick the dough with a fork and slide the sheet into the oven.
Bake the crust for 15-20 minutes, or until it takes on just a little color around the edges. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool to room temperature before filling.

To Make the Filling:

Have a parchment or silicone mat-lined baking sheet at the ready, as well as a long-handled wooden spoon and a medium heavy bottomed saucepan.
Put the sugar and water in the saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Keeping the heat fairly high, continue to cook the sugar, without stirring, until it just starts to color. Toss the peanuts and immediately start stirring. Keep stirring, to coat the peanuts with sugar. Within a few minutes, they will be covered with sugar and turn whiteÂkeep stirring until the sugar turns back into caramel. When the peanuts are coated with a nice deep amber caramel, remove the pan from the heat and turn the nuts out onto the baking sheet., using the wooden spoon to spread them out as best you can. Cool the nuts to room temperature.
When they are cool enough to handle, separate the nuts or break them into small pieces. Divide the nuts in half. Keep half of the nuts whole or in biggish pieces for the filling, and finely chop the other half for the topping.
Spread the dulce de leche over the shortbread base and sprinkle over the whole candied nuts.

To Make the Topping:

Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water. Remove chocolate from the heat and gently stir in the butter, stirring until it is fully blended into the chocolate.
Pour the chocolate over the dulce de leche, smoothing it with a long metal icing spatula, then sprinkle over the rest of the peanuts. Slide the pan into the fridge to set the topping, about 20 minutes; if youÂd like to serve the squares cold, keep them refrigerated for at least 3 hours before cutting.

Cut into 16 bars.

From Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

Thanks Bri, All of Dorie Greenspan's recipes are good aren't they. I wonder if that recipe would work well with toasted walnuts or pecans. Not a fan of peanuts.

Ann

Yum, yumm, yummmmmmmmmmmm!!

Your photography is amazing. It feels like I could just pluck it off the screen and I wish I could.

Can I come over NOW!

Please share the recipes especially for the dulce de leche.

Loves2cook, I adapted this recipe for Dulce de leche Cheesecake.

Here is what I did.

Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table

White Chocolate Cheesecake
==========================

Adapted from http://www.dianasdesserts.com
Dulce de Leche Cheesecake recipe

Crust

1 1/2 cups Graham Cracker Crumbs
2 tablespoons sugar
6 tablespoons melted butter

Mix together and pat into bottom of a spring form pan lined with Buttered parchment paper. Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool

Filling:
3 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese (24 oz. total)
1 cup superfine granulated sugar
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 eggs
1/3 cup heavy cream
6 ounces melted quality white chocolate

Reset oven temperature to 325°F

Melt white chocolate with heavy cream. Stir until smooth. Set aside to cool.

With an electric mixer beat cream cheese, sugar and flour together until well mixed and smooth. Add vanilla and beat until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat until smooth.Add the melted chocolate cream mixture. Stir until smooth.

Pour plain batter over crust.

Wrap foil around the bottom and up the sides of the pan.

Place in a shallow pan and pour in hot water. (Bain Marie)

7. Bake in preheated 325°F oven for 50 to 60 minutes or until center is almost set.Remove from the oven and let cool. When cool refrigerate overnight or for at least 4 or 5 hours.

DRizzle with white chocolate and or Dulce de Leche.

Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table

Dulce De Leche
==============
Preheat oven to 400°F

Pour one or two cans of sweetened condensed milk into a pie plate.
Cover tightly with foil.

Put plate in pan larger pan and pour in hot water. (bain marie).

Bake for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Check after first hour and stir.

Milk will be come a beautiful dark caramel colour.

Stir until smooth and refrigerate.

I use a stick blender to smooth it out.

ann I burst out laughing when I clicked your link. Which picture would make YOU want to make the cake:

This

or this

Well, for SURE yours does it for me. I definitely pick my recipes based on the image - then I read the recipe and "taste" it. :)

nice comparison there loves2cook! :-) Definitely true for me as well.

Gorgeous Ann.

Rita, I spit my coffee out!!!

Ann, those are two of hubbies favorite flavors!!! White Chocolate and caramelly goodness...

BTW, I have had some Dulce I made in a canning jar for MONTHS in the fridge...pop it in the micro to heat enough to melt and pour out what we need for goodies...It's tasted the same day 1 as now day 60plus...

Ann..Happy New Year! This cheesecake is A+ beautiful!

Holy cow! I can almost taste the dulce le leche. Wow. This is definitely on my to-try list. Thanks Ann!

Shame, shame Ann!! My heart is aching that I can't have a slice.

Well maybe I'll just live vicariously or I'll never get rid of this extra 15 lbs that I've been carrying around since October!

Grace

What Rita said!

Ann~
I bet pecans would be really good in the snickery squares. Candied pecans are always a favorite... :)

Bri

Thanks Bri.

Terri, did you can it? As in process it. Or did you just store in a canning jar in the fridge?

Ann

Ann, that is one gorgeous looking cake! DEEELICIOUSO!

Ann, it looked so good that I had to make it. Come over to the blog and take a peek.

This photo looks so good that I've decided that I can use it as a diet aid......
All I have to do is look at the picture and I swear I can almost taste it!!!

Grace

Thanks everyone for your nice comments. The cake really was good. It was suppose to feed 16. Yeah right. It disappeared with just 6 of us.

Debbie, your cake looks perfect. Please post a picture here so everyone can see it.

Ann

This is on the laaaast page, and ready to scroll off. I just couldn't let that happen because the photo is just toooooo delicious!
:O)

Oh....my.......freakin'......god. That's all I can say.

Sooz, thank you. January 1st seems so long ago.

Ann

I hadn't even paid attention to the date of the original post until I saw someone wish happy New Year. lol

Beautiful picture.

Sally

I have the perfect use for leftover dulce de leche, not that there's any left over here ever.

Put dulce de leche into a dish. get a spoon. Sit down, eat a spoonful, have a sip of hot tea or coffee. Wait a second. Repeat.

That looks delicious, Ann.

Annie