I had to marry ultimate combo of all-time favourites Snickers and Twix to make these snix bars. I recently debated my favourite corner shop chocolate with my colleagues. And for me, it would have to be a snickers. The layers of chewy nougat, delicate caramel and crunchy peanuts were always a winner.
Equally, I also have fond childhood memories buying double Twix bars purely to share it with my bff / sister / brother. The buttery biscuit base had a bite to it that snickers did not and so I couldn’t really resist marrying the two in this recipe.
What makes snix bars so special?
- They’re more fun than regular millionaire’s shortbread.
- I’ve added a little peanut butter and salt to my caramel to give it a slighty nutty edge.
- The topping is made with 70% dark chocolate to counteract the sweetness, and finished with flaky sea salt.
- They keep for up to a week if kept in an airtight container.
You can cut these into squares or bars but I prefer to keep mine oblong. Equally, if you’re not a chocolate lover, or just don’t fancy the extra layer, you can omit steps 5-7 and eat them as they are – they’re just as good!
Tips for a successful bake:
Here are my top tips for making these amazing snix bars:
- Always use a square baking tin. I use an 20 x 20 cm square baking tin for uniformity and easy cutting.
- Leave the caramel to set before cutting. This will help avoid any mess prior to pouring your chocolate on top.
- Cut with a clean, sharp chef’s knife. By using a large chef’s knife, you’ll get a neater cut.
- Spoon or pour the chocolate over. Pop the bars on a wire rack, with another baking tray underneath and then pour or spoon your melted chocolate over the top. It’s less messy than using your fingers to dip each bar into the chocolate individually.
Snix Bars
Buttery vanilla shortbread, layered with salted peanut caramel and rich, dark chocolate. Finished with flaky sea salt.
Ingredients
How to make the Twix-inpsired based
- 150 g unsalted butter chilled and diced
- 75 g golden caster sugar
- 150 g plain flour sifted
- 75 g ground almonds
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
For the Snickers-inspired caramel
- 100 g unsalted butter
- 100 g golden caster sugar
- 1 tbsp golden syrup
- 25 g smooth peanut butter
- 297 g dulce de leche Nestlé Carnation caramel is a great choice
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 200 g salted peanuts
Topping
- 200 g 70% dark chocolate I like Lindt or Menier
- Flaky sea salt to finish
Instructions
- Grease and line a 20cm square baking tin. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar and ground almonds. Add the diced butter and rub it into the flour mixture using your index/middle fingers and thumb. When it begins to come together as a dough, add the vanilla and keep kneading until you have a rough dough. Press the shortbread mixture into the base, prick with a fork and then loosely cover with clingfilm and chill for at least 1 hour.N.B. Dust your fork regularly with flour to avoid dough sticking to it as your prick it all over.
- Preheat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 2½ and bake the shortbread for 25-35 minutes or until very lightly coloured, then leave it to cool.
- Place all the ingredients for the caramel except the salted peanuts in a large wide nonstick saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring until melted and amalgamated. Reduce the heat slightly so the top is still bubbling nicely all over and cook for 8-9 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Pour the caramel over the shortbread base, then sprinkle the salted peanuts over the top evenly. Leave to cool for at least an hour until set, then place in the fridge for another hour to really firm up.
- Take the snix bars out of the fridge and using a chef’s knife, cut into slices 1 inch in width, and 4.5inches in length. Pop them on a wire rack over a chopping board lined with parchment paper.
- Break 250g of the dark chocolate into pieces and melt in a bowl set over a pan containing a little simmering water. Once this has melted entirely, add the additional 50g of chocolate and stir until everything has melted – this is to bring the temperature of the chocolate down a little.
- Now you can either spoon the melted chocolate over the top of the bars {my preference}, and use a knife to smooth it around the edges. Or you can dip them by hand in your bowl of chocolate and place them back on the wire rack so any excess chocolate drips off. N.B. I prefer the first option because you can control how much chocolate you put on each bar and it’s a slightly less messy affair. I’d also advise doing one bar at a time as your chocolate will set relatively quickly.
