Salt River Bars

 

Salt River Bars

These have been a long time favorite, first discovered at Downtown Gilbert's "Liberty Market" and a special treat that I would pick up for Jason every time I was near there. Jason found this recipe, which is a little labor intensive, but SO worth the work. WARNING - these are super rich, I highly recommend either making them for a party, or planning on sharing them with others right away. 

• 90 Club crackers
• 1 cup butter, salted
• 2 cups light brown sugar, packed
• 1 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 3/4 cups heavy cream
• 1 1/2 cups milk chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup butterscotch chips
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• Maldon sea salt for finishing (available on Amazon and WORTH IT for the light, flaky salt texture!) 

1. Prepare a 9 by 13 inch pan (very helpful if the pan has straight sides, like this one) by lining it with parchment paper, leaving the two long edges a bit long so that it can be used to remove the bars from the pan later.  Spray the parchment and sides of the pan with nonstick spray.
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3. Cover the bottom of the pan with the first layer of crackers on top of the parchment.  Cut the crackers to fit as needed.  I used five rows of six crackers, which covered my pan perfectly.
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5. In a medium sized heavy bottomed pan, melt butter, brown sugar, graham cracker crumbs, and heavy cream together over medium heat, stirring constantly.  
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7. Bring the mixture to a boil, continuing to stir, and boil for 7 minutes.
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9. Pour half of the caramel mixture over the crackers, spreading it evenly to the edges of the pan.  Working quickly, add another layer of crackers over the caramel.
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11. Pour the rest of the caramel over the second layer of crackers, and then add a final layer of crackers.
12. Refrigerate the pan to chill and set the caramel layers while you make the chocolate topping.
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14. To make the chocolate topping, add milk chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and peanut butter to a microwave safe bowl.  Heat for 30-45 seconds, then stir.  Microwave the chocolate in 15 second intervals, stirring in between until smooth. 
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16. Pour the chocolate topping over the final layer of crackers, spreading it evenly to the edges.   Sprinkle sea salt over the chocolate layer to taste.  I used about 1 teaspoon. 
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18. Chill for 1-2 hours before using a sharp knife to cut into bars.  Sometimes I like to use the parchment paper edges to lift the whole thing out of the pan to make cutting easier.

This is the site Jason got this recipe from. https://lovelylittlekitchen.com/salt-river-bars/