Sometimes candy making is a big fuss, but this recipe simplifies it!
I've never made copycat candy bars before, but now I may make more in the future! These bars have chewy, gooey caramel, dark chocolate, and a crunchy cookie -- what more could you ask for? I took these candy bars to the youth group I've been working with...and they were gone within one minute. I mean this quite literally.
It may seem like there are a lot of moving parts in this copycat Twix recipe, but each layer is pretty simple and part of the game is waiting. I tried to minimize the waiting as much as possible.
Step One: Make the caramel.
Step Two: Make the cookies.
Step Three: Melt the chocolate; pipe the caramel on the cookies.
Step Four: Dunk the candy bars in chocolate.
See?! Not so bad. This process is pretty straightforward. Plus, you have the added benefit of being able to name all of the ingredients. No weird mystery chemicals here!
Homemade Vegan Twix Bars
For the Cookie
one batch of my Shortbread Cookies
For the Caramel*
/3 c. pure maple syrup
1/4 c. + 2 T. cashew butter
1/4 tsp. sea salt
For the Chocolate Coating
two batches of homemade chocolate, or about 2 cups of melted chocolate chips
*To make the full batch of Twix bars, you may have to make two batches of the caramel, depending on how much you use.
Directions
First, make the caramel. You'll need time to have it cool in the freezer. Combine the caramel ingredients in a small bowl. I think you'll be happily surprised with how much it tastes like caramel! If you want a more caramel-ly taste, add a little more maple syrup, but know that it will make your caramel a little more runny. Once everything's mixed, pour the mixture into a piping bag and use a twist tie to close it. Place the bag in the freezer to allow the mixture to get harder.
Next, make the cookies. Instead of piping them into rose shapes, pipe them into straight lines, whatever size you want your candy bars. I made mine about four inches long. This recipe should yield close to 20 mini cookies. Note: I did not refrigerate them after piping and I baked them for about 15 minutes. You want them to be slightly golden on top.
Once the cookies are cool, start to melt your chocolate. In the mean time, take your caramel out of the freezer and knead the bag to loosen up the caramel. Pipe the caramel on top of the cookies -- I piped one layer on some of the cookies and two layers on top of the others -- see the difference below!
If your caramel seems soft, put the caramelled-cookies back in the freezer while the rest of your chocolate melts. When everything seems ready, dunk each bar into the melted chocolate and place it on a piece of wax paper or parchment. When all of your dunking is done, place the bars into the freezer to set.
Now, you have some beautiful looking candy bars for your Halloween party!
Cheers,
-Aileen