Tahini and Date Millionaire's Shortbread

Method

A crisp buttery shortbread under a soft salted caramel made with our SOC CHEF Tahini Paste and a smooth purée of our Whole Dates, finished with a clean snap of white Win-Win cocoa-free. The sesame and the dates give it a halva-like depth that cuts straight through the sweetness, and it slices tidily enough for a counter or a cut-and-wrap range.

Ingredients

For the shortbread

225g Plain flour
175g Unsalted butter
75g Caster sugar

For the date purée

120g Whole Dates, pitted (SCN302A)
90g Boiling water

For the tahini and date caramel

150g Caster sugar
70g Confectionery Glucose Syrup DE60 (SCA120)
50ml Water
130g Double cream
180g Date purée (from above)
80g Tahini Paste (SCM198)
40g Unsalted butter
4g Fine sea salt
To finish

200g Win-Win Cocoa-Free White Choc Alternative Easymelt (SCC7004), tempered
Equipment: a 23cm square cake tin, lined with baking parchment.

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C. Line a 23cm square cake tin with baking parchment.
2. Combine the flour and the cold butter cubes in a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs — or rub the butter in by hand. Add the caster sugar and pulse again until combined.
3. Tip the mixture into the lined tin and spread it out evenly using the back of a spoon, then press it down firmly with your knuckles so that it is tightly packed in the tin.
4. Bake for 30 minutes, or until very light golden brown. Set aside to cool completely in the tin. The base must be cold before the caramel goes on.
5. Roughly chop the dates, cover with the boiling water and leave 20 minutes until completely soft.
6. Blend to a smooth purée, then pass through a fine chinois or drum sieve. This yields about 210g; weigh out 180g for the caramel. Sieve it properly, date skins leave a fibrous grit that shows in the cut face. The purée keeps and can be made a day ahead.
7. Warm the cream and date purée together to about 60°C and keep them to hand. Weigh out the tahini, butter and salt.
8. Cook the caster sugar, glucose and water to a light amber caramel at 160 to 165°C. Take it a shade lighter than you would for a plain caramel; the dates deepen both the colour and the bitterness on their own.
9. Off the heat, deglaze with the warm cream and date purée, adding it in three or four goes and stirring between each. It spits hard, so use a tall pan and go slowly.
10. Stir in the tahini and the salt, return to a medium heat and cook to 119°C, scraping the base of the pan constantly with a spatula. Date solids scorch far more readily than a plain cream caramel, so use your heaviest pan and keep the spatula moving.
11. Off the heat, let it drop to about 70°C, add the butter and blend with a stick blender until completely smooth and glossy.
12. Pour the caramel over the cooled shortbread and spread it level. Leave overnight at room temperature to set firm. Expect a darker set than a plain caramel, nearer a sticky toffee colour than an amber.
13. Temper the white Win-Win. 
14. Pour the tempered Win-Win over the set caramel and spread it to an even layer, working quickly before it starts to set.
15. Leave at room temperature for about 10 minutes, until the Win-Win is firm but not yet brittle, then cut into 16 squares with a long knife warmed, cleaning and re-warming it between cuts.