Vegan Dessert Recipe: Oh-My-God Caramel slice

I saw a post on instagram where somebody had made vegan caramel slices, and I got all nostalgic for the little buggers. I remember they used to get the most glorious caramel slices in at Ginos, the caramel was to die for. I guess the amount of butter they packed in those babies would lead to me dying for them as well, eventually. Anyway, I decided to look on the net for approximate recipes.

There were so many, and I would love to have a go at some of the raw recipes at some stage soon, but this first go I went for extreme processed sugar decadence. And it went pretty well, I must say, although these slices are certainly not for all-the-time.

But if you want to hear someone say "I can't believe that is ACTUALLY vegan" then these are probably what you want to produce.


Ingredients:

One cup of powdered soymilk (I only have this because I use it in cupcakes sometimes. And the one I have is quite strong. If you're going to buy this stuff on the reg, look for a mild tasting brand if you can).

Three quarters of a cup of vegan spread, divided
Two thirds of a cup of brown sugar
One teaspoon of vanilla essence
A pinch of salt
One cup of boiling water

Half a cup of self raising flour
Half a cup of brown sugar
Half a cup of dessicated coconut

Four tablespoons of golden syrup
Two tablespoons of arrowroot powder

100 grams of vegan dark chocolate

Instructions:

First we are going to make "soy condensed milk", which I forgot to take photos of, but it was super easy. This can be made well before the slices. I made it the night before.

Melt three tablespoons of vegan spread over a very low heat. Add two thirds of a cup of brown sugar, vanilla and salt, stirring it slowly and evenly until it's been well heated and the sugar has dissolved. Don't overcook it. Stir in the powdered soymilk and then pour in the boiling water. You want it super smooth, you'll probably want to grab a whisk to get at it while it's on the low heat. Once it's smooth, take it off the heat. Put it in a container in the fridge until you're ready to use it.

Now for the actual slice!

Preheat the oven to 180. Line a tin with greaseproof paper and cut it down to size.

Mix the flour, rest of the brown sugar, and coconut in a bowl.

Melt one third of a cup of vegan spread and mix it in to the flour mix thoroughly.

Press this mixture into the base of the tin evenly. Press it firmly, you want it compact.

Pop it in the oven for ten minutes. It should be a bit puffy and brown.

Put the base aside to cool while you make the caramel.

Melt two tablespoons of vegan spread and the golden syrup over a very low heat in a small saucepan.

Add your home-made condensed soymilk, bring it to the boil (keep the heat low) and cook it for about five minutes.

Place the arrowroot in a small bowl and add two tablespoons of the caramel, and stir until it's really well mixed. Transfer this back into the saucepan, stirring non-stop, until the mixture thickens. It should be really quite thick but it will thicken more as it cools.

Once it's thick enough pour it over the base.

Now stick that baby in the oven for anther ten minutes. The edges of the caramel should be a little brown, and it should be sticky and thick.

Leave it until it's completely cooled.

Once this is done, melt the chocolate. There are two ways to do this: in a bowl in the microwave (every thirty seconds, take it out and stir it); or in a metal bowl over a small saucepan of boiling water, stirring continually and not allowing the metal bowl over direct flame.

Now evenly spread the chocolate over the cooled slice.

So close to the end!

Put the slice in the fridge, but check on it every ten minutes because if the chocolate sets hard, it will crack when you try to slice it.

Once it's just cool enough to retain it's shape, cut the slice into pieces. I cut this tin into four by seven because these are super-rich.

Now pop it back in the fridge and let it chill completely. Don't be tempted to eat it prematurely, it doesn't taste anywhere near as good if it isn't cold.

Don't eat too much of it! You will be sick. I'm warning you.

Thanks to www.vegweb.com for the original recipe, to which I have made various trial and error adjustments!