To say that Christmas and I haven't always gotten along is an understatement. I've had some of my worst experiences in life around Christmas time. But this year, I'm feeling mighty blessed. I've gotten new opportunities to learn, have seen things fall into place, and have become the proud godmother of the most darling baby boy. I'm still not gonna deck the halls with boughs of holly - that just isn't my style -, but I will admit that this is a particularly wonderful time of year.

I'm happy to celebrate the season with a few of my blogger friends, too. I've found a fantastic community of talented people on the internet this year and I'm grateful for the constant support and inspiration they provide. So when Katherine and Madeline proposed to have a digital cookie swap party, I knew I wanted to be in.

It's my first cookie swap ever, I think. Yes, as a child, we would make cookies and sell them around the neighborhood for a good cause, but the tradition of actually interchanging cookies with family and friends is not something we have around here. A shame, really, because I do love a good homemade gift, and I feel like one can put a whole lot of personality into a cookie.

Not that I can tell you what these speculoos coffee caramel slices say about me (or if they even count as cookies), but I've been wanting to do a take on millionaire's shortbread (or homemade twix bars, whatever you want to call them) for ages, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to do so. I made a seasonal version here, with a spiced speculoos shortbread as a base - typical for this time of year in Belgium and The Netherlands - and a sticky, warming coffee caramel in the center. There's a decent amount of salt in these slices, too, which is something I believe every cookie needs.

notes

• The caramel is adapted from Not Without Salt. The original recipe called for Lyle's Golden Syrup, which isn't available around here, so I substituted it with liquid glucose, which worked perfectly. While I haven't tried the caramel with golden syrup or corn syrup, I trust Ashley's recipe to be nothing short of correct, so feel free to use what is available to you. All syrups help to prevent crystallization.
• I've added two options for the caramel. One is a soft and slightly runny caramel (like in a twix bar) which allows you to eat the caramel slices straight from the fridge; the other a thick, chewy caramel that needs to come to room temperature first. I personally prefer the latter, but my friends were a little more keen on the former, so I decided to add both options.

speculoos coffee caramel slices

makes 15-20 slices

for the speculoos shortbread

225 g all-purpose flour
2 + 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 - 1/4 tsp ground cloves
150 g unsalted butter, room temperature
75 g dark brown sugar
1 tbsp strong, brewed coffee, room temperature

for the coffee caramel

200 g fine sugar
170 g glucose (or corn syrup, or golden syrup)
3 tbsp water
60 g unsalted butter, room temperature and cubed
180 ml heavy cream
4 tbsp strong, brewed coffee, room temperature
1/2 tsp coarse sea salt

for the chocolate

150 g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
18 g unsalted butter
fleur de sel, to finish

how to

for the speculoos shortbread

1. Preheat oven to 160˚C. Grease a 15 x 30 cm baking tin and line with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl, combine flour and spices.

3. In an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix butter on medium speed until creamy. Add sugar and mix on medium for about 2 more minutes, until fully combined and creamy. Reduce the speed to the lowest setting and add flour, followed by the coffee. Mix until a few flecks of dry flour remain.

4. Press dough into the bottom of the prepared baking tin. Use a fork to punch a few holes throughout the entire surface.

5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the edges start to brown. Cool on a wire rack, until fully cooled.

for the coffee caramel

1. In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, water and liquid glucose. You don't have to stir the mixture; just make sure not to get any sugar granules on the sides of the pan. (Brush them down with a wet pastry brush if there are.) Cover with a lid and heat over high heat for about 5 minutes, shaking the pan once or twice to evenly distribute the sugar. Remove the lid and turn down the heat a little bit, still continuing to let the caramel boil.

2. Once the caramel reaches 148˚C, add the butter, followed by the heavy cream and coffee. The caramel will sizzle and foam and will then harden. That's okay. Continue to cook and stir the caramel until everything is fully combined and it reaches 112˚C (for a soft, slightly runny caramel) or 120˚C (for a thick, chewy caramel).

3. Remove from the heat and stir in the coarse sea salt. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes, then pour over the shortbread base in an even layer. Cool in the refrigerator for at least an hour. (Store excess caramel in a mason jar in the fridge, too.)

for the chocolate

1. In a medium bowl in the microwave, or in a double boiler, melt chocolate and butter. When using the microwave, heat chocolate and butter in 30 second increments, stirring after each one, until smooth.

2. Pour chocolate over the caramel layer and spread into an even layer using an offset spatula. Sprinkle with fleur de sel and return to the fridge to harden completely, at least 2 hours.

3. Remove the caramel slice from the baking tin and use a warm knife to slice it into 15 to 20 caramel slices (I made them 5 x 5 cm). Rinse and dry the knife after each cut to get clean slices.

4. Store caramel slices in the refrigerator. Slices made with the runny caramel can be eaten straight from the fridge; those with the thick caramel are best after about 1 hour at room temperature.