These homemade samoa bars are sure to satisfy your girl scout cookie cravings! Just like the traditional samoa cookies, these bars are made with a buttery shortbread crust, a caramel and coconut top layer, and lastly dipped in chocolate. Even though these bars do require several components and a lot of chill time, I assure you that each layer is very easy to make and will be well worth your time! Feel free to make these bars your own - switch out the coconut flakes for more traditional shredded coconut, drizzle chocolate on top, leave out the chocolate all together... No matter how you change these up, they are sure to be a household favorite!
Ingredient Notes
- Unsalted Butter: In total, this recipe calls for 3 whole sticks of butter. Yes, it's a lot, but it's so worth it.
- Powdered Sugar: Powdered sugar is key to achieving that super soft, melt-in-your-mouth quality for the shortbread base.
- All-Purpose Flour: You’ll need about two cups of flour for the shortbread base.
- Vanilla Extract: Add a little bit of vanilla in both the shortbread base and caramel filling to optimize the flavor!
- Granulated Sugar: You'll need about 1 ½ cups of sugar for the caramel.
- Light Corn Syrup: I know light corn syrup is not the best ingredient health-wise, but it is the only thing that has worked for me when making a chewy caramel.
- Heavy Cream: For the caramel, you'll melt butter with the heavy cream so they are warm enough and will not seize up the hot sugar.
- Coconut Flakes: I used coconut flakes because that was what I had on hand. Plus, I actually love the way it looks in the caramel! If you would like, you can use shredded coconut, but you may need to increase the quantity.
- Chocolate: For dipping the bars, use semi-sweet, bittersweet, or dark chocolate.
- Neutral Oil: Add a couple teaspoons to the chocolate so it will set nicely without a chalky look.
How to make caramel from scratch
- In a bowl or large measuring cup, heat the heavy cream and butter until the butter has completely melted. Set aside.
- In a medium saucepan combine the sugar and light corn syrup. Heat over low-medium heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
- Increase the heat to medium-high. Once it begins boiling, stop stirring and only swirl the pan to encourage even cooking. After about 10 minutes, it will turn amber in color. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the heavy cream and butter mixture.
- Return the pan back to the medium-high heat. Stir frequently until it reaches 248 degrees F.
- Once it comes to temperature, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
- Immediately pour over the cooled shortbread crust.
Other caramel related recipes you'll love
A few tips to make these homemade samoa bars:
- Use parchment paper and a small measuring cup to evenly flatten out the shortbread dough in the square pan. Press the dough out with your hands, then use the measuring cup to smooth it out.
- If you would like, you can toast your coconut to bring out the flavors a little more! Simply place the coconut in a frying pan and heat on low heat, stirring frequently until the coconut is lightly browned and aromatic.
- The caramel gets very sticky, so before cutting and dipping in chocolate, I recommend chilling them in the fridge or freezer. If they ever get to soft to handle, pop them in the freezer for a few minutes.
- The caramel can also get very hard when it's chilled, so when you are ready to eat them, be sure to set them out at room temperature for at least 30 minutes prior to serving.
Happy baking! x
Print
Homemade Samoa Bars
- Yield: 24 bars 1x
Description
These homemade samoa bars are sure to satisfy your girl scout cookie cravings! Just like the traditional samoa cookies, these bars are made with a buttery shortbread crust, a caramel and coconut top layer, and lastly dipped in chocolate.
Ingredients
Scale
For the Shortbread Crust:
- 227g unsalted butter (2 sticks, room temp)
- 113g powdered sugar
- 240g all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
For the Caramel Coconut Layer:
- 113g unsalted butter (melted)
- 170g heavy cream
- 300g granulated sugar
- 156g light corn syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 50g coconut flaked or shredded coconut
For Dipping in Chocolate:
- 175g chocolate
- 2 tsp neutral oil
Instructions
For the Shortbread Crust:
- Line a 9×9 inch square pan with two pieces of parchment paper, creating a sling for easy removal.
- In a medium bowl, cream the butter until smooth, then add the powdered sugar and beat for 2 more minutes. With a rubber spatula, fold in the flour, salt, and vanilla until just combined.
- Press the dough into the prepared pan and use the back of a spoon or small measuring cup to pack it in and level it out. Prick the dough with a fork all over and place in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.
- While the base is chilling, preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Bake the shortbread for 30-35 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Allow to cool completely before pouring the caramel on top.
For the Caramel Coconut Layer:
- In a bowl or large measuring cup, heat the heavy cream and butter until the butter has completely melted. Set aside.
- In a medium saucepan combine the sugar and light corn syrup. Heat over low-medium heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
- Increase the heat to medium-high. Once it begins boiling, stop stirring and only swirl the pan to encourage even cooking. After about 10 minutes, it will turn amber in color. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the heavy cream and butter mixture.
- Return the pan back to the medium-high heat. Stir frequently until it reaches 248 degrees F.
- Once it comes to temperature, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
- Immediately pour over the cooled shortbread crust. Sprinkle the coconut flakes on top of the caramel and carefully mix them around to evenly distribute them.
- Allow the caramel to cool down a little before placing in the fridge overnight. You could also leave it at room temperature for several hours to set.
For Dipping in Chocolate:
- After the caramel is set (ideally overnight in the fridge), cut the bars into 24 small rectangles.
- Melt the chocolate and oil in the microwave in 20 second increments or over a double boiler.
- Dip each bar in the chocolate and lay caramel side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Chill the bars in the fridge or freezer for a few minutes for the chocolate to set.
- Allow bars to come to room temperature before serving.
Notes
Bars are best enjoyed at room temperature.
Did you make this recipe? Let me know how it turned out!