Buttery soft shortbread layered with chewy, homemade caramel then topped with more crumbly shortbread pieces. This delicious slice is a crowd favourite for morning or afternoon tea.
One of the classic kiwi baking recipes, I'm yet to meet someone who doesn't love Tan Slice. Perfect for ‘smoko’ (or morning tea if you don't know what that means!), tan slice is made from buttery shortbread with a chewy sweet caramel filling, then more crumbly shortbread on top. Guaranteed to impress!
Do you love caramel? Be sure to check out my super popular recipes for Coconut Caramel Slice and Caramel Apple Tart.
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Ingredient notes:
- Butter: This gives the dough that melt-in-your-mouth flavour.
- Golden syrup: Golden syrup is a version of light treacle and has a sweet caramel flavour. I recommend using it, if you have it, for the yummy caramel flavour it adds. But you could substitute for another sweet syrup.
- Sweetened condensed milk: This is the secret to making homemade caramel! I try to keep a can of this in the cupboard at all times in case I want to bake with it.
Note: Scroll to the recipe card for the ingredients, quantities and the full method.
Step by step instructions:
Preheat the oven to 180°C fan bake. Line a 25 x 25 cm baking tray with baking paper. In a mixer, cream the butter, sugar, vanilla and salt until fluffy and pale in colour.
Sift in the flour and baking powder and mix well to combine. Reserve ¼ of the mixture for the topping.
Place the remaining ¾ of the base mixture into the tray and smooth down with the back of a metal spoon. Bake for 15 minutes until lightly golden.
In a saucepan over a medium heat, combine all the caramel ingredients. Stir continuously for about 5 minutes as it thickens and turns a slightly darker colour. Be careful not to burn the caramel or yourself!
Pour caramel over the warm base and smooth out evenly. Crumble over the remaining biscuit mixture and return to the oven for another 15 minutes or until golden.
Set aside and slice into squares when it has cooled.
Recipe FAQs:
Tan slice, also known as tan square, is made from a buttery shortbread base and crumbly shortbread topping filled with a chewy, homemade caramel. This is a classic New Zealand baking recipe which sometimes includes chocolate chips on the top. The name comes from the tan colour of the caramel!
I like to make this in a square tin and cut it into 16 decent sized pieces. If you prefer, you can cut it into bars to make it go further.
Storage:
Store your tan slice in an airtight container in the pantry for up to 2 weeks, up to three weeks in the fridge, or up to two months in the freezer!
Top tips:
For a little more indulgence, you can add some chocolate chips to the top!
Related Recipes:
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Tan slice
Buttery shortbread with a chewy caramel filling then more crumbly shortbread on top.
Ingredients
- 200g butter, softened
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ tsp vanilla
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 ¾ cups plain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
Caramel
- 100g butter
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk
- 3 Tbsp golden syrup (75g)
Instructions
- Base: Preheat the oven to 180°C fan bake. Line a 25 x 25 cm baking tray with baking paper.
- In a mixer, cream the butter, sugar, vanilla and salt until fluffy and pale in colour. Sift in the flour and baking powder and mix well to combine. Reserve ¼ of the mixture for the topping.
- Place the remaining ¾ of the base mixture into the tray and smooth down with the back of a metal spoon. Bake for 15 minutes until lightly golden.
- Caramel: In a saucepan over a medium heat, combine all the caramel ingredients. Stir continuously for about 5 minutes as it thickens and turns a slightly darker colour. Be careful not to burn the caramel or yourself!
- Assemble: Pour caramel over the warm base and smooth out evenly. Crumble over the remaining biscuit mixture and return to the oven for another 15 minutes or until golden.
- Set aside and slice into squares when it has cooled.
Notes
- If you want big chunky bits of biscuit dough on the top like in the photos, squeeze the dough together in your fist and then crumble over the caramel.
- Add some chocolate chips when you add the crumbled biscuit dough to the top for an extra treat.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 20 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 204Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 33mgSodium: 184mgCarbohydrates: 21gFiber: 0gSugar: 7gProtein: 2g
Nutritional values are approximate. Please use your own calculations if you require a special diet.
Thank you for checking out this recipe. I hope you enjoy making and eating it! If you have any questions, queries or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below.
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Vanya
Adriana Hewitt
Do you have a Gluten Free version?
VJ cooks
I haven't tried this with gluten free ingredients sorry.
Lynn
Hi,I make the your recipe tan slice,I like it and I will make again.but I want to ask,after it cooked it sticks in the sides of parchment paper and when I slice it the base is too crumbly .it did not stick together.it's difficult to slice.unlike in your photo is nice and neat and I think it's not too crumbly.
VJ cooks
Hi Lynn, sorry to hear that. Perhaps your oven runs hot and it dried it out too much when baking making it crumbly. You could cook slightly less time and try slicing while it’s still a bit warm, but not hot. The caramel shouldn’t stick to the baking paper... I wonder if you are using parchment paper which could stick?
Mariya
Not this one, but I've tried other similar recipes with gf flour and it works all the time. Just use 1:1 GF flour mixture.
Sarah
Hi
Where do you get your square tins from?
Thanks
VJ cooks
I've accumulated them from lots of different places over the years! I really like the pink Wiltshire one I was sent a few years ago.
Sandra McDonald
I have a tine of caramel condensed milk which I did not use over Christmas, can I use this instead of making the caramel?
Vanya Insull
You could certainly try that, but it won't set or taste the same. Let me know how you get on.
J Clendon
Such a heavenly slice! Beautiful shortbread base, quick and easy recipe to follow...have all intentions of freezing for the weekend but looking like I might have to make another, to good to resist with a afternoon cuppa!
VJ cooks
Haha I hear you - no leftovers here either! So pleased you enjoyed it 🙂
Sophie Lakeman
We are dairy free due to allergies and incase it is helpful to anyone else I just wanted to say I managed to make this easily with DF substitutes - I used "vegan block" instead of butter and substituted out the sweetened condensed milk for Nature's Charm sweetened condensed coconut milk. Yum!
VJ cooks
That's really helpful, thanks for the feedback Sophie.
Justine
Hi keen to make is it unsalted butter I use? Thanks
VJ cooks
Yes that's totally fine.
Elizabeth
Thank you for a very nice recipe. I made a double batch to freeze and give small containers as gifts. Baking the base without caramel on top first was a great idea - such a nice shortbread base. The caramel was a good quantity, not too much or too little. I will bake again but try less butter in caramel.
VJ cooks
Thanks for your lovely feedback, Elizabeth.