1. Line a 20cm x 20cm square baking tin with foil. 

2. Place the digestive biscuits, oats and nuts into a blender and blitz until they become the size of breadcrumbs.

3. Chop the dried dates into small pieces and place them into a bowl. Add the baking spread and golden syrup.

4. Place the bowl in the microwave and gently melt the ingredients.

5. Now with the back of a metal spoon, squash the warmed dates. Breakdown the dates until they become a paste and are mixed thoroughly into the syrupy mixture. 

6. Into this bowl, pour in the crushed biscuit mix and stir until well combined. 

7. Pour into the prepared tin and using the back of a metal spoon, press down really firmly. This mixture is quite a dry mix so you really need to spend a few minutes pressing the crumbs down firmly or your base will not cut into squares. By the time you have finished pressing into the tin, the base should be level, compacted and look shiny. 

8. Place your tray in the fridge for 10 minutes to firm up before adding the caramel layer.

9. Whilst the base is chilling, very gently warm the caramel layer in the microwave so that it can be poured onto the base. Only heat for a few seconds as you don’t want it to become a runny liquid but heating it will help to spread it across the base biscuits. 

10. Pour or spoon your caramel sauce across the biscuit base. 

11. Place the tray back in the fridge to reset the caramel.

12. Whilst the caramel is firming up, break up both chocolates and melt gently in the microwave or using a double boiler. Mix until both chocolates have combined and have completely melted.

13. Pour the melted chocolate over the caramel layer and carefully smooth it across the top. 

14. Carefully place a mini pretzel of your choice into the chocolate. You can place flatly into the chocolate or at an angle. To help with placement of your pretzels, remember that once chilled this tin will cut up into 16 pieces.

15. Put your finished tray into the fridge and it is best chilled overnight before cutting… if you can wait that long!

16. When cutting, remove your tray from the fridge and peel off the tin foil carefully. Allow the biscuit base to come back to room temperature before slicing or your chocolate will crack when you attempt to cut it. 

17. Take a jug of boiling water and a large, sharp, kitchen knife and immerse the blade into the water for a few minutes. Dry the blade thoroughly and then gently score the chocolate. Push the heated blade into the chocolate to create a groove before then cutting down firmly into the base. If you do this, the chocolate will cut and not crack. Clean your blade and re-immerse into the jug of water and repeat every time you score and cut. This step is necessary because the firm chocolate is sitting on a squidgy layer of caramel. 

18. Your finished bars will keep in the fridge for a week and I always bring mine up to room temperature before serving but you can eat them chilled from the fridge.