perfect homemade caramels
Yay! I have another super fun Halloween treat to share with you today! These caramels are seriously the best. Ever. They have a wonderful soft and chewy texture without being sticky or gooey, and they taste fantastic! They are so creamy and rich and flavorful. Best of all, they are pretty much foolproof! I'll confess… this was actually my second attempt at making caramel this month. And, well, the less said about the first attempt, the better. Turns out I really just needed the right recipe, and this one is it!
You could dress up these caramels pretty much any way you can imagine… sprinkle them with sea salt, dip them in chocolate, etc. The recipe itself is pretty versatile and can also be used for caramel popcorn or even caramel apples (coming later this week!). No matter how you use it, it's super delicious!
Perfect Homemade Caramels
1 cup salted butter, cut into pieces1 cup sugar1 1/4 cup brown sugar1 cup corn syrup1 teaspoon salt1 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk1 teaspoon vanilla
Prepare a 9 x 13 baking dish by buttering or lining with parchment paper, then set aside. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt, and stir using a rubber spatula. Add the sweetened condensed milk slowly, stirring well to incorporate. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture reaches 235 degrees on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla. Pour the mixture into the prepared dish. Let cool completely before cutting into pieces. I've found that small squares of parchment paper are my favorite for wrapping up the caramels, but wax paper or cellophane works too. Enjoy!
slightly adapted from Ella Claire
P.S. I knew it was too dangerous to keep all of the caramels in the house for myself, so I dressed them up cute and gave them out to some friends. I downloaded the adorable "Trick or Treat" tags from Design Eat Repeat and bought the striped bags at my local party store (I think they were 8 for $1). Pretty snazzy, right?
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