Homemade Caramels Recipes

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan combine brown sugar, sugar, condensed milk and butter. Heat to 250 to 265 degrees F (121 to 129 degrees C), or until a small amount of syrup dropped into cold water forms a rigid ball.
• Pour into an 8x8 inch pan. Cool until firm and cut into squares.

Steps:

• Melt butter; add brown sugar and salt, mixing well.
• Stir in corn syrup.
• Gradually add milk, stirring constantly.
• Cook and stir over medium heat until candy reaches firm ball stage (245 degrees).
• This will take 12-15 minutes.
• Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
• Pour into greased 9x13 pan.
• Let cool.
• Cut into 48 pieces with a sharp knife.

Steps:

• Grease a 12x15 inch pan.
• In a medium-size pot, combine sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, evaporated milk, whipping cream, and butter. Monitor the heat of the mixture with a candy thermometer while stirring. When the thermometer reaches 250 degrees F (120 degrees C) remove the pot from the heat.
• Stir in vanilla. Transfer mixture to the prepared pan and let the mixture cool completely. When cooled cut the Carmel into small squares and wrap them in wax paper for storage.

Steps:

• In heavy saucepan melt butter.
• Add brown sugar and salt, stir in corn syrup. Mix well.
• Stirring constantly add milk gradually.
• Stir over medium heat until candy reaches soft ball stage--242°F.
• Remove from heat,add vanilla.
• Pour into buttered 8x8-inch dish.
• Cool for 4-6 hours.
• Cut into small squares and wrap in wax paper.
• Note:It took approximately 25 minutes of stirring and cooking to reach soft ball stage. Also I refrigerated the candy.

Steps:

• In a heavy-bottomed sauce pan, stir the sugar and corn syrup together until the sugar is completely moistened. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat and cook, without stirring, until it turns a very light caramel color, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and very slowly pour the cream into the hot sugar (be careful-it will bubble up) and stir to combine. Return the mixture to medium-low heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until a candy thermometer inserted in the pot reads 238 degrees F, about 12 to 15 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and whisk in the chocolate and butter until smooth. Pour the mixture into a greased 8-by-8 inch square baking dish. Allow to cool completely (at least 2 hours) before cutting into 1-inch squares.
• Chocolate is tempered so that after it has been melted, it retains its gloss and hardens again without becoming chalky and white (that happens when the molecules of fat separate and form on top of the chocolate). There are a variety of ways to temper.
• One of the easiest ways to temper chocolate is to chop it into small pieces and then place it in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time on high power until most of the chocolate is melted. Be very careful not to overheat it. (The temperature of dark chocolate should be between 88 and 90 degrees F, slightly warmer than your bottom lip. It will retain its shape even when mostly melted. White and milk chocolates melt at a temperature approximately 2 degrees F less because of the amount of lactose they contain.) Any remaining lumps will melt in the chocolate's residual heat. Use an immersion blender or whisk to break up the lumps. Usually, chocolate begins to set, or crystallize, along the side of the bowl. As it sets, mix those crystals into the melted chocolate to temper it. A glass bowl retains heat well and keeps the chocolate tempered longer.
• Another way to temper chocolate is called seeding. In this method, add small pieces of unmelted chocolate to melted chocolate. The amount of unmelted chocolate to be added depends on the temperature of the melted chocolate, but is usually 1/4 of the total amount. It is easiest to use an immersion blender for this, or a whisk.
• The classic way to temper chocolate is called tabliering. Two thirds of the melted chocolate is poured onto a marble or another cold work surface. The chocolate is spread out and worked with a spatula until its temperature is approximately 81 degrees F. At this stage, it is thick and begins to set. This tempered chocolate is then added to the remaining non-tempered chocolate and mixed thoroughly until the mass has a completely uniform temperature. If the temperature is still too high, part of the chocolate is worked further on the cold surface until the correct temperature is reached. This is a lot of work, requires a lot of room, and makes a big mess.
• A simple method of checking tempering, is to apply a small quantity of chocolate to a piece of paper or to the point of a knife. If the chocolate has been correctly tempered, it will harden evenly and show a good gloss within a few minutes.
• From Dessert Circus, Extraordinary Desserts You Can Make at Home, by Jacques Torres.

Steps:

• Combine the maple syrup, brown sugar, cream, condensed milk, corn syrup and salt in a saucepan. Stir over medium heat until the mixture reaches 245 degrees F on a candy thermometer. Take from the heat and stir in the butter. Pour into a 6-inch square baking pan lined with parchment and allow to cool and set about 3 hours.
• Take the caramel from the pan and, using a very sharp knife gently sprayed with nonstick cooking spray, cut the caramels into squares and wrap in wax paper or candy wrappers (see Cook's Note). Store in a cool dry place.

Steps:

• Line bottom and sides of a 9-inch square pan with parchment paper; set aside.
• Split the vanilla bean in half with a small paring knife, and scrape out the seeds; discard the pod. Add the seeds to the cream in a 1 1/2 quart saucepan; scald the cream and keep the saucepan near the stove so that if the cream cools too much when needed, you can reheat it briefly. In a deep, heavy-bottomed 4-quart saucepan over low heat, blend the corn syrup and the sugar, stirring occasionally until the mixture becomes more fluid and most of the sugar appears dissolved.
• Stop stirring, raise heat to medium-high, and gently boil until a candy thermometer registers 305 degrees F (hard crack stage), about 9 to 12 minutes.
• Add the butter and salt to the sugar mixture, stirring constantly. Pour in the warm vanilla-flavored cream in a slow but steady stream without letting the boiling stop (be careful-mixture foams up and is steamy). Lower heat to medium and continue to boil gently until the thermometer registers about 248 degrees F, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching, about 14 to 15 minutes.
• Let the candy stand about 3 minutes to allow bubbling to subside, then pour into the prepared pan without scraping the saucepan; allow to cool at least 5 hours.
• Invert onto a clean cutting board and cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips; then cut across the strips to form 1/2-inch squares. To apply a patch of gold leaf to each square, use a small artist's brush. With the brush, lift a tiny patch about the size of an oatmeal flake of gold leaf and deposit it on top of the caramels for decoration.
• Cut caramels tend to stick together and not hold their shape unless individually wrapped, so for easiest storage wrap the block of caramels in aluminum foil and cut off portions as needed. Store cut caramels in layers, separated by aluminum foil in an airtight metal or plastic container in a cool place for up to 3 weeks.

Steps:

• Generously spray a 9-by-12-by-2-inch pan with cooking spray; line it with parchment and butter the top of the parchment.
• In a large saucepan, mix the brown sugar, granulated sugar, corn syrup and 1 cup of the cream. Heat until the mixture begins to boil. Slowly stream the remaining 1 cup cream into the mixture, stirring while it's boiling. Attach a candy thermometer to the pan and cook the mixture over medium heat until it reaches 244 degrees F. Remove the pan from the heat and add the butter, chopped pecans and vanilla. Pour the candy into the prepared pan. Cool the candy in the refrigerator until it is just firm but not hard, about 1 hour.
• Cut the candy into 1-inch squares. Cut waxed paper into 4-inch squares and wrap each piece of candy individually. Store in the refrigerator. Remove the candy from the fridge and allow it to soften slightly before serving.

Steps:

• Combine all ingredients in a heavy saucepan and cook on medium-high flame.Stir consistently as the ingredients melt and combine.
• Let mixture come to a rolling boil and continue stirring consistently.
• Mixture will begin to thicken more and more the longer it is allowed to boil. Keep in mind that the caramel will firm up considerably when it is cooled.
• Cook to medium ball stage. Do the drop test to see how firm your caramel is.
• DROP TEST: Get a small bowl and fill it with ice water. Set it to the side of the stove and when you think your Caramel is firming up, take a spoonful and drop it in the ice water. Wait about thirty seconds so it has time to cool, then take the caramel out of the ice water and squish it between your fingers. If it isn't as firm as you want it, cook the caramel for a bit longer and then do another drop test. Keep doing this until it has reached the stage you want. See how easy and simple that was?.
• Remove caramel from heat and let cool for a while in the pan.
• When it is somewhat cooled, pour it out onto a greased counter, or onto parchment paper.Let cool to room temperature.
• Use a pizza cutter to cut strip off the caramel, then cut the strip into small pieces and wrap in pieces of wax or parchment paper. The softer the caramel, the more likely it is to stick to the wrapping. So if you like it really soft, I would suggest you use parchment paper instead of the wax.
• The best thing about this recipe is that it tastes good no matter how hard or soft you cook it. If you want a caramel syrup, then you boil it for a very short while. If you want a caramel toffee, the flavor will still be as wonderful. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I have over the years.

Steps:

• Combine all ingredients.
• Cook 6 minutes, stirring every two minutes.
• Stir and pour into lightly greased dish.
• Let cool.
• Cut, wrap in wax paper & store in air tight container.

Steps:

• Butter and line the base and sides of a 20 x 30cm tin with baking parchment.
• Pour the cream into a saucepan along with the butter and vanilla, then bring to a simmer. Swirl the pan to melt the butter, then remove from the heat.
• In a separate pan, melt the sugar and golden syrup together, stirring occasionally. Once the sugar granules have dissolved, bring to the boil and cook until the temperature reaches 155C on a sugar thermometer. Remove from the heat and swiftly whisk through the cream mixture. Return to the heat and cook until the mixture reaches 127C, constantly whisking so it doesn't catch.
• Pour the caramel into the tin, tilting so it reaches the corners. Leave to set for 15 mins, then sprinkle with the salt. Leave to cool completely at room temperature (preferably overnight). Cut into squares using a very sharp, slightly oiled knife, then wrap each one in a square of baking parchment.