4-INGREDIENT CHEWY CARAMELS
I used to shudder at the thought of making my own caramel. I had experienced far too many failed attempts at it thanks to unclear recipes and it scared me to death! Luckily, my mother-in-law is basically a caramel-making-professional, so I enlisted her help in teaching me over Christmas break. All it took was one lesson to give me the confidence to take off running! After that, I caught the caramel bug and made it four or five times over the Christmas break alone. I was pleasantly surprised how easy it was. It just takes patience–lots of patience. From start to finish, this recipe usually takes me a full hour, sometimes a little more. 
- Using a high-temp rubber spatula, stir your caramel constantly, scraping the sides as you go.
- Do not trust a candy thermometer unless you have a high-quality one. Always double check with the cold water test.
- Once you start to feel the caramel thicken a little and start sticking to your spatula (it will be really drippy the entire time until this stage) start testing it in your ice water (usually about 45-55 minutes from when you start)
- You want your caramel to reach the “firm ball” stage. This means that when drizzled in cold water, you can form the caramel into a ball that is relatively firm to the touch. If it is super squishy, it’s not ready yet.
- You want it to be firm with a slight squish to it. I always think mine is done about 2 minutes before it actually is, so I tell myself to wait 2 minutes after I think I should take it off the heat.
- When pouring your caramel into your 9×13 in pan, do not scrape the bottom of the pan. All the caramel on the edges and bottom of the pan will be firmer than the rest of the caramel. I pour the majority into my greased pan, and then scrape the remaining caramel onto a greased plate to eat while my pan is cooling.
- Try not to move your pan much while the caramel is cooling or you will get ripples in it.
Buy 5×5 inch cellophane wrappers to wrap your caramel in when it is cooled, they are pre-cut and look professional.
by Phyllis Zimmerman, makes one 9×13 in pan (roughly 80 caramels)
Ingredients:
- 3 cups heavy whipping cream
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 1/4 cup karo syrup
- pinch of salt
- sea salt flakes (optional)
Directions:
- Grease a 9×13 inch tupperware/baking dish and set aside. Grease a small plate and place it next to your pan.
- Mix 1 cup of cream with the sugar, karo, and salt in a large heavy-bottomed pot and turn heat to medium.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture begins to brown.
- Slowly add additional 2 cups of cream – the goal is to add it slowly enough that you never lose your boil.
- Continue to boil until your caramel reaches the firm ball stage (see tips above).
- Pour caramel into your greased 9×13 without scraping the bottom of your pot. Scrape additional caramel onto your greased plate.
- If desired, wait 20 minutes and sprinkle your caramel with some sea salt flakes.
- Allow caramel to cool completely before turning your pan over onto a cutting board to cut. I wrap mine in 5×5 inch cellophane wrappers.
