Caramels Recipe

Excellent recipe. For you "new" caramel makers out there, please keep in mind that it's going to take anywhere from 40 minutes to an hour of cooking these to get them to the proper temp, but don't try to rush them along with higher heat or they'll just scorch! Just be sure to allow yourself enough time when making them and you should be quite pleased with the results...good things come to those who wait!!

I have read the reviews on this recipe and think I know why some of you have caramels that turn out too soft and some too hard. First of all this recipe says to cook to the hard ball stage. The hard ball stage has a range of 250 - 266 degrees. To find out what degree you should use for your candy, use this calculation...Candy should come in 1 degree lower than indicated in the recipe for each increase of 500 feet above sea level. For instance if your recipe calls for 250 degrees and you live at 2000 feet above sea level, take 4 degrees off which would come to 246 degrees. Also, the book says that one day your candy may set using 250 degrees and the next day it may take 254 degrees depending on weather, etc. You could always use the cold water test...drop a teaspoon into very cold water to see how it sets. Hard ball stage should hold it's shape when removed from the water and formed into a ball, but should still be pliable.---I HOPE THIS HELPS!!! Kim

As a caramel aficionado, I love the creamy, buttery flavor of these not too soft, chewy, old fashioned caramels. I've made them several times in the past year and a half and they're now my go-to recipe. They take about 45 minutes on my stovetop. I reduce my temp to 240F as I am at 5,000 feet. I often add crushed pecans to half the batch. My favorite! I also use a two 1.18" x 1.18"× .6" (40-squares each) silicone candy molds and get 80 caramels squares that are 0.5 oz each! Much like the ones from the checkout counter for $1, but so much better! I use another slightly smaller mold for about 12 more! Recipe makes plenty. Silicone molds and tools really eases the process. I wrap them in 5" parchment squares. Some, I dip in a bit of melted chocolate with a bit of oil, for that candy shell. A SUPERB gift for any occasion. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

I was all set to make these yesterday (Thanksgiving) and discovered, upon checking the pantry, that I didn't have any evaporated milk. I did have 7 (!!) cans of sweetened condensed milk, though. After a little research, I decided to use the condensed milk and decrease the amount of white sugar to 1 cup only. I also didn't have any light corn syrup, only dark--so I used that. Well! They came out fabulously and it only took about half an hour on the stove. I ditched the thermometer and went with the glass of cold water test--I find it more reliable (cheap thermometers aren't worth it). Wonderful results!! Great caramel. It'll be my go-to recipe from now on.

Have made this recipe for a good six eight years now with a little bit of change I always do double on the brown sugar and half on the white sugar and I use sliced down the middle and scraped vanilla beans in the pot the whole time I cook add in the bean paste about five minutes from totally done and add a pinch of salt. It's so rich and everyone raves about it I normally do it with a chocolate cookie dough crust under and then roasted salted pecans on top.

Wow, this is the most delicious caramel that I have ever tasted. I made this to make chocolate turtles, and other chocolate nut candies that use caramel. I used two high quality thermometers. One a Thermoworks probe thermometer, and another Thermoworks Infrared non-contact thermometer. For the latter I set the emissivity to .70 so that the Infrared one read the same as the probe thermometer. I also used special techniques to ensure that all of the sugar was fully dissolved. I mixed the sugars together in a Kitchen Aid mixer, then added the liquid ingredients, then thoroughly mixed. This prevents crystallization later in the process. When heating on the store, with a gas burner, I kept the temperature at about 4, on a scale of 1 to 10. Thus, less than medium. I found that I did not have to stir constantly. I considered it done when the mixture was 247 to 248F, the high end of the Firm Ball stage, and this was perfect.

My Carmel turned out amazing! I read the review and used some of the tips offered. I used a smaller pan (8x10) and lined it with parchment paper, instead of buttering it. I also substituted honey for half of the corn syrup (next time I’m trying all honey). I cooked mine on medium low and used a metal whisk, stirring it the entire 40 minutes it took to get to hardball stage on my very old and very trustworthy candy thermometer. I let it cool for about 30 minutes before cutting it and I found it was easier to cut with a serrated knife using a sawing motion. When I tried using a bigger knife and just cutting straight down in it, it would stick to the knife.

So good, and a fun way to spend Thanksgiving, trying something new! I halved the recipe; lined a 9” square baking dish w parchment paper w cooking spray; added a bit of honey in place of a bit of the corn syrup; added the juice of a tiny orange; added a layer of sliced almonds to the bottom of the dish and poured the caramel over that, and sprinkled on some sea salt. Cutting the caramels with a pizza cutter worked great. I made one fancy set of 1” rectangles drizzled in chocolate, then took the trimmings and made some little skinny ones with no chocolate, wrapped in wax paper twists, and I think those will be my favorites. Thanks for a new favorite!

An acquaintance of mine makes great caramels but always stressed to me how incredibly difficult and time-consuming it was and how I shouldn't even try because I lacked her experience. Well, pfffft to her. I made these caramels last night, and they are every bit as good as hers. What I changed: I used a 9 X 13 pan so the caramels would be a bit thicker. I buttered the pan sides but put parchment paper on the bottom, with "handles" overhanging the edges. I sprinkled the parchment with sea salt, then when I poured the caramel in, I again sprinkled it with sea salt. What I will do differently next time: I cooked the sugar mixture over medium heat, and it took 1 hour 32 minutes to reach 248 degrees. Since I stirred it constantly, next time I'll increase to medium high heat at least for a while. Also, I plan to swap some of the brown sugar for more white. The final product has a tiny bit more molasses-y taste than I would prefer. I will also buy wrappers online, as it took me as long to cut the waxed paper and wrap the candies as it did to make them. And next time I see my acquaintance, I'm going to tell about the fabulous recipe I found for the very best caramels ever!

My neighbor made these for Christmas and they were to die for! She added Maldon Sea Salt on top (pressing in) and refrigerated before cutting. I begged for the recipe and can't wait to try for myself.

Made the recipe the first time using the ingredients as written but did follow the tips of using parchment paper and I did use a smaller 10 x 15 inch pan to get thicker caramels. I adjusted for Denver altitude and pulled it at approximately 243 deg F (using a candy thermometer) It took 50 minutes on medium heat in a 5 quart non-stick pan stirring constantly. They turned out very good but slightly hard. The second time I made it I added an extra 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla and one teaspoon of coarse ground Himalayan Pink salt and pulled it at 140 deg F (using an instant read Thermapen. The trad candy thermometer was between 6-8 degrees low.). They were done in about 40 minutes with the burner set between medium and medium high (between 6 and 7 on a dial with 10 increments). When it came time to cut them I used a 13 3/4 inch Bialetti pizza chopper which made it much easier and my pieces were much more uniform in size. We wrapped the individual pieces in parchment paper.

I followed every part of the instructions to this recipe exactly. It seemed like it was doing really really nicely and was beautiful when I put it in the sheet pan lined with parchment. The problem is that they cooled into something more of the texture of a Werther‘s hard candy, not the creamy soft caramel that I was anticipating.

Easy first try at caramel. The helpful review about elevation definitely made a HUGE difference. I live at 7400 ft and it was ready to be taken off at 235 degrees.

I've been on something of a caramel/brittle/praline kick lately. Truthfully, I have to blame this recipe because it is far and away one of the easiest recipes I've seen and used. I've been cursed by many a coworker for bringing these delicious, buttery, sugary treats to work...( also for not bringing them to work). The base recipe works wonders, and adding nuts and other flavorings has worked wonderfully, too. In my last batch, I used maple syrup instead of Karo and added toasted pecans and cinnamon. They were declared my "best batch ever."

Best caramels. I don't have a thermometer so I rely on the hard ball test in water. For some, I add a layer of chocolate on top and a sprinkle of sea salt. The others just get the salt sprinkle. So good.

I make candy for my family. This is an easy recipe to follow. I made my own vanilla it's aged 18 months. I used in this recipe. Boy it taste good. I'll make this again it's a keeper. Easy to make.

So comforting and satisfying.

I’ve been making this recipe for 11 years!! I will always add my own spin to recipes but I don’t change anything about this. I make it exactly as is. One tip- buy the candy thermometer shown in the pic- the round one. It’s the most reliable. The only trouble I’ve ever had was when I switched thermometers.

it was great

This is probably he best caramels I’ve ever eaten. Maybe I’m biased since I made it but ooooooooh my goodnesss it is just perfection. I’m baffled at the “negative” review because this caramel is flawless