Chocolate Covered Caramels
Friday, December 16, 2011
Day 16 of our holiday treat series brings my sister, Heather's, very first post here on Recipe Shoebox. Normally busy as an attorney, she's taking time off to visit our sister in California right now and suddenly got the urge to make some chocolate covered caramels. After I got over being insanely jealous that 2 of my sisters were hanging out at the beach (in December, no less) and eating homemade caramels together, I got really excited to have another sister join the Recipe Shoebox team. Thanks Heather....
I am a huge fan of the chocolate and caramel combination and these homemade chocolate covered caramels are delicious! The texture of the caramels turned out perfectly--firm enough to hold its shape, but not too chewy. This recipe made close to 90 caramels, so it is great for sharing with your friends, neighbors and coworkers this holiday season.
Click here for printable recipe.
Posted by Heather.
The Ingredients:
CARAMELS:
1 cup butter
2 1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup corn syrup
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup butter
2 1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup corn syrup
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla
CHOCOLATE:
3-4 cups chocolate chips
3-4 tsp Crisco
sea salt (optional)
Directions:
FOR CARAMELS: Grease 8 x 8 pan (or line with parchment paper). Melt butter over medium heat and then add brown sugar, corn syrup, and sweetened condensed milk. Stirring constantly, heat to 242-248 degrees (soft ball stage).
Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Pour into prepared pan.
After the caramel has cooled and set, cut into 1 inch squares. If you cool the caramel in the refrigerator, you will need to bring it back to room temperature before you cut.
Chill the cut caramels in the refrigerator until firm.
FOR CHOCOLATE: Melt 1 cup of chocolate chips and 1 teaspoon Crisco in the microwave in 30 second intervals. Melt additional chocolate chips and Crisco as needed. We used approximately 3 1/2 cups of chocolate chips to cover almost all of the caramels (we left a few of the caramels plain).
Using a toothpick, dip the caramels into the chocolate, wiping of the excess chocolate with a spoon.
Place the chocolates on parchment paper to cool and set.
You can also sprinkle sea salt onto the chocolates if you are a fan of salted caramels.
Don't miss a single recipe at Recipe Shoebox. Sign up on the right for free email updates!
Posts
9 comments:
These look absolutely amazing, Heather and I'm officially requesting you make us a batch next time you come to visit! Thanks for posting!
They look delicious!
Why use crisco in the chocolate? These look amazing and much easier than I imagined.
@ Mom2BeautifulGirl,
Good question! In short, the shortening gives the melted chocolate a better consistency for coating.
You can read more about it here (and why you can't substitute butter or margarine in its place): http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/tools-and-techniques/questions-about-cooking-with-chocolate1.htm
These caramels are sooo good! Plus, the recipe makes so many that it makes a good treat to give away to lots of friends. We gave some away to at least 6 families and still had plenty to much on for a couple days.
It's been years since I've made caramels. I've got to try making some again! They look delicious!
These would be great in a little gift box! I would love some of these....
good morning... i tried to make these carmels and it just wont set enough for me to cut them... i even through them in the freezer over night and there still gooey... what did i do wrong???
Jordon, maybe try heating it to a higher temp...say 255. The higher the temp, the harder the candy.
Post a Comment