I made these caramels to give away as presents for Christmas this year. I had wanted to try and make my own caramels for ages, but all the recipes I came across had corn syrup as one of the ingredients and I wasn’t very keen on it… especially since I have never seen it around here and I would not know where to find it! So when I saw that this recipe used honey instead, I was sold! I was quite happy with the result… the taste was divine… sweet and slightly salty, soft and chewy! I used some coarse Himalayan pink salt to decorate them, but normal coarse sea salt would work too. I love the way these caramels look when they are wrapped in baking paper! Make some for your friends (or for yourselves), I am sure they’ll love them!
SOFT VANILLA & PINK SALT CARAMELS
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Ingredients
- 300 gms – 1 ½ cups sugar
- 170 gms – ½ cup honey
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 240 ml – 1 cup heavy cream
- 115 gms – 4 oz. salted butter, at room temperature (I used unsalted butter and added a pinch of salt to the caramel)
- Himalayan Pink Salt (coarse)
Instructions
- Put the sugar, honey and vanilla extract in a large pot. Turn on the heat and let the sugar and honey cook until caramelized (it will become dark brown).
- In the meantime, bring the cream to a simmer.
- When the sugar reaches the colour you like, add the butter little by little and whisk well.
- Add the warmed cream, a pinch of salt (if using unsalted butter) and whisk until smooth.
- Cook until the temperature reaches 126°C – 260°F.
- Pour the hot caramel onto a cookie sheet lined with baking paper and let it cool down for about ten minutes. Now sprinkle it with the coarse pink salt.
- Let it cool down completely and then cut it into small squares with a warm sharp knife.
- You can wrap them in baking paper to store them and/or give as gifts.
Notes
I have read that the ideal temperature for cooking caramels in order to achieve the perfect consistency is 118°C – 244°F. However, I have tried to make a small batch at 118°C – 244°F and the caramels were way too soft, so I cooked the next batch (the ones in the pictures) at 126°C – 260°F. They were still soft, but I managed to cut them nicely and they retained their shape. I suggest you try a small batch first as many factors can influence the perfect consistency (like the altitude you live at for example!).
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These look like the perfect thing for Christmas presents and I love the idea of pink salt!
The Himalayan salt is a nice touch!
attractive looking caramels….i like it that it is made thin in width as compared to the ones I’ve seen….pink salt is so innovative.