Why are my homemade caramels hard?

If that's the case, you might be getting incorrectly crystalized sugar in the center of the pan . One of the tricks to making caramels is to never scrape the pan. Let as much of the caramel flow out of the pan as possible, but don't scrape down the sides into the cooling dish.

What is caramel made of?

The main ingredient in caramel is sugar. However, depending on the recipe you use, you may have to incorporate butter, heavy cream, water, or corn syrup as additional ingredients. High-quality, real caramel is always made with three basic ingredients and those are sugar, heavy cream, and butter .

How do you make caramel stiffer?

For each cup (240 mL) of caramel sauce that you need to thicken, run 1 tbsp (14.7 mL) of cold water into a measuring cup, and slowly stir in 1 tbsp of cornstarch . Pour the cornstarch mixture into your pot caramel sauce, and stir constantly. Keep the sauce on low heat until it begins to thicken.

What makes caramel softer?

I looooove adding brown sugar to caramels because it keeps them incredibly soft and chewy. This is because brown sugar has a lot of moisture. Corn syrup. It's a controversial ingredient, for sure, but an imperative one for making candy as it prevents crystallization and keeps the caramels smooth as silk.

What does adding butter to caramel do?

Some form of dairy — typically butter and/or heavy cream — is usually added to the mixture at either the beginning or the end of cooking. This addition makes the caramel richer, thicker, and lighter in color, lending more viscosity and rounder flavor .

Should you stir sugar when making caramel?

After a minute or two, the sugar will start to melt and darken in color, from the outside of the pan inwards. Do not stir, but instead swirl and shake the pan to distribute the caramelized sugar in and around the unmelted sugar and to promote even browning. Watch it carefully to make sure it doesn't burn.

What are the three types of caramel?

Caramel can be produced in so many forms such as, sauce, a chewy candy, or a hard candy because of how much of an ingredient is added and the temperature it is being prepared at.

How do you fix hard caramel?

If the temperature gets too hot and the caramel becomes too hard as it cools, you can put it back in the pan with a couple of tablespoons of cold water to try and save it.

How do you keep caramel from hardening?

To help prevent the caramel from crystallizing, you can add an acid to the sugar before you begin : add about half a tablespoon of lemon juice to each cup of sugar and mix it with your hands; it should be the consistency of wet sand. Heat the sugar over medium-high heat until it melts.

How do you keep caramel from turning hard?

By brushing these crystals with a wet pastry brush , you should be able to turn them back into a liquid before they can cause more crystallization. If you're really worried about crystallization, you can also add an acid like lemon juice into your caramel.

Fleur de Sel Caramels Recipe | My Baking Addiction (2024)

Home • Recipe Index • Candy

By Jamie

on Jan 10, 2011, Updated Jun 25, 2015

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This week is full of caramel deliciousness. I have three different recipes that will stand on their own or combine into one amazing confectionery creation. First on the agenda are simple Fleur de Sel Caramels that will make you weak in the knees.

Although I thoroughly enjoy consuming candy, I can’t make the stuff to save my life. Trust me; I have tried…numerous times. I always end up blaming the thermometer…because it couldn’t possibly me, right? Well numerous specialty thermometers later, candy is still not my forte.

Vanilla Bean Caramels with Fleur de Sel

Yield: 64 caramels

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Ingredients:

1 cup heavy cream
5 tbsp. unsalted butter
½ tsp. vanilla extract
1 vanilla bean pod, split lengthwise and scraped
1¼ tsp. fleur de sel, plus more for sprinkling
1½ cups sugar
¼ cup light corn syrup
¼ cup water

Directions:

1. Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking dish with parchment paper. Lightly butter the parchment.

2. In a small saucepan, combine the cream, butter, vanilla extract, vanilla bean seeds, pods, and fleur de sel. Heat over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and set aside.

3. In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, corn syrup, and water. Heat over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar is dissolved. Boil, without stirring but gently swirling the pan occasionally, until the mixture is a light golden caramel color.

4. Remove the vanilla bean pods from the cream mixture and carefully stir the cream mixture into the caramel – the mixture will bubble up, so pour slowly and stir constantly. Continue simmering the mixture until it registers 248˚ F on a candy thermometer. Immediately remove from the heat and pour into the prepared pan. Let cool for 30 minutes, then sprinkle lightly with additional fleur de sel. Continue to let sit until completely set and cooled. Cut into 1-inch pieces (a buttered pizza cutter works well). Wrap the individual caramels in small pieces of wax paper, about 4-inch squares.

Notes:

- I stored my caramels in the refrigerator. Leaving them out at room temp made them a little more pliable than I wanted them to be.

- From: Annie’s Eats

54 Comments

This was my very first attempt at making candy of any kind and it was so simple. My family couldn’t believe that I made this from scratch. Thanx for a wonderful recipe that I will be making for Christmas presents this year. And also again for the family, they can’t get enough!!!!!
Reply
1. I’m so glad to hear that, Valerie!
I absolutely love your recipe for this Salted Caramel!!! But I am rather ignorant when it comes to some of the ingredients in some of these recipes. And this ones got me going, ” FLEUR-DE- SEL ” huh??? Does this mean you throw a little French man in the mix?? HAHAHA. So really, where in the grocery store do I find one of these? Could someone be so kind as to help me with this???
PLEASE????? THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!
Sincerely Lost,
Marilyn K. Jason
P.S. You have some wonderful recipes here, I can’t wait to try a few!!!
Reply
1. Hi, Marilyn! You made me smile! Fleur de sel is a hand harvested salt from France. Check at Whole Foods and Williams Sonoma; they should have it. Let me know how it goes! I hope you have a great day!
Do you know how long these are good for? I’m making some goodies to send over to the UK and shipping is about 10 days. Will they be good that long?
Reply
1. Anna-
  These caramels should be fine during shipping and still be plenty fresh. I hope this helps.
  -Jamie
Hi,
Can i use this recipe for caramel buttercream ?
Thank you
Reply
I’m hosting a brunch at a fancy restaurant for my girlfriends this weekend. I made these to put in their thank you for coming goodie bags. Smells amazing and I know they’re going to taste the same. The caramel is cooling as I type!
Reply
Hi. I am new to this site, but love the sound of the caramels. I have been hunting for a recipe that you can bake with to make a firm yet gooey caramel, like you would get in a chocolate bar. Would this work or do you have another recipe or adjustment.
I think this is going to be one of my new best sites for visiting!!
Reply
1. Heather-
  You can definitely dip these in chocolate. They are semi-firm meaning you wouldn’t want them to sit in a warm area. I like to keep them in the refrigerator until just before serving. I hope this helps.
  -Jamie