Salty Vanilla and Cardamom Caramels

I’ve been having a really intense crafting itch lately. I don’t know if it came from the upsurge of holiday spirit and the homemade gift guides I’ve been poring over. Or it could be a way to procrastinate from studying for my finals. But maybe it’s my outlet for the angst and worry I have over the fact that in only one week, I’ll have one semester of college left before the real world hits. “Oh, to only be able to make pretty little crafts for a living and get rich by writing a book on it,” is what the dream world in my mind might be telling me. Sounds a whole lot nicer than what reality is telling me…“you’ll never find a job with a career in media studies.”

I’ve been searching for an excuse to create prettily wrapped edible gifts for a while. I’ve had a Michael’s supplies lists and a hoard of recipes ready to roll and this past weekend the opportunity came about to make use of some of that. I finished my internship this week and of course I needed a parting gift, right? Move over CSS Web Styling Guide and hello candy thermometer. But what to make? Then I remembered that last Christmas, in London, I would go to the Melt counter at Selfridges and buy one of their salted vanilla caramels for a mere pound and would sneak little sweet bites throughout the day. They were wrapped up in a square of parchment, the ends twisted up tight so that the caramel squeezed against the paper hinting at the greasy yet beautiful butteriness within. Thinking of those, I had to make them.

I used this Ina Garten recipe because it had the best reviews but with some slight changes. The major change is that I didn’t use fleur de sel. Don’t get me wrong; I was more than ready to pay the hefty price for the lovely delicate salt, but in this small town, it was nowhere to be found. I used pink Himalayan sea salt instead, which was actually still nice. I also infused them with some cardamom too to give a richer, smoky flavor and dipped them halfway in some nice dark chocolate just for the sake of it.

They turned out wonderfully, cooked to the firm ball stage so that they are sturdy but still turn into a puddle the second they touch my tongue. They firm up quite a bit in the fridge (which really worried me at first because I thought I overcooked it and made brittle) but just a few minutes at room temperature softened them up to optimal chewiness. These are not those caramels that most liken to instant cavities. These don’t have the time to stick to the teeth before they melt into creamy sweetness. The salt makes the slightly burnt sugar taste stand out even more and the spices add depth without overwhelming the caramel. Finally, the chocolate...well, enough said. I wrapped these too with parchment, popped them in a craft paper box with some burgundy raffia, whipped up a little label and tied it all together with some twine. 

I will probably have to take a little break from the baking next week (that’s what I say now) but once the tests are finished and I’m back home with nothing but time and Christmas cheer, the candies, cookies, and crackers and fun packages are going to make a massive appearance. My friends and I took an oath of no gift exchanges this year but surely they’ll forgive me for succumbing to my need to bake and craft. In the mean time, however I’ll make do with this fabulous creation: rum balls, malt balls, ice cream…sound like a finals week savior!

Salted Caramels
adapted form Ina Garten
makes 32 caramels

Ingredients
1½ cups sugar
¼ cup light corn syrup
¼ cup water
1 cup heavy cream
5 Tbs. unsalted butter
½ vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped out
1 tsp. cardamom
1 tsp. fine sea salt or fleur de sel plus more for sprinkling
4 oz. good dark chocolate

Line an 8 inch square baking dish or pyrex dish with parchment paper, letting it hang over two sides (this will make it so you can lift the caramels out). Lightly oil the paper with vegetable oil. In a deep saucepan, combine the water, sugar, and corn syrup and bring it to a boil on medium-high heat until it is golden brown in color. Do not stir but occasionally swirl the pan. Meanwhile, in another saucepan, bring the cream, butter, vanilla seeds and pod pieces, cardamom, and salt to a simmer. Once simmering, remove from heat, remove the vanilla pods, and set aside.

Once the sugar is done boiling, remove from the heat and VERY CAREFULLY, pour in the cream mixture while stirring with a wooden spoon. Once all combined, return to a medium-low heat and let cook, without stirring until it reaches 248 degrees on a candy thermometer or firm ball stage. Once it reaches temperature, pour into the prepared pan and smooth out the top with the wooden spoon to pop any bubbles. Place in the refrigerator for a few hours to set. Once set, take out of the refrigerator and remove from the pan by pulling up on the parchment. It you have trouble taking it out, dip the bottom of the pan in a bowl of hot water until it comes loose. Cut the caramels into 32 pieces and store in the refrigerator until you are ready to dip them in the chocolate.

When ready to dip them, place a metal bowl over a pan of shallow simmering water to make a double boiler. Place the chocolate in the bowl and stir until melted. Dip the caramels halfway in the chocolate and place them on a parchment-lined sheet to harden. Sprinkle each with a little bit of the salt. Once the chocolate has completely hardened, wrap them in parchment squares and store either in the refrigerator or at room temperature.