homemade caramels

If you can stir, you can make Grandma’s Homemade Caramels! These are soft, chewy, and so easy to make. We’ve even included instructions on how to make caramels without a candy thermometer!

Grandma's Homemade Caramels

unsalted butter

can sweetened condensed milk

corn syrup

brown sugar

vanilla extract

salt

Butter a 9x13 pan well to coat. Set aside

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, pour in sweetened condensed milk, corn syrup, and brown sugar.

Use a rubber spatula to stir the mixture constantly over medium heat until it starts to simmer, scraping the sides and bottom regularly.

Once simmering, continue at a constant simmer, stirring constantly until caramel reaches the softball stage of 235 and 245 F, with higher elevations using the lower temperature range, and lower elevations using the upper end of the range.

At the soft-ball stage, immediately remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract and salt. Pour caramel into the prepared 9x13 pan.

Let cool completely before cutting into squares. Wrap in pieces of wax paper for individual servings if desired.

These delicious homemade caramels are soft and chewy and the perfect holiday gift. Our tried and true recipe has been in the family for over 30 years and results in buttery caramels every time!

Homemade Caramels

Tablespoon butter, softened

heavy whipping cream

milk

sugar

Line a 9-inch square baking dish with foil....

Line a 9-inch square baking dish with foil. Butter the foil. Set aside.

In the top of a double boiler, combine...

In the top of a double boiler, combine the heavy cream wi th the sweetened condensed milk. Heat pan over low heat until milk and cream are warm. Keep on a low simmer, stirring occasionally.

In a large 3-4 quart saucepan, combine the...

In a large 3-4 quart saucepan, combine the sugar, corn syrup, and salt. Heat over medium heat until boiling, stirring with a wooden spoon. Attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pan.

Very slowly, over medium heat, add 1/4 cup...

Very slowly, over medium heat, add 1/4 cup of the warmed cream mxture to the boiling sugar mixture, while stirring with a wooden spoon. Wait about 3 minutes between each addition of cream (this process will take about 45 minutes). Be sure to continuously stir the mixture.

Once all the additions of the warm cream...

Once all the additions of the warm cream have been added, monitor the candy thermometer until it reaches 242 degrees F.

Remove from heat and immediately stir in the...

Remove from heat and immediately stir in the vanilla extract. Quickly pour the caramel into the buttered foil-lined baking dish.

Allow caramel to set at room temperature for...

Allow caramel to set at room temperature for several hours, or overnight.

To cut the caramels, lift out of the...

To cut the caramels, lift out of the pan and place onto a cutting board. Remove the foil. With a large, sharp knife cut the candy into long strips (about 1-inch wide). Turn pan and cut the candy in the opposite direction in about 1 1/2-inch pieces (they will be the size of a small tootsie roll).

Wrap candy in small pieces of plastic wrap...

Wrap candy in small pieces of plastic wrap or parchment paper. Cut 5-inch squares of plastic wrap or parchment paper, place the caramel on top, roll the caramels, then twist both ends.

This homemade caramel recipe makes the absolute best caramels with only 7 ingredients! They are soft &amp; buttery, melt-in-your-mouth delicious, and are a perfect gift for friends and neighbors.

Homemade Caramel Recipe

butter

oz sweetened condensed milk

sea salt

tsp vanilla extract

Line a 9x9” baking pan with a silicone baking mat or heavily greased wax paper, set aside. Alternately, you can put a silicone baking mat on a larger baking sheet and note that you will not spread the caramel over the entire thing.

Locate your instant read thermometer and have it close by.

Lay out tools

Combine butter, corn syrup, condensed milk, brown sugar, granulated sugar and sea salt in a heavy-bottomed 4-quart (at least) saucepan. Whisk constantly until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth.

Cook over medium-low heat until the caramel reaches 235-240 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, stirring every few minutes with a heatproof spatula or wooden spoon, making sure not to let any of the mixture on the bottom or sides burn or get too brown. This takes about 20 to 25 minutes. Do not rush it.

You will know you’re getting close when the caramel becomes slightly darker brown in color, thickens and pulls away from the sides of the saucepan as you stir. It will also remain solid when removed from the pot and left to cool or put in cold water.

When the caramel is finished cooking, remove from heat, add vanilla and stir vigorously.

Pour the caramel into the prepared pan.

Chill in the refrigerator until set (about 2 hours).

Then, lift the caramel out of the pan, remove the wax paper or silicone baking mat, and put it on a cutting board.

Cut the chilled caramel into 1” squares (or your desired size) with a sharp knife.

If desired, sprinkle sea salt on the tops of the caramels.

Store cut caramels in an airtight container in the refrigerator, or wrap them in candy wrappers or parchment paper.

Make the caramel:

https://mediavine-res.cloudinary.com/video/upload/t_original/v1661519203/fg2wkhsda04vplhlsjcu.mp4

This homemade caramel recipe makes the absolute best caramels with only 7 ingredients! Homemade caramels are soft & buttery, melt-in-your-mouth delicious, and are a perfect gift for friends and neighbors.

EASY soft caramels with just 4 ingredients. You can whip these up in about 15 minutes with NO candy thermometer and they literally melt in your mouth!

Easy 4 Ingredient Soft Caramels (no candy thermometer required)

½ sticks butter ((12 tablespoons))

condensed milk

coarse sea salt, ½ teaspoon vanilla ((see note))

In a medium sauce pan combine butter and sugar and stir over medium heat until melted. Stir in corn syrup and condensed milk.

Bring to a boil and then decrease to simmer 7-10 minutes or until mixture achieves deep golden color, stirring constantly. (*For lower altitudes, simmer time may need to be reduced 2-3 minutes, watch carefully for coloring!) - See update below recipe!

Pour caramel into a foil-lined 8x8 inch pan and allow to cool completely. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt if desired.

When completely cooled, cut into squares and wrap in wax paper.

Not even close to a real caramel. Nice try, but not good.

Tried to make it twice.  The butter kept separating.  It looks like a fantastic recipe.  Kudos to all who got it to work.

I love this recipe so much… I’m not the type to make anything, let alone caramels that tend to be finicky and time consuming, but these are so simple even I could do it! They make for a fantastic last minute gift for birthdays or Christmas, and my family looks forward to them every year. Some have been hounding me for the recipe, but I claim it as my secret because I’m the only one in the family that knows how, and it’s kinda nice to have others looking forward to something only I can provide. A tip for those making them for the first time: stir them until the candy pulls away from the pot. Might be longer than 15 minutes, but it will save so much time and energy in the long run. Not cooking long enough makes them super gooey and won’t set up. (Those are my kid’s favorites though because we get to eat those 😉)

My batch neverd d id reach a deep, golden color, even after 15 minutes.  The butter definitely separated, but I didn't know how to fix it until I read about after making them.  Not sure if they're going to set up yet or not.  Probably not a recipe I''d do again.

This is a great recipe! I am glad I read the comments first though to know to boil for 5 minutes , everyone I give them to loves them, I will be making this often.. Thanks so much!!

I LOVE this recipe!! So easy!! I had to let it cook a little longer but way shorter than any other recipe I saw AND it is delicious!! I will be adding these to my Christmas gifts this year for sure!!

I made your delicious caramel this morning…Easy as pie….When I added the sugar and condensed milk it looked like the butter was separating, so I took it off the heat and whisked it like crazy…All went well after that….I hate to tell you this,, I had more trouble wrapping it in wax paper…Thank goodness I finally got the hang of it…I will make them again….thank you for your recipe and all the details…💕

Please forgive me for the negative review. I followed the recipe step by step. I had the stove set on low, stirring constantly &amp; still burnt at the bottom of pan. I strained it put it into another pot. Constantly stirring &amp; all the ingredients would never combine together. Butter (real) laid at the top. What a hot greasy mess. I had 1/2 inch oil/butter at the top when poured into pan. I would not recommend using this recipe. Once again please forgive me for the negative review 😣

Easiest and best caramel recipe I have ever made.  My family loves them and looks forward to having them around every year at Christmas time.

These Homemade Caramels are soft, chewy, sweet, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious! They’re a classic simple candy that can easily be made at home and perfect for gift giving any time of year.

Easy Homemade Caramels

unsalted butter (, plus butter for the pan/parchment paper)

can evaporated milk

Line an 8x8-inch pan with parchment paper, with a slight overhang (for easy removal later.) Butter the parchment paper well.

Add the butter, sugar, corn syrup, and salt to a medium heavy-bottom saucepan over medium heat. Stir over medium heat for 5-10 minutes until mixture begins to boil.

Very gradually drizzle in the evaporated milk, taking about 12-15 minutes to slowly add it, while stirring constantly. (Remain over medium heat, maintaining a constant boil. It takes patience and time - don&#039;t rush this step.)

Stir the mixture constantly, scraping the sides occasionally until it reaches a &quot;soft ball&quot; stage (238 degrees F on a candy thermometer). For certainty, drop a spoonful of the hot caramel sauce into a cup of ice water and mold it with your fingers into a ball. When ready it will feel pretty firm and pliable, but still slightly sticky.

Once you reach 238 degrees F / or the soft ball stage, remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. (Be careful, it will bubble up.)

Pour mixture into the prepared pan. Cool completely, usually about 4 hours. (You can also cool and chill in the fridge overnight, then set out on counter to warm slightly at room temperature, so they&#39;re chilled but not cold. This makes them easier to cut.)

Remove the caramels from the pan by lifting out the parchment paper.

Using a sharp knife or dough/bench scraper, cut caramel into 10 rows and then individually cut each row into 8 pieces, so you end up with 80 equal sized pieces.

Place a caramel in the middle of wax paper, roll up, and then twist the ends to seal, like a tootsie roll. Then eat a bunch of them or give as gifts!The full article is filled with helpful tips, cutting, wrapping, and storage information.

These are so good and easy to make. I have tried many caramel recipes and this is my first success.

I've made these several times and everyone loves them. This last time I was distracted during cooking and the temperature reached firm ball stage / 248 degrees F.  When I cut the caramels with a scraper, they did NOT stick to the blade like all previous times. The caramels are firmer and chewy. I'll cook to firm ball from now on.

I absolutely love this recipe , my favorite by far. Excellent tasting and easy to follow. Thank you

This was my first time making caramel and I chose this recipe after looking through a bunch of other ones because it seemed the most simple and it didnt include brown sugar (the one thing I didnt have.) I followed the ingredients list as well as the directions and I can say that the flavor is amazing. I can see now why this is one of the type of things that get better with experience. My first mistake was using a sauce pan thinking that would be enough room. I didnt anticipate how much the recipe grew with the evaporated milk (did I mention that this was the first recipe I've ever followed, as in never cooked outside of Mac and cheese or sandwiches) so mid way through I had to hurry up and grab a larger pan, heat it up and then transfer it all over to that one. That didn't seem to affect it to much though. My second and probably biggest mistake was that I kept the candy thermometer in the whole time I was stirring since I thought that was what I was supposed to do after noticing the little clip thing to keep it clipped to the pot. Well since that was in the same spot I never stirred behind it and made sure to even avoid it so as to not break it. I didn't notice though until I took it out when it came time to pour the hot caramel into the dish. Then my third mistake was thinking it was going to come to the soft ball stage right after I was done adding the milk. And maybe it is supposed to but I have one of those glass top electric stoves that as my son lovengly refers to as being "dog water" for how well we are NOT able to control the temperature. So fifteen minutes after I poured in the milk (excruciatingly slow) and gone through 2 bowls of water by this point my mixture finally hit that softball stage on the thermometer (hallelujah). Then using my now third bowl of water I finally see the Carmel stack up on itself instead of just wooshing out in a cloud of murkey Carmel water and I knew it was done.This however is when I see the evidence that I didnt stir behind the thermometer.. But all in all (dark brown speckles and all) it was a neat experience and the Carmel actually tastes amazing. Thanks for the recipe.

Easy and delicious, with few ingredients. We stock evaporated milk, I like this recipe's match to our pantry.

This is a great recipe. My first time making caramel! I was wondering how long they stay soft for after wrapping? I made these tonight (12/20/2021) and I want them to stay fresh for Christmas. Any tips? Thank you so much

So easy, so delicious. Thank you for another keeper.

https://mediavine-res.cloudinary.com/video/upload/t_original/v1607911686/ypxrvsa8b87linfmxow4.mp4

These homemade caramels are soft, chewy and FULL of flavor! They're not hard to make and use simple ingredients. With my detailed instructions and step-by-step photos, you'll be gifting homemade caramels to everyone you know!

Soft Homemade Caramels

(414 grams) sugar

(180 milliliters) water

(420 milliliters) heavy cream, room temperature

(120 milliliters) light corn syrup

Instant candy thermometer

Pastry brush

Pre-cut wax paper wrappers

Line an 8 or 9-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Either size pan will work, the 8-inch will just give you thicker caramels.

You’ll start by making the caramel sauce

In a medium to large saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Cook over medium-low heat until the sugar is completely dissolved, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add ½ cup of the butter and let it melt.

Turn the heat up to medium and bring the mixture to a boil. Use water and a pastry brush to clean the sides of the pan (this helps the residue on the sides of the pan not cause crystallization). Stop whisking and don’t whisk at all during this part (again to help avoid crystallization).

Allow to boil until the mixture turns a deep golden copper color and reaches 330°F (if you’re using a candy thermometer), about 10-15 minutes, maybe longer depending on your stove. Keep an eye on it, but do not stir. If needed, you can occasionally tip the pan from side to side to help things cook evenly, and to give you a look at how dark it is and make sure it isn’t burning.

Remove the pan from the heat and immediately add in the heavy whipping cream in a slow, steady stream. The caramel will bubble up quite a bit, so be careful with this step. Whisk quickly and well as you add the cream, whisking until well combined.

Now it’s time to turn the caramel sauce into caramels

Add the remaining ½ cup of butter and let it melt, then add the corn syrup and stir to combine.

Place the pan back over medium heat and bring to a boil (it’ll happen quickly). Stir often with a silicone spatula to help prevent burning. After stirring, you can use water and a pastry brush to clean the sides of the pan (this helps the residue on the sides of the pan not crystallize).

Cook the caramel until reaches 240-245°F (I prefer 245°F). The higher the temperature, the firmer the caramels will be. If you don’t have a candy thermometer, you can also test it the old-fashioned way by dropping a spoonful of hot caramel into a cup of ice water. If you can shape it into a fairly firm but slightly sticky ball, it should be ready.

Remove from heat and stir in the salt and vanilla extract. It will bubble up a bit, so be careful.

Pour the caramel mixture into the prepared pan and allow to cool completely. They can cool at room temperature or in the fridge. They are firmer and easier to cut when cold, and are softer (but totally still cut-able) at room temperature.

Cut the caramels to your desired size and wrap them in wax paper. Store them in an air-tight container at room temperature or in the fridge, but serve at room temperature. They should keep well at room temperature for about six to nine months.

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