This weekend, let’s satisfy our candy cravings and make homemade caramels completely from scratch. Before you run away at the thought of making caramel, let me assure you that making chewy creamy soft caramels on the stovetop is SO easy.
A 15 minute ordeal where all you have to do is… stir.
I’m being serious. If you know how to stir, you know how to make caramels from scratch. They’re truly that simple.
And, let me tell ya, homemade caramel candies taste even better than anything you can buy at the store. Especially when you flavor them with vanilla bean and extra sea salt on top. Friends, just check out all those vanilla bean specks!!
Here’s exactly what you’ll need to make these sea salt vanilla caramels and why. When making candy, it’s important to know what each ingredient does in the recipe. Because it really is chemistry! Delicious chemistry. There are very little ingredients (just 7!) required and each one plays an equally imperative role.
Heavy cream. Or heavy whipping cream. Cream is the base of these caramels and what makes them, well, CREAMY!
Sugar. Duh! Caramel is sugar and sugar is caramel. 🙂
Brown sugar. 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 I like to keep in mind is that there are far worse processed ingredients in store-bought candies and only 1/3 cup of corn syrup divided over 65 candies is like .00000001 teaspoon per caramel. Or something like that.
These are the 4 main ingredients. After the caramel is made, remove it from heat and immediately stir these ingredients in for flavor:
A smidgen of butter… yum! Makes them even softer and creamier, too.
Vanilla extract and vanilla bean. Vanilla bean can be a little hard to come by, but I usually find it in the baking aisle of most major grocery stores. And there’s always online. Amazon has them for a steal!
Salt because we always need a little salty with our sweet.
Here are 3 tools you’ll need and why each is important.
Sturdy pan. A thick-bottomed and sturdy pan which is KEY to even heat distribution. Thinner, cheaper pans can scorch the cooking candy and cook it unevenly. Here are some great choices: Anolon Nouvelle Copper and Crestware. I own a couple pricier copper pots because of the amount of candy I make. In all honesty, you can’t beat their quality.
Candy thermometer. Don’t get nervous! Candy thermometers make your job even easier, not harder! It literally tells you when your candy is ready, ensuring consistency and success. I prefer using digital candy thermometers. Here is an excellent choice right here. If calibrated, a candy thermometer is 1000x more accurate than using your eyes to detect candy’s doneness. See My Favorite Candy Making Tools for how/why to calibrate.
Pastry brush. A pastry brush is imperative when making candy– its purpose is to help rid the saucepan of any sugar syrup or cooking candy that may have splashed up on the sides. The candy on the sides of the pan can burn and crystallize, ruining your batch of candy. Running a water-moistened pastry brush around the sides of the pan helps prevent this from happening.
More on my favorite candy making tools right here!
Pour the hot caramel into a lined pan. I always line it with aluminum foil because it’s very easy to get that foil lined nice and snug in the pan. Lightly butter the foil so the caramels peel off easily. Then let the caramels cool for about 4 hours (or overnight) at room temperature. Then cut into rectangles or little squares.
I usually give caramels out or bring them with me to events, so I individually wrap them. And I’m sure you’ll give some away as well– I know I can’t be trusted with 65 caramels in my kitchen TAUNTING me! But maybe you’re stronger than I am- lol. I’ve tested out many different types of wrappers and these twisting candy wrappers are the easiest to use and the perfect size. They’re great for homemade truffles or other candies too! I went through a ton while writing Sally’s Candy Addiction.
This is my go-to base for homemade caramels. Sometimes I even dip them into dark chocolate after I cut them. My piece of advice? Place one in your mouth and let it melt on your tongue. Truly an indulgence!
And if you can’t get enough of salted caramel, try my salted caramel cupcakes with salted caramel frosting next!
Print
Soft Caramel Candies
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: 65 caramels
- Category: Candy
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These sea salt vanilla caramels are unbelievably soft and chewy; the ultimate sweet and salty candy treat. The recipe makes a big batch to share!
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cups (355ml) heavy cream
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light brown sugar
- 1/3 cup (80ml) light corn syrup
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- seeds scraped from 1/2 of a vanilla bean
- 1 Tablespoon (14g) unsalted butter, softened (plus more for lightly buttering the pan)
- coarse sea salt for topping
Instructions
- Line an 8-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil, leaving enough overhang on the sides to easily remove the caramel once it has set. Lightly grease the foil with butter.
- Combine the cream, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and corn syrup in a 3-quart heavy duty saucepan over medium heat. Using a wooden spoon, stir constantly as the sugars dissolve. The mixture will be thick and cloudy looking.
- Once boiling, brush down the sides of the pan with a water-moistened pastry brush. Attach a candy thermometer to the pan, making sure not to let it touch the bottom.
- Without stirring, cook until the temperature reaches 245°F (118°C). Immediately remove from heat and stir in 1 teaspoon of salt, the vanilla extract, vanilla bean seeds, and butter. The mixture may burst and bubble, so be careful stirring.
- Pour the hot caramel into the prepared baking pan and top with coarse sea salt, if desired. Allow to cool at room temperature, uncovered, for 4 hours or overnight (no need to cover).
- Once set, remove the caramel from the pan by lifting out the aluminum foil. Peel the foil off and, using a very sharp knife, cut into rectangles or squares. Wrap with candy wrappers, if desired.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: Wrapped caramels keep at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.
- Special Tools: Vanilla Beans | Wooden Spoon | Pastry Brush | Digital Candy Thermometer | Heavy Duty Saucepan Option 1 | Heavy Duty Saucepan Option 2 | 8″ Square Cake Pan | Twisting Candy Wrappers
Keywords: vanilla caramels, homemade caramels, sea salt caramels
Hi Sally,
Just made this recipe last night. The flavor is great but after cutting off the first row, they are a little too soft to get off the foil. I put them in the fridge and am going to try again with the rest. Do you think this will help? If I made them again would you add like 5 degrees on my thermometer?
Thanks!
Hi Brook! Refrigerating the caramel will help make cutting much easier, yes. If you cook another batch, make sure your candy thermometer is calibrated. (It could be giving false readings– some do!) and you can definitely try cooking to an extra 3-5 degrees F.
Hi, I’m currently making the caramel and it’s taking ages to reach the right temperature. It’s been boiling untouched for at least 20 minutes and it’s just hanging out at 220°. How long does it normally take to reach 245°?
Hi Kyle, it depends on the stove– electric stoves take longer than gas stoves. And the thicker the pan, the longer it will take as well. Just keep cooking until it reaches the correct temperature.
Sally First of all I want to tell you that your recipes are my go to. I have not tried one of your recipes that have not turned out. Thank you so much for all the time and effort you put in to making sure that all your recipes are tried, tested, and true.
I want to make these caramels to use in your caramel stuffed nutella cookies, but I do not have time to order the vanilla beans from Amazon and still be able to make those incredible looking cookies for Xmas. I also can not find vanilla beans in any store in my area, and believe me I have looked everywhere! I know the taste will not be as decadent as with the vanilla beans, but is it possible to just use the liquid vanilla in this recipe? I am more concerned with the recipe chemistry, and if it will effect the candy’s ability to set?
Hi Rayne! Feel free to simply leave out the vanilla bean. These soft caramel candies will still cook properly and will still have plenty of flavor without the beans.
I tried the recipe and let them cool for 24 hours. They were in the fridge so I don’t know if that is where I went wrong. When I tried to take them out the foil WOULD NOT come off! It was just a pile of caramel 🙁 they were too soft. Not sure where I went wrong but the taste is great and I would like to try it again. Any advice?
Hi Michelle! A few tips: follow the recipe closely (no substitutions) and make sure you are using a calibrated candy thermometer that reads the correct temperature. (See above about calibrating.) If cooking to a lower temperature (or if your thermometer isn’t calibrated and reads the wrong temperature), the caramels will not set.
Good evening-
Love the new book! I made the caramels tonight, and they are hard. The flavor is good, but they are impossible to cut. They just break, like brittle. Any idea where I went wrong? Thank you for all you do!
Hi Gretchen! I’m sorry the caramel turned out too hard. Did you cook to the right temperature and follow the recipe closely? If you ever want to try it again, try cooking to only 240. That should help. You can melt down your caramel on the stove to use as sauce/topping.
Is it possible to double this recipe and use a 13 x 9 inch pan and of course, a larger pot?
Hi Sandy! Unfortunately, it’s not ideal to double candy recipes like this. The added volume will negatively change how the candy cooks. Instead, make two batches and combine for your 9×13 inch pan.
I am trying to put these into molds.
I was wondering if the molds below would work and if they would be the same size as you cutting them out of a baking pan.
They say 40 per mold so I would do 65.
It looks like a nice size. The specs of each mold is at the bottom of the amazon description.
Thanks
Hi Ryan, I have never tried making these in molds but please let me know if you try it!
Sally,
Thank you so much for the prompt reply. I’ve yet to give this recipe a try, but will be doing so this coming week. I’m awaiting the arrival of these wraps I found on Amazon. The reviews are promising.
I made a recent trip to the Biltmore Estate, and they sold some caramels with pecans in them at their winery gift shop that were very good. Your recipe looks as if it would make an even better caramel; but I’d like to add the toasted pecans, as well.
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for what you do. I’ve now made a number of recipes from your site and all have been quite good – not a dud amongst them – and they’ve all become family favorites. This weekend, I’m making your carrot cake.
One recipe in particular that I’ve done of yours has become so popular that I’m constantly being asked for it. I tell folks that it came from your site, but that it’s really a hybrid of several of your recipes, actually. The base recipe is your Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, with the plumped raisins (had never done that before, and the difference it makes is amazing); but instead of walnuts, I added toasted pecans (the toasting is something I learned from you, as well, and it also makes a huge difference in the taste); and finally, I iced them with the icing from your Iced Oatmeal Cookie recipe. I’ve even made a completely gluten-free variant using King Arthur Flour’s Measure for Measure Gluten-Free Flour substitute in lieu of the all-purpose flour, and also Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free Extra Thick Rolled Oats – just to make sure there’s no gluten, since they were processed in a guaranteed gluten-free facility. These were made for a friend of my wife’s who suffers from Celiac Disease, so it was critical. And believe it or not, the end result was a cookie that, unless told that it was gluten-free, no one could tell the difference. They are that good.
So, again, thank you so much for all your efforts. Your site’s great and I’m constantly referring folks to it, and I’m there all the time. I’m already on your mailing list, and have been for more than a year now, and you have your own folder in Outlook where all of your posts go to archive.
I hope you and yours had a great Thanksgiving, and that you’ll have a very Merry Christmas to come!
Best Regards,
David
Thank you so much for this glowing review on my recipes! It truly means the world to me to read thoughtful comments and feedback like this and I’m thrilled that many love the carrot cake as much as I do and I hope you enjoy it, too. And the oatmeal cookie base is fantastic too!
I’d like to add small pieces of broken, toasted pecans to this recipe. Can you suggest an amount that would be appropriate for the volume of this recipe, please? Thanks!
Hi David! I recommend about 3/4 cup of chopped pecans. Stir them in after you remove the cooked caramel from heat.
Hi Sally. I need to make salted caramel thumbprint cookies for our Thanksgiving gathering. Which recipe would work better…this one or your Homemade Salted Caramel recipe. I don’t know if the latter would stay fluid or become solid enough to stay in the thumbprint. Thanks so much!!
Hi Darla! Salted caramel works best for making thumbprints! I actually have a recipe for caramel apple spice thumbprints which uses my homemade salted caramel 🙂
This was the first time I ever made homemade caramels. I can’t believe how easy and how delicious these were. I will definitely make these again. Thank you for the step by step instructions, video and pictures.
★★★★★
I was very nervous to make this, but it turned out amazing! My friends couldn’t stop eating them!! All your recipes that I have tried in the past have not disappointed!
Hi Sally,
I love your blog-thank you for sharing your recipes.
I have one question about your Salted Caramels, can raw honey be used in place of corn syrup?
Thank you
Hi Bernadette! Thank you so much. Unfortunately, honey doesn’t have the same chemical makeup as corn syrup. I recommend sticking with the recipe.
Just made my second batch! Turned out perfect! Soft and smooth! Best caramel recipe I’ve ever made! ❤️
Can’t find the vanilla bean…should I add more vanilla ?
Another 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract may be substituted. Enjoy!
I have made these again this year. So good! This year I picked up the twisting paper so much better than cutting parchment paper and taping them. Ha! Love your recipes!
Hi Sally, I have been using a lot of your recipes they all look so good and this time of year I make a lot of candy, cookies, breads. But, today I tried making the caramel after making your gingerbread loaf and it is a big hit with everyone. Now back to the caramel I make perfect fudge and every candy I make but this looked great for a few hours on the counter but, after 4 hours it is hard as a rock. I don’t know what happened but I really hate to throw things away is there some way to use this block in some other way? Thank you for all the great recipes.
Hi Deborah! That’s so frustrating. I’m sorry the caramel turned out too hard. Did you cook to the right temperature? If you ever want to try it again, try cooking to only 240. That should help. You can melt down your caramel on the stove to use as sauce/topping.
Planning to make these for the holidays. A few questions. Is there any substitute for corn syrup? Could I use golden syrup or honey? Also, I don’t have a candy thermometer. Could the old school method of testing the sugar mixture in cold water be reliable here?
Hi Esther! Corn syrup is a must in this caramel recipe. Honey or golden syrup would not produce the same result. You can cook until the firm ball stage.
Hi Sally!
So I just made your chewy caramels from the Sally’s Candy Addiction cookbook and I think I did something wrong. First, they didn’t take very long to set- only about an hour. Second, they’re extremely hard- not chewy, melt in your mouth at all. I can’t even cut them with a knife and I can barely break them into pieces with my hand. They taste good, but there’s risk of breaking your teeth when you chew them. Do you have any ideas of what went wrong? Thanks!
It could be a few things. Did you use a candy thermometer? If so, was it calibrated to ensure the temperature is accurate (see the intro in the book about that one!). I like to take the caramel off heat between 245-250. This is a soft stage, not a hard stage– so I’m shocked that yours are so hard! The only thing would be overcooking the caramel.
Sally,
Thank you for the recipe. I tried it last night but mine came out so hard that I can’t even cut them this morning. What did I do wrong and how can I fix it?
Thank you.
Melelani
P.S. I’ve been making your salted caramel sauce and they are divine. You are my go-to baking expert. Thank you.
Hi Melelani! Did you use a calibrated candy thermometer? Make sure your thermometer reads the accurate temperature. Do you live at high altitude? Because boiling points vary based on that. If you change nothing and simply take the caramel off the stove a few seconds before hitting 245, you should be golden!
I made those caramels the other day and they taste amazing! Because I have rather a big baking pan, I decided to double the ingredients, so now I have to feed everyone I know over a hundred tasty caramels 😀
One problem I met, though is that they are very sticky. I lined the pan with aluminum foil and greased it, but most of the time it still stuck to it and I had to cut it off. And they also stick with the wrappers, you have to eat the candies straight from the wrapper because it’s impossible to separate them from it. How can I adjust this next time? Perhaps, add more butter?
A Tablespoon more butter could help for next time, Poline. I’m so happy you love them!
Only thing– I do suggest making 2 batches. The added volume when doubling candy recipes isn’t ideal for proper set up and cooking. Something to keep in mind 🙂
I made these for Thanksgiving this year. The recipe was surprisingly easy to execute. However, after leaving them out overnight, uncovered as recommended, they are so hard I can’t cut them. Any ideas what I did wrong?
Hi Noelle! Did you remove from heat right at 245? And is your candy thermometer calibrated? Because it could be reading inaccurately. Any lower than 245 may not be long enough and the caramels may not set up. And we wouldn’t want to go higher either.
Do you live above sea level? Altitude changes the temperatures for candy making pretty substantially. I live at 7220 ft and I have to adjust the temp down quite a bit if I don’t want rock hard caramel.
honestly, i’m certain i begin all of my comments with “ohhh my god Sally!” but this one especially…. ohhh my god Sally! while i’m being honest, the day you posted these, i made the hubby go out and buy a candy thermometer so i could make these! and i did make them, and they were so delicious but not QUITE comment worthy (i make so many of your recipes on a regular basis that it would be a waste of both of our time at this point to comment on every one so you know that they are EXTRA delicious when you see me comment
Hi Sally! I made these today and they are as beautiful as they are tasty! Do you refrigerate them once they’re wrapped? I’m wondering because of the cream.. Also, mine are extremely soft but still hold their shape. Are yours super soft too? Nothing like store bought, that’s for sure. Thanks for another fabulous recipe!!
No need to store in the refrigerator, though you certainly could. The cream is cooked up to a high heat, so it’s safe at room temp. Yes, these are super soft caramels!
Hi Sally,
After making your to-die-for salted caramel chocolate pretzel bars, I figured I’d give this recipe a shot. To my dismay, my caramel didn’t turn out. It stayed this sandy-brown color (no red/orange hue) and didn’t harden. Think this was due to a faulty candy thermometer/not cooking it long enough? Thanks so much.
That would most definitely be the culprit. Have you calibrated your candy thermometer to make sure it reads accurately?
Hello! I have a question… I have made your salted caramel sauce before and it was so yummy, but after it cooled down it was hard as a rock. Any ideas on what I did wrong? Will these be hard or soft?
These are super soft. The salted caramel sauce could have been cooked too long– or the heat was too high. Reduce the heat slightly and boil the caramel (after adding the heavy cream) for only 45 seconds next time.
I think these would be great to make and give as a gift for Christmas, especially for my dad, who loves his sweets! How long would these keep if I made them now and how would I store them? Thanks for another great recipe!
They keep for about 2 weeks- in all honesty, I’ve had these around for about a month and they’re still good! Just keep wrapped at room temperature.
Hey Sally! This recipe looks AMAZING!
I know you recommended the twisting candy wrappers, but what else can you use in a pinch? parchment paper?
Thanks & happy baking 🙂
Parchment paper works! You can manually cut into squares or the right shape.