Chocolate-Dipped Salted Caramels
Everyone loves a salted caramel and store-bought ones can get crazy expensive. Making your own is surprisingly simple, just as delicious, and super impressive to give away as gifts.
Chocolate-Dipped Salted Caramels
1 1/2 c heavy cream
1 c brown sugar
1 c granulated sugar
1 1/2 t fleur de sel, + more for sprinkling
2 t vanilla extract
7 oz dark or milk chocolate for dipping
Make the caramel:
In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, stir together the cream, sugars, and salt and bring to a boil. Heat mixture to 245 degrees then remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. (COOK'S NOTE: It can take a while to get to 245 degrees so don't fret if you feel like it's never going to get there! Resist the urge to turn up the heat in an attempt to speed up the process (been there done that) since you'll likely burn the caramel. Just be patient and stay nearby the pot. ) Pour into a prepared square baking dish that's been buttered and lined with parchment. Allow to cool completely then chill in the fridge for an hour or so.
Dip in chocolate:
Using the excess parchment on either side of the dish, gently pull out the caramel and slice into 1 inch squares. I find a pizza cutter works well for this but you could use a knife too. Melt the chocolate over a double-boiler and dip each caramel square in the chocolate with a fork. Tap off the excess chocolate and place on a wax paper-lined sheet tray. Sprinkle with a few grains of sea salt. When completely hardened, wrap in mini muffin cups or wax paper. Store in fridge.
