Feb Recipe

Dark Chocolate Caramels

2 1/2 C sugar

2 C heavy cream

1 C butter

2 C light corn syrup

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp vanilla or anise

Ghirardelli 60% Dark Chocolate chips            Melt chips in 30 second intervals in microwave until it stirs smooth. They carry residual heat, so 1-1/2 minutes is probably

1 T shortening per C of chips                           enough. Then add shortening, and melt 30 seconds more. As you dip, it will start to cool and not look smooth.

Sea salt to sprinkle on top                                Keep reheating for 15-20 seconds when it doesn't cover well. I use chopsticks to dip and place on waxed paper. Let the excess

pecan halves to make turtles                            drip off. If it pools way out from the caramel, let it set and cut off the excess with a knife, and no one will be the wiser!

                                                                         The Ghirardelli bag also mentions NOT to thin with water, milk, butter, or margarine. If you heat it, it thins.

Mix sugar, butter, syrup and 1 C of cream in 4 qt pan. While boiling, add remaining cream. It will start at the very top of the pan, and then gradually go down, so watch for boil over. I used the simmer setting on my commercial cooktop, which is the lowest it would go. On a regular burner, probably medium heat is good. Stirring constantly, boil to 245 degrees. This can take anywhere from 30-60 minutes. You can also stop at 240, but it is paler, and softer. I like it to hold it's shape after cutting, and have some chew to it.

Remove from heat and add vanilla or anise. For the turtles, I spooned the plain caramel over pecans, 16 of them, and then added anise to the rest of the pan before pouring into a buttered 11x16 sheet pan. This made it 3/8" thick. If you want it thicker, use a smaller pan. If you don't make turtles, the whole pan will fill a regular 12x18 sheet pan to the same thickness. Let cool overnight. You can loosen the edges and pry the whole sheet out to cut on a board, (it's still bendable) or cut a couple of rows out of the pan and then it will easily come out. I don't like to cut in my metal pans, and you get nicer squares if you can get your knife over the whole row and press down evenly.

To make the turtles:

On parchment, lay 4 pecan halves in a plus sign, spoon caramel over the centers, leaving the tips exposed. As the caramel cools, you will want to pull the parts between the pecans back to the center, or they will look funny. You'll know when you see it ooze too far. Since it doesn't stick to the parchment, it easily moves back to make a thicker center. Next day, spoon chocolate over the back side, covering the caramel. Let set up, then flip over and do the same on the top side, leaving the pecan tips exposed. Sprinkle with sea salt before they are set on top.

To make the dipped caramels:

See above directions for melting the chocolate with shortening. Sprinkle with sea salt before they set up. The anise is very mild, and different, so I always make anise flavored caramels. Vanilla would be good too. You can wrap the undipped caramels in squares of waxed paper. I cut sheets about 4" wide, then cut those in 1/3. Wrap diagonally, twist the ends. Super Christmas gift plate filler. This recipe makes about 240 small pieces in a 12x18 pan. It always turns out.

 

Laurie Redfearn