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Vanilla Bean-Sea Salt Caramels

Source of Recipe

From "Pure Vanilla" by Shauna Sever


Recipe Introduction

I am caramel obsessed. Chewy, saucy, crunchy, whatever — I love it all, and I make it often. Any good caramel recipe includes a splash of vanilla to heighten the flavor of the caramelized sugar. But in this recipe, the vanilla flavor is the star. The secret is to steep the bean in the cream, which permeates the entire pot of caramel with pure vanilla flavor."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ ½ cup heavy cream
â—¦ ½ vanilla bean, split lengthwise*
â—¦ 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
â—¦ 1 cup granulated sugar
â—¦ ¼ cup light brown sugar, packed
â—¦ ½ cup light corn syrup
â—¦ 2 teaspoons coarse, flaky sea salt, plus more for sprinkling**
â—¦ 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste


Recipe

Line an 8 by 8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil and coat it with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium heavy-bottom saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the cream and vanilla bean. Heat until mixture just begins to simmer around the edges — do not boil. Remove from the heat, cover pan, and let steep for 15 minutes.

Remove vanilla bean and scrape the caviar into the cream, discarding the pod. Add butter, sugars, corn syrup, and salt. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Clip a candy thermometer to the pot and reduce heat to low, stirring occasionally, until temperature reaches 242° F. Remove pan from heat and stir in vanilla bean paste.

Pour mixture into the prepared pan set over a wire rack. Let caramel cool undisturbed at room temperature overnight (or 30 minutes at room temperature and another 30 minutes or so in the refrigerator) until very firm.

Line a cutting surface with a sheet of parchment paper and turn the caramel slab out onto it. Use a large, sharp knife to cut neat, even pieces, each about 1 by 1 ½ inches. Garnish with a sprinkling of salt, if you like. Wrap caramels in squares of parchment or waxed paper. Store at room temperature.

Makes 4 dozen 1 x 1 ½-inch candies



* An extra-bold variety of vanilla, such as Indian, will cut through the richness of these creamy caramels.

** I'm a huge fan of Maldon sea salt flakes; Vanilla Fleur de Sel is also delicious in this recipe.