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Salted Caramel Cups

Source of Recipe

From "Handmade Gifts from the Kitchen" by Alison Walker


Recipe Introduction

"The dreamy combination of salt and sweet is hard to beat. Here I pair the two in dainty cases. They're the perfect size to pop in your mouth."

List of Ingredients

• 6¼ ounces semisweet chocolate, broken into pieces
• Generous ¼ cup superfine sugar
• 1 Tbsp water
• Scant ¼ cup heavy cream
• 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
• ¼ to ½ tsp salt
• Gold edible sprinkles, to decorate (optional)


Recipe

Arrange 16 foil petit-four foil cups on a tray or cookie sheet. Melt 3½ ounces of the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water, stirring once or twice until smooth.

Spoon a little chocolate into each cup and, using a small paintbrush, paint the insides of the cup. Let set in the refrigerator.

Repeat step 2 twice more and then let set completely, preferably overnight. Then, very carefully peel away the foil cups.

Heat the sugar and water in a small deep pan until the sugar has dissolved. Brush the sides with a wet pastry brush to dissolve any stray sugar crystals. Boil for 5 to 6 minutes until the syrup is deep amber. Remove from the heat and stir in the cream - be aware that it will bubble up, but keep stirring. Stir in the butter and salt. Set the caramel aside to cool to room temperature. Fill the cups with the caramel. Chill until firm.

Melt the remaining chocolate as in Step 1. Smooth a layer of chocolate across the caramel to seal. Sprinkle with gold decorations and chill. Transfer the chocolates into clean petit-four foil cups. These caramel cups will keep for up to a week chilled but they're best savored when served at room temperature.

Makes 16