This Soft Caramel Candy recipe will have you all ready for fall and the holidays. It’s sweet, buttery, and super soft and chewy for a delicious treat everyone will love.
Table Of Contents
Recipe Details
I love making these caramels for Halloween and Christmas. They make the best gift boxes and putting them out for guests is always a great time. Everyone loves caramel and this recipe makes the best caramels I have ever eaten. You are going to love it!
- TASTE: These caramel candies are sweet with flavors of butter and vanilla. The sea salt on top gives it a little hit of salt, making the sweetness even better.
- TEXTURE: Soft and chewy, these creamy caramels are divine. With a crunch from the salt, they have the most amazing texture.
- TIME: This caramel recipe takes 40 minutes to make with an hour of chill time to help the candies solidify. These are made low and slow, so don’t rush.
- EASE: This recipe is easy to make. The hardest part is making sure the sugar doesn’t burn. It just requires patience.
What You’ll Need
Ingredient Notes
- Brown sugar- This is the sweet, richly flavored foundation for your caramel. I used light brown sugar, but you can also use dark brown.
- Butter- That buttery flavor we all love comes from this ingredient. Unsalted butter is best. It also adds fat which makes it more chewy.
- Corn syrup- This ingredients adds sweetness, elasticity, and also a lovely shine to the candies.
- Heavy whipping cream- This liquid is rich and creamy, perfect for caramel.
- Vanilla extract- This adds a touch of vanilla flavoring that enhances the caramel.
- Salt- To balance the sweetness. Some sea salt on top is also yummy.
Add-ins and Substitutions
- Substitute the cream- Instead of heavy cream, you can also use evaporated milk. This helps with the softness.
- Use condensed milk- This in place of the heavy cream can give you caramels an ultra gooey texture.
How to Make Soft Caramel Candy
- Prep the baking pan. Line an 8 x 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a little overhang on the sides. Lightly grease with nonstick cooking spray or butter.
- Add the ingredients to a saucepan. Add the butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, heavy cream, and salt to a medium, heavy bottom pot or saucepan.
- Stir and heat the caramel. Heat them all over medium-low heat, stirring until the butter is melted and everything is well combined. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil over medium heat. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the caramel reaches 242–244°F on a candy thermometer.
- Add the vanilla. As soon as the caramel reaches the right temperature, remove it from the heat and carefully stir in the vanilla extract.
- Put the caramel in the baking pan and add salt. Pour the caramel into your prepared baking dish and let it cool for about 30 minutes then lightly sprinkle the top with flaky sea salt (or as much as you want). Let it cool completely at room temperature for about 2–3 hours.
Pro Tip: It can take about 20–30 minutes for the caramel to reach the right temperature, so don’t be tempted to turn up the heat to speed things along. Cooking it low and slow will give you perfectly soft and chewy caramels.
- Cut the cooled caramel. Once cooled, use the parchment paper to lift the caramel out of the pan. Cut it into small squares or rectangles using a sharp, lightly greased knife.
- Wrap the candies. Wrap each caramel individually in small pieces of wax paper or parchment paper and twist the ends to close. These are so cute for gifting, especially around the holidays. Enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Stir, stir, stir- You don’t want it to scorch, so stir as the caramel cooks, simmering and then coming to a light boil. If it burns, the flavor is ruined.
- Temperature is important- Make sure you get the liquid caramel to 242–244°F on an instant read thermometer. This is the perfect temperature and will give you that wonderful soft and chewy caramel that still holds its shape.
- Add the vanilla quickly- Make sure to work quickly as you remove the caramel from the heat, stir in vanilla, and pour it into the pan so the caramel doesn’t continue cooking and get too hard.
- Speed up the cooling process- Once the pan is no longer too hot to touch, you can place it in the fridge to speed up the cooling process. And to make it even faster, you can place it in the freezer as well. But don’t leave it in longer than 45 minutes, or it will be hard to cut through.
- Add the sea salt last- You don’t want to add the salt too soon or it will sink right into the caramel instead of sitting beautifully on top.
FAQs
What are common caramel candy mistakes?
Some common mistakes to avoid when making soft caramel candies is not stirring often enough that the sugar burns and not using a candy thermometer to check the temperature. Caramel needs to be at the right temperature to avoid scorching.
What’s the secret to soft caramel?
Some tricks for making the perfect soft caramels are taking the caramel off the heat when it’s between 242–244° Fahrenheit and using corn syrup or brown sugar, or both, to keep the sugars from crystallizing. We want smooth, creamy caramel, so sugar crystals should be avoided.
Serving Suggestions
These homemade caramels are perfect with other sweets. Serve them with cakes, cookies, candies, and your favorite teas and coffees.
- Cakes: Enjoy these caramels with a slice of Chocolate Spartak Cake, Flourless Chocolate Cake, Tiramisu Cake (VIDEO), or Nutella Cake.
- Cookies: Enjoy them with some Pecan Shortbread Cookies, Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars, Twix Cookies, or Rolo Cookies.
- Candies: Try these candies with some Chocolate Caramel Pretzels Bars, Chocolate Brandy Fig Bonbons, Vanilla Cake Pops (VIDEO), and Candied Pecans.
- Beverages: Pair these caramels with a coffee or tea. I like them with a Iced Caramel Macchiato, Caramel Frappuccino, Hot Chocolate, or Strawberry Matcha.
Make This Recipe in Advance
Make ahead: This recipe can be made ahead of time because the caramels can be wrapped and then left at room temperature for 2-3 weeks. You can even double the batch for making gifts.
Storing: You can store these homemade caramels in an airtight container, wrapped individually, for 6-9 months. Keep them out of the fridge though to avoid the humidity making them grainy.
Freeze: You can freeze these in an freezer ziplock bag once they are cool and wrapped for up to a year. Just thaw them on the counter to get them to room teperature before serving.
More Yummy Sweet Treats!
Full Recipe Instructions
Soft Caramel Candy
This Soft Caramel Candy recipe will have you all ready for fall and the holidays. It's sweet, buttery, and super soft and chewy for a delicious treat everyone will love.
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Servings: 40 candies
Calories: 91kcal
Equipment
- 1 8×8 pan
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 2 cups packed light brown sugar
- 1/3 cup light corn syrup
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Flaky sea salt for topping (optional)
Instructions
- A quick note before you start: Homemade caramels take a little time and patience, but I promise they are worth it! It can take about 20–30 minutes for the caramel to reach the right temperature, so don’t be tempted to turn up the heat to speed things along. Cooking it low and slow will give you perfectly soft and chewy caramels without scorching the mixture.
- Line an 8 x 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a little overhang on the sides. Lightly grease with nonstick cooking spray. You can also use butter instead.
- Add the butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, heavy cream, and salt to a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan.
- Heat over medium-low heat, stirring until the butter is melted and everything is well combined. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil over medium heat. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the caramel reaches 242–244°F on a candy thermometer. This temperature will give you that perfect soft and chewy caramel that still holds its shape.
- As soon as the caramel reaches the right temperature, remove it from the heat and carefully stir in the vanilla extract. Make sure to work quickly here so the caramel doesn’t continue cooking and get too hard.
- Pour the caramel into your prepared baking dish and let it cool for about 30 minutes then lightly sprinkle the top with flaky sea salt (or as much as you want). You don’t want to add the salt too soon or it will sink right into the caramel instead of sitting beautifully on top. Let it cool completely at room temperature for about 2–3 hours. Tip: once the pan is no longer too hot to touch, you can place it in the fridge to speed up the cooling process. And to make it even faster, you can place it in the freezer as well. But don’t leave it in longer than 45 minutes, or it will be hard to cut through.
- Once cooled, use the parchment paper to lift the caramel out of the pan. Cut it into small squares or rectangles using a sharp knife. Tip: I like to lightly grease the knife so the caramel doesn’t stick as much.
- Wrap each caramel individually in small pieces of wax paper or parchment paper and twist the ends to close. These are so cute for gifting, especially around the holidays. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Serving: 1g | Calories: 91kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 0.2g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 13mg | Sodium: 36mg | Potassium: 21mg | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 158IU | Vitamin C: 0.04mg | Calcium: 14mg | Iron: 0.1mg
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Hi, I’m Dina, so glad you stopped by! I believe life is too short for bad coffee and boring meals. With my easy to follow step-by-step recipes, you’ll be surprised at how quickly a wholesome and delicious meal can come together. I hope you find something you enjoy!
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