Homemade Caramels ~ An Easy and Favorite Holiday Candy Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the best thing to wrap homemade caramels in? ›

Most caramels will need a little time at room temperature in order to cut more easily. Cut in squares and wrap in waxed paper or parchment paper. Wrapped caramels can also be frozen.

Homemade caramel candies don't need to be stored in the fridge, as long as they're wrapped well to be kept free of moisture. You can leave the caramels out at room temperature, tucked away from heat or light, and they'll stay fresh for six to nine months.

When you remove it from the pan, let it sit at room temp for an hour or so, then run a sharp knife around the edge and then turn out onto a cutting mat. I use an old cutting mat that I can no longer use for fabric. I use a pizza cutter to cut the caramel.

Make Ahead and Storing Instructions: homemade caramels will keep well in the fridge, covered or wrapped, for several weeks. Take them out to come to room temperature for them to be soft and chewy.

You can also store your caramels in the freezer in a container or bag to further extend their shelf life; there, they will last as long as a year. If you do so, however, be sure to protect your teeth by letting them warm up to room temperature before eating.

It is not recommended to use expired caramel as it can lead to food poisoning or other health risks. It's best to err on the side of caution and discard any caramel that has passed its expiration date.

“This keeps for a month in the fridge. But it won't last that long.” Dulce De Leche.

Similar to caramel, butterscotch is made by heating sugar. The main difference between the two is that butterscotch uses brown sugar instead of white. The ingredients are also combined in a slightly different order for butterscotch: your start out by melting butter with brown sugar.

Why are Werther's caramels so good? ›

Our candies are made with only the finest ingredients, and blended together with the same passion and care our first candy maker, Gustav Nebel, brought to every caramel he crafted. That's how we make sure every Werther's Original has the familiar taste you love.

For these homemade caramels you want a heavy-bottomed stainless steel pan. I recommend using a pan that does NOT have a nonstick coating. Heavy-bottomed simply means the pot or pan has a thicker base. It shouldn't be thin and tinny.

In general the paper sold for home use is too light weight, the grain of the paper isn't made to withstand twisting (it tears), and the wax coating is too light to prevent the moisture from the candy from seaping into the paper and weakening it thus causing it to tear and stick.

Add acid. Acid ingredients (like vinegar or lemon juice) can help prevent re-crystallization which causes caramel to become grainy. Acid physically breaks the bonds between the glucose and fructose molecules that form sucrose and ensure that it stays apart.

Parchment and wax paper are both good options when making fudge, caramel, and candy. Both parchment and wax paper will do an excellent job lining pans, wrapping individual pieces, or creating barriers between layers when storing—the differences between the two papers for use with confections are minimal.

Wax paper is an ideal solution for wrapping and packaging confectionery items, such as caramels and chocolates. Its non-stick surface prevents food from adhering to the paper, preserving its freshness and appearance.

Start by wrapping them individually in wax paper, twisting the ends to close, then storing them on their own in an airtight container in a cool, dry area of your kitchen. This will create a waterproof seal around the candies. At room temperature, soft caramel candies will last for as long as nine months.

And after many batches, we settled on our beloved recipe that we still use today after six years. I began by rolling our individual caramels in cellophane (a type of plastic) wrap. Partially I used this material because it's what I was used to, it's what the chocolatier that I studied under had used.