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Homemade Sea Salt Caramels

To all the Valentine's grinches out there who refuse to celebrate the holiday on grounds that it's been manufactured by greeting card companies and corporate candy factories to just make money, I have an idea for you. Don't buy greeting cards and candy made by a huge corporations. Instead make someone's Valentine's Day by giving them something sweet and homemade.

I never really liked caramels until I tasted the homemade ones that my grandma wraps in parchment paper every year.  I'm sharing this recipe a bit before Valentine's Day because you might want to make it once first, as a sort of test run, before you make them to give as a gift.

But please don't let that scare you off. Homemade salted caramels are fairly fast and easy to make. The only reason I recommend a test run is that the consistency of the candy depends largely on factors like the accuracy of your candy thermometer and how fast your stove heats the sugar. (I like mine pretty soft - just firm enough to hold their shape.) So try this recipe out, and if the caramels turn out harder or softer than you like, adjust the temperature next time.  If you want the candy to be softer, take the pot off the stove at a slightly cooler temperature. For firmer candies, let them heat to a slightly higher temp. One or two degrees can make a huge difference.

The only special equipment you'll need is a candy thermometer, and the ingredients are simple:

Homemade Sea Salt Caramels:

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teasoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups sugar (I used equal parts regular granulated rugar and raw unprocessed brown sugar crystals - I love the rich flavor it gives, but it's not for everyone.)
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup
• 1/4 cup water

Before you get started, line an 8x8 pan with parchment paper. There are a few recipes for caramels out there that say you can get away with just buttering the pan before you pour the caramel in, but sometimes all the grease in the world is not enough to make these caramels come out of the pan when they've cooled, and it's a real bummer to have to gnaw your caramels straight out of the pan.

First, in a medium saucepan, combine the butter, heavy cream and 1 teaspoon of the salt. Bring to a boil then turn off the heat.

Meanwhile, in a second medium saucepan, combine the water, corn syrup and sugar. Slowly bring them to a boil, constantly stirring until the dry sugar is dissolved. Then stop stirring, but keep boiling and start to watch the temperature. When the mix gets to 250 degrees, pour in the cream mixture and the vanilla then return to a boil, stirring and watching the temperature very closely again.

This time, when the mix gets to about 247 or 248 degrees, immediately take the pan off the heat and very carefully pour the caramel into the parchment-lined pan. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt evenly across the top. Just after you've poured the caramel into the pan, this is your chance to customize your candies! You can add shaved chocolate, sprinkles, nuts, or even dried herbs. As you can see, I put walnuts in half of mine.

Let the caramel cool about 2 1/2 hours, then cut it into small pieces. Wrap each caramel in parchment paper and twist the ends, then give as a Valentine's gift that's anything but corporate.