Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Caramels #1


First attempt at caramels did not turn out right.  I tried a vanilla caramels recipe.  Next time, I'll try a plain caramel recipe.  this recipe called for vanilla paste but allowed you to substitute vanilla extract which is what I did.  After the batch cooled and was set, I cut into it to find out that it had crystallized.  It still tasted good but the texture is quite annoying and definitely not how a caramel should be. 

Caramel Research  


After flopping on my first attempt, I researched the reasons and realized the recipe I had made terrible suggestions.  Here is the list of dos and don'ts for caramels.
  1. Pot Size: Use a larger pot than you use when cooking hard candy.  When adding milk products such as cream or half and half to sugar, it will almost double in volume.
  2. Crystallization: The same principals of crystallization apply to making caramels.  this includes putting the cover on when it comes to a boil to remove splattered sugar from the sides and protect against crystallization.  This also includes NOT stirring after it starts to boil.  The agitation will lead to crystallization as well.
  3. Spoons: Clean the spoon every time you test the mixture.  This will assure you do not insert crystals which may form on the spoon while it sits out.

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