Grandma Sullivan’s Caramels
These caramels. Sigh. What can I say about them? If you were to try one, they could speak for themselves, but since they haven’t figured out a way to send taste and texture via the internet, I’m going to have to, as I’m so fond of telling my son, use my words. 
I first tasted these little nuggets of heaven as a kid, at my grandma’s house for Christmas one year. My grandma would literally make buckets of treats for the holidays. Cookies, candy, cakes, seemingly every delicious thing a kid could imagine. I mean, imagine a child’s joy at seeing Grandma pull down a gallon bucket of their favorite cookies from the pantry. Magical. But these caramels were by far my favorite. (Ok, maybe it was a close call with her Belgian cookies, but we’ll talk about those another time.) I admit to sneaking a few before meals, after meals, pretty much all the time when we were there. Let’s just say I consumed a whole lot more sugar while at my grandma’s house than was probably good for me. And even after we left, I found a few stashed in the pocket of my duffel bag, a souvenir from a mischevious auntie. (Don’t you love mischevious aunties? I’m lucky enough to have a whole family full of them.)
As soon as the cooking and baking bug bit me, I got the recipe from my grandma. It was one of the first things I attempted. Looking back, that was pretty daring. Candy making, for an 11 year old, isn’t a logical place to start. But start I did. My first few attempts were not perfect. After all, my grandma had many years to perfect these bad boys- she had it down to a science. But my first caramels were good. The second batch was a little better. The third was great. Many, many batches later, I have found my caramel groove. I make them every year around Christmas time, to have handy for gifts, unexpected guests, and general holiday indulgence purposes. They are the perfect thing for a care package, because they ship well and you don’t have to worry about them getting crushed or stale. People go crazy over them. They’re just that good.
You know how when you see a caramel candy, you get this idea of what it will taste like? Creamy, sweet, with a bit of chew, but not so much that you can’t get it out of your teeth? And you know how most of the time, you are sorely disappointed? Well these NEVER disappoint. These caramels are the balm for all those disappointments. You will NOT regret making these. That’s all the words I’ve got, folks. Now you’ll just have to try them and see what I’m talking about.
Grandma Sullivan’s Caramels
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter (2 sticks)
- 1 lb brown sugar (2 1/4 cups)
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup corn syrup
- 1 cup sweetened condensed milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Butter or otherwise grease a square pan, either and 8x8 or 9x13. Line the pan with a piece of parchment paper, letting a bit of paper come over the edges of the pan on at least 2 sides.
- In a medium-sized, heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the brown sugar and salt, and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Add the corn syrup and stir until incorporated. Slowly add the condensed milk while stirring.
- Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until the caramel reaches 250 degrees F on a candy thermometer. (This will take about 10-15 minutes.) Then, remove from heat and add in vanilla. Stir until it stops bubbling.
- Pour the caramel into the prepared pan. Let cool completely, then lift the block of caramel from the pan by lifting up on the parchment paper. Cut the caramel into smalls squares. (Or rectangles. Or triangles. Whatever you want.) Wrap each piece in a small square of waxed paper and store in an airtight container. These will last in the fridge or freezer for several weeks this way.