Chocolate Caramels are soft, chewy 4-ingredient homemade caramels with the amazing addition of chocolate! Perfect holiday treats that are easy to make!
Chocolate Caramels are the perfect holiday treat to give to family and friends and neighbors. I have always loved homemade caramels and make them every year, but I recently found this recipe and was excited to see if this variation was equally delicious. It is! These Chocolate Caramels will be a huge hit with any chocolate lovers in your life – just make sure to save some for yourself before you give them all away!
This Chocolate Caramels recipe has only 4 ingredients and it’s pretty simple to make. It does require some stirring, and you’ll need to plan about 30 minutes to make the caramels. I like to wrap mine in the precut pieces of wax paper– they cost under $10 for 250, which generally lasts me at least a few years! So worth it to not have to cut small squares of wax paper each year!
Do you need a candy thermometer to make homemade caramels?
A thermometer is a necessity when making homemade candy, especially when making caramels. Unless you have made a caramel recipe hundreds of times and know exactly what the mixture looks like at exactly the right point, you will have a hard time getting perfect results without a thermometer. You can test the candy mixture by placing a little bit of it in water when you think that it’s close, but having a thermometer will help you to know if you are even getting close to the testing stage so you don’t have to waste a bunch of your mixture!
You can use a classic candy thermometer like this one, but I prefer to use a digital thermometer like this one. The classic candy thermometers work fine, but I find that the glass often gets fogged up in the candy making process, and you don’t want it to be fogged up at the critical point when you are trying to see what the temperature is! The other benefit to using a digital one is that it can be used for meat and other things too so you don’t need to buy more than one for your kitchen.
How does altitude affect homemade caramels?
Homemade Caramels cook for different time depending on where you live. The soft ball stage (required for caramel making) is somewhere between 234°-240°at sea level. As a general rule of thumb, you will need to reduce that temperature by about 2° for every 1,000 feet above sea level you are.
Test your candy at 235° by taking a small dollop and placing it in an ice cold bowl of water. If the candy dissolves, it’s not done cooking. But if the candy hardens and when you press it, it’s soft, it’s likely done. (I prefer my caramels to be slightly soft!) I’m at a higher elevation and cook my caramels to about 237°, rather than 240°.
Sometimes it’s a little tricky to find the right temperature to achieve the perfect consistency in homemade caramels (and other homemade candy too), but once you figure out the correct temperature for your particular altitude, you should be able to get consistent results every time!
What are the ingredients in Chocolate Caramels?
- 1 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup light corn syrup
- 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, broken into small pieces
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream, divided
How to make Chocolate Caramels:
- Line an 8X8 pan with foil and grease the foil with butter.
- In a large saucepan, bring the sugar, corn syrup and chocolate to a boil over medium heat and stir until smooth.
- Add 1/2 cup cream and stir constantly until a candy thermometer reads 234 degrees. Add another 1/2 cup cream and return mixture to 234 degrees, stirring constantly. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of cream and cook until the temperature reaches 240°. Test candy. (If you are at a high altitude, you may want to begin testing when the mixture reaches 234°.) If the mixture dissolves in the water, you need to keep cooking until the temperature goes up 2 more degrees, then test again. If mixture hardens when a small dollop is placed in ice cold water, then remove from heat and pour into prepared pan.*
- Immediately pour the mixture into the prepared pan and let stand until firm – about 5 hours or overnight.
- Using the foil, lift the candy out of the pan. Remove foil and cut into 1 inch squares. If desired, you can wrap the individual pieces in waxed paper, twisting the ends. These make great gifts for neighbors and friends!
*You may find that your mixture is not at the right consistency until it reaches closer to 246°. That’s ok! Many caramel recipes require a final temperature of about 246-248° but just keep testing to make sure that isn’t too high of a temp. If the candy cooks too long, your caramels will be too hard. Just remember that the higher your elevation, the LOWER the temperature will be when the candy is done.
Chocolate Caramels
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup light corn syrup
- 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate broken into small pieces
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream divided
Instructions
- Line an 8X8 pan with foil and grease the foil with butter.
- In a large saucepan, bring the sugar, corn syrup and chocolate to a boil over medium heat and stir until smooth.
- Add 1/2 cup cream and stir constantly until a candy thermometer reads 234 degrees. Add another 1/2 cup cream and return mixture to 234 degrees, stirring constantly. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of cream and cook until the temperature reaches 240°. Test candy. (If you are at a high altitude, you may want to begin testing when the mixture reaches 234°.) If the mixture dissolves in the water, you need to keep cooking until the temperature goes up 2 more degrees, then test again. If mixture hardens when a small dollop is placed in ice cold water, then remove from heat and pour into prepared pan.*
- Immediately pour the mixture into the prepared pan and let stand until firm - about 5 hours or overnight.
- Using the foil, lift the candy out of the pan. Remove foil and cut into 1 inch squares. If desired, you can wrap the individual pieces in waxed paper, twisting the ends. These make great gifts for neighbors and friends!
Video
Notes
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How long do homemade caramels last?
If your caramels are wrapped individually and then stored in an airtight plastic bag or container, they should stay good at room temperature for about 2-3 weeks. Just make sure they are not exposed to any moisture! And if you can make them last 3 weeks without eating all of them, you deserve a prize for self-restraint! They’ve never lasted more than a few days at my house!
Do homemade caramels need to be refrigerated?
Homemade caramels do not need to be refrigerated, but you can store them in the refrigerator to make them easier to cut and it also prolongs the shelf life. I prefer to eat them soft, so just make sure to take them out of the fridge about 30 minutes before you plan to eat them – as long as they are cut into small pieces, they will get to room temperature pretty quickly. If you do refrigerate the caramel before cutting, just make sure to cover it with waxed paper and foil to protect your candy from absorbing other odors/flavors from your refrigerator.
Can you freeze homemade caramels?
Caramels freeze very well – just place the individually wrapped caramels in an airtight freezer bag. If they are wrapped properly, they should be good for up to 6 months!
If you love these Chocolate Caramels, be sure to try some of our other favorite chocolate treats!
- Homemade Peppermint Patties
- Mint Chocolate Pudding Cookies
- Tiger Butter Fudge
- Chocolate Caramel Bars
- Homemade Snickers Bars
quilcene says
Can you use powdered unsweet chocolate rather than the chances of chocolate?<br />
Nina Potter says
Have you ever made in the microwave? Would like to try.
Nellie says
I have never tried these caramels in the microwave, but if try it let me know how it works out!
Mildred pleasant says
I like the easy recipes
Jessica says
Thank you Mildred!
Mildred pleasant says
Makes it fun to make home made candies
Jessica says
I agree!
jackie says
Mine never hardened. It was like hot fudge fir ice cream???
Nellie says
How long did you cook the mixture for? Sounds like the mixture didn’t get quite hot enough to set. At most altitude, caramel reaches the correct consistency at about 234°, but it may need to be higher than that for your altitude. It can be necessary for it to reach up to about 246° in some cases.
Kherunnissa says
Thank you
Susie Reynolds says
I tried to make these and they are hard as a rock, is there any way to soften them up. I can’t figure out what I did wrong
Nellie says
I’m so sorry this didn’t work out! Unfortunately there is not a way to soften the caramel once it has gotten too hard. It sounds like your caramel got a bit too hot – were you using a candy thermometer?
Debbie says
I have made pralines that are too hard and a few seconds in the microwave softens them up before eating. They are caramel pralines so I think it would work the same. I definitely don’t throw them out. Too good to waste.
Jessica says
I agree Debbie!
Rosagallica says
Is the final temperature of 248F a typo? Should it not be closer to 238F? If you cook the caramel mixture to 248F you will end up with chocolate Turkish Taffy not Chocolate Caramels. I’d also suggest stirring in a teaspoon of vanilla extract after removing the mixture from the heat.
Nellie says
Depending on your elevation, you may need to cook the caramel to a slightly higher temperature. In the recipe, we indicated that you should start testing the caramel at about 235 degrees, and for many people, this will be closer to the right temperature to get the desired consistency. The addition of vanilla at the end is always a great idea!
Kimberly says
So, you didn’t actually try the recipe? You just decided that you were so much smarter that the people who wrote the recipe, that they deserved one star for doing things differently than you. You sound like such a fun person to have around…..
Davey says
Where can I get precut wax paper?
Nellie says
I got mine on Amazon – here’s a link: https://amzn.to/2ChKSc1
Davey says
Dear. Mrs nellie something went wrong the candy was not hard enough some leaked thru foil I used non stick. Pan let them cool on counter 12 hours then in fridge these were a gift for moms birthday her party is at six on Friday October 19 if you reply in time I can remake them.
Nellie says
Davey – if the candy wasn’t hard enough, it likely hadn’t reached the proper temperature. Altitude makes a big difference in candy making – the closer you are to sea level, the higher the temperature will need to be. What elevation are you at?
Bea says
I made these with a very expensive chocolate but I’m not a fan. The cocoa powder has a much better flavor and was the group consensus so I’m saving my expensive chocolate for pastry. I found the Special Dark Chocolate has the best taste. Thanks. I did take the caramel off at 243°F the caramel was soft and perfect.
Patricia Brewer says
These were not a caramel taste at all. I was a little skeptical seeing how there was no butter, which gives caramel it’s rich taste. These were blan and lacking. Needed flavor. Definitely salt at the most. I’ve seen this recipe all over the internet and figured I’d give it a try….Nope, not again.
Nellie says
Patricia – so sorry you weren’t happy with the recipe! It is definitely more of a chocolate taste than a caramel one – it’s the consistency that is more like a caramel. Happy Holidays!
Diane says
I followed the recipe directions exactly… They came out hard as a rock. …. I almost took it off the stove at softball stage but I didn’t and IF I try it again that’s what I will do…..I’m very disappointed. Xo
Nellie says
I’m so sorry they didn’t turn out for you! It definitely sounds like they cooked a bit too long.
Hannah Flack says
This was yummy! I’ve never made spaghetti squash before and I’m not sure if it’s supposed to me soft or not when it’s done. My squash was on the larger side so maybe I should have cooked it longer.
Laurie Jacobs says
Delicious !