Apple Cider Caramels
A classic candy made even better with apple and spice, these are always the first to disappear from the cookie tray, the most-talked-about teacher gift, and the sweetest little treat to have up for grabs around the holidays.
What You’ll Need
- 1 ½ cups apple cider – I like to use fresh-pressed cider, which is easy to find in stores during the fall season. Stick to regular cider, not spiced, to really highlight the apple flavor.
- 2 cups brown sugar
- 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 cup corn syrup
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon apple pie spice, optional
Equipment You’ll Need
As with most of my candy-making recipes, you’ll need a candy thermometer. And you’ll want a few basic things you probably already have in your kitchen: a stainless steel saucepan, a stirring utensil that can handle high heat, and parchment paper.
Instructions
Reduce the apple cider
First, you’ll reduce the apple cider. You don’t want to skip this step. It concentrates the apple flavor that makes these caramels different than regular homemade ones.
It’ll take about 15 minutes to reduce the cider to 1/4 cup.
Cool the reduction
Once it reduces to 1/4 cup, take the saucepan off the heat and let your cider cool. Pour it into a glass measuring cup so you can start working on the other ingredients in the saucepan.
Prepare the pan
While the cider cools, you can prep the pan where the caramels will set. Lightly butter the bottom of the pan, then line it with parchment paper, letting the edges hang over.
I like to crisscross two sheets perpendicular, so the edges hang out a few inches. You’ll need to grab these edges to pull the caramels out of the pan.
Begin the caramel
Now comes the fun part, playing candy maker and making the caramels! You can use that same pan and add your brown sugar, sweetened condensed milk, corn syrup, butter, salt, and the reduced cider.
Put the stove on medium heat and keep stirring with a spatula until your butter is completely melted. The mixture should become smooth and light brown—that’s what you want.
Cook to soft-ball stage
While still on medium heat, your mixture will start to bubble once everything is melted. Now you can stick your candy thermometer into the pan and let the caramels cook.
Save This Post
I'll send you a link so you can find it later.
You'll join my email list which you will love. And if you don't, unsubscribe in one click. ❤️
Keep stirring and always scrape the edges so that nothing scorches. Keep an eye on the thermometer and make sure everything is bubbling until the temperature reaches 240°F (this is the “soft ball” stage).
Add the flavorings
Once you’ve reached that temperature and the “soft ball” stage, remove it from the heat, then add the vanilla and the apple pie spice if you want extra flavor.
If you want it a bit spicier, go ahead and add apple pie spice. If you really like the intense apple flavor (think more of a caramel-coated apple), I would go light on the apple pie spice or not even use it at all.
Cool the caramel
Always be very careful when handling this mixture. The pan will be hot, and the caramel mixture will be even hotter. It could burn you badly if you’re not careful.
Grab an oven mitt, take the pot, and pour the caramel mixture into your lined pan. Then just let it sit at room temperature until the caramel is firm. It will take a few hours for it to set up.
Cut and wrap
Once the caramels are cooled, lift them out of the pan by the edges of the parchment paper and put them on a cutting board to cut into individual pieces with a sharp knife.
For this to work properly, the caramels MUST be cooled, and you can even rub a little butter on your knife for smooth cuts.
Storage Instructions
Store these by wrapping each one in a small piece of parchment or wax paper. They don’t stick together, and they’re ready to go for gift-giving.
You can keep individually wrapped caramels at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. Just make sure you store them in a cool and dry place.
Questions and Troubleshooting
The mixture got too hot. Keep that in mind next time, and really try not to go above 240°F.
No, you need to reduce it to get that bold flavor. It does take a little bit of time, but it’s worth it.
I’m going to go ahead and say that you really need a candy thermometer here. It’s a handy kitchen tool to have for this recipe and lots of other fun recipes (especially around the holidays!).
If you can’t get your hands on a candy thermometer, you can use the “soft ball” method I mentioned earlier. This means you take a small amount of the mixture from the pot with a spoon and drop it into cold water. Let it cool and use your fingers to see if you can form a small, soft ball. If the ball holds shape and it’s still a little squishy, you’re good to go. Remember to be extra careful with this, as the mixture will be very hot, and your results might be a little inconsistent if you’ve never done this before.
More ways to use apple cider
- Apple Cider Cookies
- Apple Cider Sourdough Bread
- Apple Cider Glazed Ham
- Slow Cooker Spiked Apple Cider
- Cold Apple Cider Punch
Apple Cider Caramels
Equipment
- Medium saucepan
- 8-inch square baking pan
- Parchment paper
- Candy thermometer
- Heat-resistant spatula or wooden spoon
- Sharp knife
- Wax paper for wrapping
Ingredients
Cider Reduction
- 1 ½ cups apple cider regular, not spiced
Caramel
- 2 cups brown sugar
- 14 ounce sweetened condensed milk 1 can
- 1 cup corn syrup
- 1 cup butter
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon apple pie spice optional
Instructions
Reduce the Cider
- Reduce the apple cider. Add the cider to a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a gentle boil. Let it reduce to ¼ cup of liquid, about 15 minutes.
- Cool the reduction. Remove from the heat and transfer the reduced cider to a heatproof measuring cup. Let it cool for a few minutes.
Prepare the Pan
- Prepare the pan. Lightly butter an 8-inch square pan, then fit it with parchment paper, leaving some paper extending over the sides.
Cook the Caramel
- Begin the caramel. To the same saucepan, add the brown sugar, sweetened condensed milk, corn syrup, butter, salt, and reduced cider. Set over medium heat and stir constantly with a heat-resistant spatula until the butter melts and the mixture is smooth.
- Cook to soft ball stage. Once the mixture begins to bubble, position a candy thermometer in the pan and continue cooking, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom and corners. Cook until the caramel reaches 240°F, adjusting for elevation as needed.
Add Flavorings
- Add the flavorings. Take the saucepan off the heat and quickly stir in the vanilla and apple pie spice, if using.
Cool, Cut, and Wrap
- Cool the caramel. Pour the caramel into the lined pan and let it cool completely at room temperature, several hours.
- Cut and wrap. Lift the set caramel from the pan using the parchment overhang. Cut into small squares with a sharp knife and wrap each piece separately in wax or parchment paper.
Notes
Nutrition
More to explore