Dark Chocolate-Covered Salted Caramels Recipe

If you're looking for a sweet treat that's both decadent and delicious, look no further than dark chocolate-covered salted caramels. These bite-sized candies combine the rich, creamy sweetness of chewy caramel with the bold flavor of dark chocolate, all with a touch of sea salt to enhance the flavor and create a perfect balance.

The recipe developer, Milena Manolova, believes creating homemade candies shouldn't be intimidating, and that there's plenty of room to add your own inspiration. She says, "Making these candies is easier than you might think. Making the caramel or the chocolate doesn't take long. You can choose between tempering the chocolate or not, and you can even get creative and experiment with different types of chocolate, flavored sea salts, or other toppings."

The smooth, velvety caramel melts in your mouth, while the dark chocolate and sea salt provide a layer of crunchy texture and balanced flavor. Once the caramels are made, they can be a great gift for a birthday or holiday, or just a treat to have when a sweet craving kicks in.

All you need are seven simple ingredients to make this chocolate-covered salted caramels: granulated sugar, light corn syrup, heavy cream, butter, vanilla extract, dark chocolate, and flaky sea salt. 

In a saucepan, add the sugar and corn syrup. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes until the sugar is dissolved and mixture starts to turn amber; the temperature should be at least 320 F.

Add the heavy cream while stirring. It will bubble up and rise.

Add the butter and stir until melted. Cook on medium heat for around 10 minutes or until it reaches 235 F to 240 F and the color is golden brown. Stir often so it won't stick to the bottom.

Meanwhile, line a 9x9-inch baking dish with parchment paper.

Remove the caramel from the heat and stir in the vanilla.

Pour the caramel into the prepared dish. Cool to room temperature, then transfer to the fridge for at least 1 hour.

Trim off any edges of the cooled caramel to leave a neat square. Cut caramel into 1-inch square pieces. Keep pieces in the fridge while preparing the chocolate.

In a bowl, add ⅔ of the chopped chocolate and place it over a steaming pan with water. Make sure the water is not boiling or touching the bowl.

Once the chocolate is melted but before the chocolate reaches 130 F, remove the bowl from the heat and add the rest of the chocolate. Stir until newly added chocolate melts and mixture cools down to 84 F, then return to the double boiler until it reaches 88 to 92 F. 

Take the caramels out of the fridge. Using a fork, dip a piece into the chocolate. Scrape the bottom of the fork on the edge of the bowl to remove excess chocolate.

Place the candy on a parchment paper-lined dish and sprinkle piece with a small pinch of sea salt.

Repeat the process with the rest of the caramels.

Set aside candies until chocolate hardens, about 10 minutes. If tempering is unsuccessful and chocolate does not harden, transfer plate to the fridge until candies cool and the chocolate hardens.

Candies, kept in a sealed container, can remain at room-temperature (if chocolate is tempered) or fridge (if chocolate doesn't temper) for up to 2 weeks.

Tempering chocolate can seem complicated, but with the right tools, you'll be able to make delicious treats like a pro. A candy thermometer is crucial for tempering chocolate because it allows you to monitor its temperature as it melts and cools, which is key to achieving that glossy sheen and snap.

You will also need a double boiler; you can create your own simply by placing a bowl over a pot of simmering water. This setup, also known as a bain-marie, allows for the gentle, even heat essential for melting chocolate without scorching it. Use a spatula or wooden spoon to stir the chocolate as it melts and cools. This will also help to uniformly distribute the heat evenly and prevent burning. It's important to use clean, dry utensils when handling chocolate, as even a small amount of water can cause the chocolate to seize and become gritty.

So what happens if you make your candies and realize your chocolate just isn't tempering? Don't sweat it; just keep the candies in the fridge. The chocolate won't have the same shine and snap, but it'll still harden and be delicious.

While corn syrup is commonly used in caramel recipes (and you can also use glucose syrup), it is not strictly necessary. Corn syrup is an invert sugar, which means it has had its sucrose molecules broken down into glucose and fructose molecules. This helps to prevent the caramel from crystallizing, which can make it grainy and unpleasant.

However, it is possible to make smooth, creamy caramel without corn or glucose syrup. The key is to be very careful not to stir the caramel as it cooks and to use a thermometer to monitor the temperature. If you do stir the caramel, it can easily form sugar crystals. And if the caramel gets too hot, it will burn and become bitter. Use a heavy-bottomed saucepan; this will help to evenly distribute the heat and prevent the caramel from burning. 

The consistency of the finished caramel will depend on what temperature it is heated to while cooking. At around 240 F, which is what we use here, you'll have a soft, chewy caramel that can still hold its shape; below that will give you more of a sauce, and above that will give you more of a hard candy.