• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • About
  • Browse Recipes
  • Resources
  • subscribe
  • Navigation Menu: Social Icons

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
Life Currents
Home » Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels

Old-fashioned Cream Caramels

September 19, 2018 by Debi 3 Comments

  • Share
Jump to Recipe

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through links on our site, we may earn a commission.

Classic, chewy, creamy, delicious buttery caramels. Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels are the sticky yummy quintessential caramel.

The wonderful flavor of caramels comes from the caramelization of sugars and milk. And be sure to check out all my cookie and candy recipes.

Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels Classic, chewy, creamy, delicious buttery caramels

We appreciate your support

Please let me know if you have any questions about this recipe. I read all the comments myself and I try to help as soon as I can. I have readers from all levels of comfort and experience in the kitchen on my site, and I’ve tried to answer some of your questions already in the post. But if I’ve missed anything, please feel free to leave a comment and ask.

a block of caramel in the background with cut out pieces of caramel with salt on top on a wooden cutting board.
Old-fashioned Cream Caramels

All about caramels

The proportion of corn syrup to sugar will determine the texture of the caramels. The more corn syrup, the tougher the caramel.

Make sure to use a heavy bottomed saucepan to prevent scorching and burning. And be sure to cook them slowly to allow the sugar and milk solids to caramelize.

The longer and slower they are cooked, the darker the color and stronger the flavor will be.And remember, corn syrup is not high fructose corn syrup.

They are different. And, I’ve even found organic corn syrup.

A bottle of Organic Corn Syrup on a wooden stand.

Salted Caramels

These are really easy to turn into salted caramels.

After they have hardened, and you’re cutting them to wrap them up, simply sprinkle them with a good tasting salt.

I like to use Fleur de sel, a salt that forms as a thin, delicate crust on the surface of seawater as it evaporates. I love the beautiful pure flavor that it has.

Pro tips for great candies

Be sure to use a large enough saucepan when cooking the caramel on the stove. Go for a 4-quart or larger one.

Too small, and you risk the hot candy boiling over the sides of the pan.

When some of the ingredients are added to the boiling hot candy the candy will bubble up quite a bit, and can cause steam burns.

Also, be sure to use a long handled wooden spoon when stirring to prevent burns on your skin.

If you want to add nuts to half of the batch of caramels, place the nuts in only one side of the 13×9-inch pan. After you pour the caramel over them, you’ll have half a batch with nuts.

Walnuts and pecans would be my top choices for Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels.

And, you could totally dip these in chocolate for a special treat. Or, simply drizzle melted chocolate over the top of them.

Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels are sticky yummy quintessential caramel, chewy, creamy, delicious buttery caramels

Caramel Troubleshooting

Make sure to add the final ingredients quickly to the hot caramel sugar mixture, and before pouring the caramel out into the pan.

Stirring the mixture too much will at this point will make the caramels grainy.

Also, don’t scrape the excess caramel out of the pan. What remains in the pan after pouring out the caramels has a slightly different texture because it was closer to the heat when cooked.

Adding this to the caramels would leave hard spots in the candies.

After the caramels have cooked, they must be allowed to cool completely at room temperature.

The flavor will not be as developed, and the caramels can be extra difficult to cut in done too soon. (And yes, I do often sneak a taste as soon as possible. You really can tell the difference!)

If the mixture curdles while cooking, this is due to an excess of acid reacting with the milk.

This can be avoided by making sure the mixture boils continually, or it can be eliminated by adding a pinch of baking soda to the mixture while it’s cooking.

And whatever you do, don’t walk away or stop to look at Facebook while the caramel cooks. It can burn easily.

If you want to try a super easy to make candy treat, be sure to check out my 2 Ingredient Caramel Fudge.

Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels The wonderful flavor of caramels comes from the caramelization of sugars and milk.

Cutting caramels

The best way to cut caramels is with a large sharp knife.

The blade of the knife should be oiled with a neutral flavored oil like grapeseed, vegetable, safflower, canola, or lite olive oil.

Press down on the knife (the non sharp part) with the palm of your hand, and never get your fingers near the sharp blade.

Move the cut caramel away from the rest of the block of caramels so it doesn’t re-stick to the block.

If cutting becomes difficult, oil the blade again.

Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels - wrap them individually for gift giving and storage

Storage of caramels

Individually wrap them in waxed paper or parchment paper with the ends of the wrapper twisted.

Caramels can also be stored unwrapped between pieces of waxed or parchment paper in a tightly covered container.

Be sure to leave space between the caramels if they are stored this way, so they don’t stick together.

Caramels will absorb moisture; so don’t store them in the refrigerator.

candies

I love candy making! Besides these caramels, you’ll want to check out my recipes for Peppermint Marshmallows, Soft Peppermint Caramels, Bourbon candied pecans, Mocha Fudge, Brown sugar fudge, and Buttermints candies.

Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels with tips and tricks for making caramels

Kitchen tools you may need

Aluminum foil
13×9-inch pan
4-quart saucepan
Pastry brush
candy thermometer
cutting board
chef’s knife
waxed paper or parchment paper

Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels - simply delicious

Let’s keep in touch

If you like seeing my recipes subscribe via email in the upper right.
Or, connect with me on your favorite social media channel for recipes, photos, & much more:
Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter!
And find my shop on Amazon for recommendations on cool tools

If you try this recipe,
please come back & leave a comment below letting us know how it goes.
Share a picture & tag @lifecurrents on Instagram.
Or you can upload a “tried it” photo (I would love to see)
via the pin.

two images of Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels with the title in between for a pin for Pinterest.

Recipe

Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels with tips and tricks for making caramels

Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels

Debi
Classic, chewy, creamy, delicious buttery caramels. Grandma’s Old-fashioned Cream Caramels are the sticky yummy quintessential caramel.
5 from 1 vote
Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate this Recipe
Prevent your screen from going to sleep.
Prep Time 30 minutes mins
Cook Time 45 minutes mins
resting time 8 hours hrs
Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 112 pieces
Calories 41 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 2 tablespoons neutral flavored oil divided use
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 cup light corn syrup
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter softened and cut into pieces
  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • ½ teaspoon salt plus additional for sprinkling on top if desired
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Instructions
 

  • Line a 13×9-inch pan with aluminum foil so that the foil goes up the sides of the pan. With a paper towel, coat the foil with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Set aside.
  • In a 4-quart or larger heavy bottomed saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar and corn syrup. Stir constantly until the mixture comes to a boil, about 5 minutes. Wash the sides of the pan down 2 times with a pastry brush dipped in warm water to prevent the sugar from crystallizing.
  • Place a candy thermometer in the pan with the hot sugar, and increase the heat to medium-high. Continue to cook the candy without stirring until it registers 305° F on the candy thermometer, about 15 minutes.
  • While the hot sugar cooks, heat the cream in a separate small saucepan or in the microwave until it’s hot. Set aside.
  • Remove the sugar mixture saucepan from the heat and stir in 1 tablespoon of the butter until it’s melted in. Return the pan to medium heat, and add the remaining tablespoon butter a little at a time, keeping the mixture boiling.
  • Slowly and carefully add the hot cream to the caramel sugar mixture. Be careful as the mixture will bubble up and steam and can cause burns. Stirring continuously, cook the caramel until the mixture reaches 250° F on the candy thermometer, about 10 – 15 minutes.
  • Remove the pan from the heat, and let stand for 5 minutes. Stir in the ½ teaspoon salt and vanilla. Pour the caramel into the prepared foil lined pan, and let sit for at least 8 hours at room temperature.
  • After the caramel has rested, coat a cutting board and the blade of a chef’s knife with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil.
  • Invert the foil-lined pan of caramel onto the cutting board, and peel the foil off of the caramel.
  • Cut the caramel into bite sized pieces.

Notes

Caramels will keep at room temperature in a tightly covered container, between sheets of waxed or parchment paper, or wrapped individually, for 2 weeks.
 
Makes about 112 pieces of candy

Nutrition

Calories: 41kcalCarbohydrates: 6gProtein: 1gFat: 2gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 6mgSodium: 14mgPotassium: 3mgSugar: 6gVitamin A: 69IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 3mgIron: 1mg

Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations, and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.

Keyword candy, caramel
Tried this recipe?Mention @LifeCurrents or tag #LifeCurrents!
  • Share

Filed Under: Budget, Cookies, Desserts, Gluten-free Tagged With: candy, caramel, Cooking, desserts, Food, gift, Gifts, gluten-free, recipe

You May Also Like

square crop of 3 cookies on a serving platter.
Brown Sugar Oatmeal Lace Cookies
square crop of biscuits piled up on a piece of parchment paper.
Chocolate Chip Biscuits
square crop of a blue bowl filled with pink strawberry cream cheese and some fresh strawberries.
Strawberry Almond Cream Cheese
about debi

ABOUT DEBI

Hello! I’m Debi, the girl behind Life Currents where I write about mainly healthy vegetarian dishes. My husband eats meat, so occasionally I share some of his dishes as well. And, I’ll share tasty treats and projects that we do. Read more...

Previous Post: « Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie
Next Post: Italian Apricot Chicken Recipe »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. diane

    September 19, 2018 at 2:56 pm

    Homemade is truly so much better in so many ways. Thanks for sharing your Grandmas special recipe!

  2. Toni | Boulder Locavore

    September 20, 2018 at 6:45 pm

    5 stars
    I love it! An all-time favorite!

  3. Denise Burns

    November 13, 2022 at 1:34 pm

    I can’t wait to try your recipe. I totally appreciate that you have taken the time to add all of your knowledge on what to do to make the recipe successful.

5 from 1 vote

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Hi! I’m Debi, the girl behind Life Currents, where I write about mainly healthy vegetarian dishes with some great desserts and other goodies mixed in! Read More >>>

Most Popular Recipes

square crop of a bowl of lemon cottage cheese pudding with a spoon on the side.
square crop looking down into a baking dish filled with pepper jelly topped cheese dip with crackers on the right.
square crop of creamy dressing in a glass jar with fresh cilantro and limes around it.
looking down on a bowl with two scoops of coconut sorbet in it.
square crop looking down on a small white bowl filled with ranch and surrounded by vegetables and a lemon wedge.
a Chocolate Cream Cheese Cupcakes with a bite missing so you can see the filling.
A chip that's been dipped in cheese and the bowl of cheese is behind it.
looking fown in a cast iron skillet filled with White Bean Sun-Dried Tomato Gnocchi and a wooden spoon sticking out.
a white bowl filled with rice pudding that's topped witha s prinkle of cinnamon and there's a spoon in the pudding.

Footer

SEEN ON

as seen on

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through links on our site, we may earn a commission.

This month’s featured recipes: Bourbon Banana Bread, Crescent Roll Chicken Squares, Pecan Pie Muffins, and Flourless Chocolate Cookies.

Want to tip me? You can Buy Me a Coffee! And thanks!

© 2025 lifecurrentsblog.com. All rights reserved. Find my Privacy Policy Here.

  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Flipboard
  • Mix
  • Threads
  • X
  • Email

Rate This Recipe

Your vote:




A rating is required
A name is required
An email is required

Recipe Ratings without Comment

Something went wrong. Please try again.