Fleur de Sel Caramels

I've been obsessed with salted caramel lately. First, I encountered some through a friend, who gave my sister and I a load full of them. Needless to say, we polished off those babies in well under two days... then I made these Salted Caramel Cupcakes, which fueled my obsession even more!

Those cupcakes were probably one of my favorite cupcakes I've made so far; the perfect combination of salty and sweet which is perfect because I hate when cupcakes are too, too sweet. That's where the salt comes in. Salt is added to almost every baked good imaginable because it heightens the flavor and cuts down on the sugary-high.

These caramels were simple and delicious! The only real special thing you need is a candy thermometer but other than that the ingredients are simple and so is the process. And the end result? Well, let's just say I'm going to have to visit my dentist reallllll soon and he won't be too happy with me!

Fleur de Sel Caramels

Yields: 30 caramels

Original recipe can be found here.

Printable Recipe

Vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1 cup heavy cream

5 tbsn. unsalted butter

1 tsp. fleur de sell, plus extra for sprinkling

1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Line the bottom of an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, then brush the paper lightly with oil, allowing the paper to drape over two sides. In a deep saucepan, stir together 1/4 cup water with the sugar and corn syrup and bring them to a boil over medium-high heat. Continue to boil until mixture is a warm, golden brown color. Don't stir - just swirl the pan to mix. Watch carefully, as it will burn quickly at the end. In the meantime, in a small pan, bring the cream, butter and 1 tsp. fleur de del to a simmer over medium heat. Turn off the heat and set aside.

When sugar mixture is a warm, golden color, turn off the heat and slowly add the cream mixture to the sugar mixture. Be careful! It will bubble up violently. Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon and cook over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, until the mixture reaches 248 F (firm ball stage) on a candy thermometer. Very carefully pour the caramel into the prepared pan and refrigerate until firm.

When caramels are cold, use the parchment paper to pry the sheet from the pan onto a cutting board (the caramels will be supple and easy to handle, if too stiff, allow to sit at room temperature for 10 minutes). Cut into 1-inch squares, taking care not to tough the caramel with your finger. Sprinkle each with fleur de sell and wrap individually in glassine or parchment paper. Store in refrigerator and serve caramels chilled.

Mmmmm salty goodness!

Pumpkin Cream Pies

I saw a recipe for pumpkin cream pie and I was astonished! It sounded so unbelievably perfect since I love, love, love cream pies. And guess what I did? Instead of making the custard, with all of its intense technique, listed in the recipe, I went back to my trusty faux-custard recipe that I've used for everything, including Boston cream pies, banana cream pies, fruit tarts AND cream puffs.

I added some pureed pumpkin and some spices and tada! Delicious pumpkin cream. Topped off with some whipped cream and pepita brittle??? Yeah... you know that's gonna be good! I especially loved the pepita brittle because it added the needed change of texture: delicious crunchiness, and some salty goodness.
The pepita brittle was incredibly easy to make, so don't be afraid to attempt it. I think its almost too easy to mess up. Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin Cream Pie

Yields: about 10 mini pies

Pie recipe slightly modified from this recipe. Original pepita brittle recipe can be found here.

1 9-inch prepared graham cracker crust

(I used 10 mini graham cracker crusts)

For the custard:

1 large box french vanilla pudding

1 1/4 cups whole milk

3/4 cup heavy cream

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1 15 oz. can pure pumpkin puree

For the pepita brittle:

butter or vegetable oil

2 cups sugar

4 oz. unsalted butter

1/3 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup + 2 tbsn. water

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tbsn. sea salt

1 1/2 cups pepitas, raw and untoasted

To make the custard, mix together the pudding mix, milk, and heavy cream and beat until nice and thick, about 5 - 10 minutes. Stir in the vanilla, spices and puree. Mix well then pour and spread into the prepared pie crust. Set in refrigerator. Top with whipped cream if desired, then with the brittle

For the britte, line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat. If using parchment, grease the paper with butter or oil. In a medium or large saucepan, combine the sugar, butter, corn syrup and water. Stir the sugar until it is completely moistened. Cook sugar over medium heat until it thickens. It bubbles quickly and often so keep an eye on it and reduce heat as necessary to keep it from bubbling over. The sugar mixture should turn golden after ten minutes. When it is just shy of the desired color, remove from heat and whisk in the baking soda and salt carefully. Using a heatproof spoon, fold in the pepitas and pour onto the baking sheet and quickly spread out evenly. Break it into pieces when completely cool, store in airtight container.

P.S. I will no longer be posting hostile, ill-mannered comments. Though I do believe that everyone has a right to express their opinions, I think that once racial slurs start to appear, a line has been crossed. A big thank you to everyone that reads this blog, who has supported it and I do hope you enjoy my posts :)