Peanut Brittle - © pratie.blogspot.com

Explore the Wonderful World of Caramel!

If you haven’t tried making your own caramel, yet, don’t delay a minute longer! Confidence with Caramel opens the doors to a whole new galaxy of dessert delights, from Caramel Sauce to Caramel Corn to Peanut Brittle to Candied Apples to Crème Caramel – and more!

Classic Caramel Apples… Did I mention that you can dress these treats up
by rolling them in nuts, puffed cereal, sprinkles or other goodies
while the Caramel is still warm?

I know, I know… You tried it once and it burned, and the burnt odour hung in the air for days and the pot you used was never the same again. But making Caramel is really simple and really foolproof – if you observe some basic rules and procedures.

The Basics

All you need for Basic Caramel is plain old White Sugar, plain Water and a shallow broad pan – preferably a sauté or frying pan.

Refer to the foolproof recipe at this FFB Post for details.

Then…

When the bubbles have spread over the whole surface of the liquid, add a nice slosh (1/4 Cup) of Heavy Cream and keep stirring until the resulting Caramel Sauce reaches an even consistency. Remove from the heat before it burns.

Or…

Pour the caramel into the bottom of four well-greased ramekins and let set. Then pour fresh, warm Egg Custard over the Caramel. Cool the ramekins until the custard is set and then turn out the individual Custard portions onto suitable dessert plates for presentation. The Crème Caramel will now be on top and be dripping lazily down the sides of the pudding…

Or…

Put a bamboo skewer through the centre of a fresh, whole Apple (type of your choice) and roll it in the Basic Caramel. Voilà! A classic Candy Apple! Add some red food colouring to the caramel for full effect.

Or…

Stir a couple of handfulls of shelled roasted Peanuts into the Basic Caramel and turn out in a thin, even layer onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Let the candy cool and harden and crack into bite-sized pieces. Yup… It’s real Peanut Brittle!

Or…

Let your imagination be your guide! And explore the Caramel Galaxy…

~ Maggie J.