Gramma’s homemade caramels recipe

Ingredients

• ½ cup (1 stick) salted butter, cut into cubes, plus more for the baking dish
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups light corn syrup
• ¼ teaspoon table salt or fine sea salt
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Butter a large piece of parchment paper and press it into a 9 × 13-inch baking dish.
2. In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, corn syrup, and salt over medium-high heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture has started to bubble. Slowly stir in the cream. Don’t let it stop boiling, and keep stirring. Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the pan. Stir in the butter. Keep the mixture at a boil and stir continuously for about 15 minutes. When the temperature has reached 240°F (in between soft and firm ball stage), stir in the vanilla. Remove from the heat and pour into the prepared baking dish.
3. Let sit on the counter until firmed up, about 1 hour. Once the caramel has firmed up, lift it out of the pan using the parchment paper. Then use a buttered or plastic knife to cut it into 12 vertical rows and 4 horizontal rows, making a total of 48 caramel squares. Cut forty-eight 3 × 6-inch rectangles from waxed paper and wrap the caramels inside. The caramels will stay soft and chewy for up to 2 weeks.