Grandma Kleins Chocolate Caramels

🥘 Ingredients

• granulated sugar 2 cups
• corn syrup 1 ½ cups
• heavy cream 1 ½ cups
• unsalted butter 1 cup
• unsweetened chocolate 4 oz
• vanilla 2 tsp
• nuts (optional) 1 ½ cups

1. 1

   Generously butter a 9" x 13" pan and set aside.
2. 2

   Place granulated sugar , corn syrup , heavy cream , unsalted butter , and unsweetened chocolate in a heavy medium sauce pan . Over medium to medium-high heat, stir the mixture quite constantly with a spatula or wooden spoon until it just reaches 240°F, and then quickly pull pan from heat. This will take quite some time, be prepared to stand by the stove for awhile, stirring, stirring,
3. 3

   stirring! Do not let the caramel mixture over cook, or you will have hard caramel. Likewise, undercooking will result in softer caramels. With pan off the heat, stir in the vanilla . Stir in nuts (optional) , if using. Pour into prepared pan. Let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate.
4. 4

   If you prefer regular caramels, omit the chocolate.
5. 5

   If you want to gift these caramels, simply cut them into your desired size and wrap in wax paper .
6. 6

   This is how I achieve those super clean cuts: With refrigerated caramel, I first cut around the outer edge of the pan to loosen the caramel from the sides, and then invert caramel onto a wood cutting board that has a layer of wax paper on it, flipping the caramel slab right-side up again. Let warm a bit. Depending on the consistency of the caramel, this can take 20 to 60 minutes . If it's hard to cut, wait another 15 minutes and repeat as necessary. Then I use a long non-serrated knife (a "sandwich knife") to make the cuts. For even more precision, use a ruler to mark out exact sized cuts.