These vegan caramels are soft, chewy, and absolutely delicious!
Line your pan with parchment paper, making sure to fold the corners of the paper so the paper sits flat in the pan. Use an 8” x 8” pan for thick caramels, a 9” x 13” pan for thin caramels, or a 13” x 18” pan for caramel apples.
Add the regular and light coconut milks to a 1 1/2 to 2 quart-sized saucepan. Place a hot pad on your scale and zero it out. Weigh the pot with the coconut milk in it and write down the weight. Subtract 240 g from that weight. The remainder is your target weight.
Once the coconut milk has reduced to the target weight, add the vegan sugar and vegan brown sugar. Stir on medium-low heat until all of the sugar has dissolved.
Pour the sugar mixture into a 3 or 4 quart-sized saucepan. (I have always used a non-stick pan but am not sure if this is strictly necessary.) Switch spatulas after you scrape out the smaller saucepan. Changing pans and spatulas makes sure that you don’t have any loose sugar crystals around in the next step which could cause your finished caramel to crystallize. Add the Karo Syrup and the vanilla, then stir to combine.
Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat just enough to keep the mixture from boiling over. Continue to keep the temperature as high as you can, and turn it down as needed. On my induction cooktop, I have to keep adjusting the temperature between 230 and 275 degrees Fahrenheit during this step, which takes about 30 minutes. I also stir gently but continuously to make sure the syrup doesn’t burn on the bottom.
Keep an eye on the thermometer, but you will probably be stuck at 220 degrees Fahrenheit for awhile. Be patient and keep whisking! (You can stop whisking long enough to wash your spatula and get set up for the final step.)
The caramel will start to get darker and thicker as you raise the temperature. When the caramel reaches 230 degrees Fahrenheit, you will need to start watching the thermometer closely.
Once your caramel reaches your target temperature, remove the pot from the heat and quickly whisk in the salt and vegan butter.
Pour the caramel into your prepared pan and tilt the pan to get the caramel to spread out evenly. Be very careful as the pan can get hot enough to burn you. Do not try to scrape out the pot until after the caramel is in the pan. That bit is for you to test!
Let your caramel cool completely before removing it from the pan. If you made very soft caramels, you will also need to refrigerate the caramel (after it is room temperature) to be able to cut it.
Once your caramel is cool, spray a knife with non-stick spray then wipe off the excess. Cut the caramels as desired. Either dip each piece in tempered chocolate or wrap in a piece of parchment paper. (Directions for how to cut and wrap the caramel to make caramel apples coming up in my next post!)