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Alysse011 ~
I promised myself I would try a couple new recipes this year, salted caramels being one of them. The hardest part is constantly stirring the mixture once it comes to boil...it seems like it takes fooooorrrreeeevvveeeerrrr...LOL! But it was not that bad. I really paid attention to my candy thermometer. The other thing is I did not splurge on the $8 vanilla beans for the recipe. I just added an extra 1/2 tsp of real vanilla extract. Also I lined my pan with non-stick foil, so the set caramels would turn out easily. They came out so yummy! Here is the full recipe...
SEA SALT CARAMELS
INGREDIENTS
· 1 and 1/2 cups heavy cream
· 1 cup granulated sugar
· 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
· 1/3 cup light corn syrup
· 1 teaspoon salt
· 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (I added an extra ½ tsp in place of the vanilla bean)
· Seeds scraped from 1/2 of a vanilla bean (I skipped this!)
· 1 Tablespoon (14g) unsalted butter, softened (plus more for lightly buttering the pan)
· coarse sea salt for topping
DIRECTIONS
1. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil, leaving enough overhang on the sides to easily remove the caramel once it has set. Lightly grease the foil with butter.
2. Combine the cream, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and corn syrup in a 3-quart heavy duty saucepan over medium heat. Using a wooden spoon, stir constantly as the sugars dissolve. The mixture will be thick and cloudy looking.
3. Once boiling, brush down the sides of the pan with a water-moistened pastry brush. Attach a candy thermometer to the pan, making sure not to let it touch the bottom.
4. Cook and stir gently every minute or so until the temperature reaches 245°F (118°C). Immediately remove from heat and stir in 1 teaspoon of salt, the vanilla extract, vanilla bean seeds, and butter. The mixture may burst and bubble, so be careful stirring.
5. Pour the hot caramel into the prepared baking pan (foil lined and buttered) and top with coarse sea salt.
6. Allow to cool at room temperature, uncovered, for 4 hours or overnight (no need to cover).
7. Once set, remove the caramel from the pan by lifting out the aluminum foil. Peel the foil off and, using a very sharp knife, cut into rectangles or squares. Wrap with candy wrappers, if desired. (I cut waxed paper pieces to wrap)
Wrapped caramels keep for up to 2 weeks!
oh yeah...I am that too! 
I had to look away LOL!
