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Four gingerbread caramels on white parchment paper.

Gingerbread Caramels

Yield: 60 caramels
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Cooling Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 3 hours

Ingredients

  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon ground ginger
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground allspice
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
  • 2 ½ cups (530 g) granulated sugar
  • ½ cup light corn syrup
  • ½ cup water
  • ½ cup molasses (not blackstrap)
  • 6 tablespoons (85 g) butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (I use salted butter)
  • ½ teaspoon coarse, kosher salt (use 1/4 teaspoon for table salt)

Instructions 

  • Butter the bottom and sides (get into the corners, too!) of a 8- or 9-inch square baking pan. (Alternately, you can line with parchment and butter the parchment – this may make it easier to pull the slab of caramels out of the pan after they have cooled in order to cut and wrap them.) Set aside.
  • Heat the cream in a saucepan or in the microwave until steaming. Keep warm.
  • In a small bowl, stir together the vanilla, ginger, cinnamon, allspice and cloves. Set aside.
  • For the caramels, in a large, heavy-bottomed pot (at least 5- or 6-quarts), stir together the sugar, corn syrup, and water, taking care to not splash the mixture up the sides of the pot. Clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan, if using.
  • Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat WITHOUT STIRRING or moving the pan. As it begins to boil, fill a cup with water and use a pastry brush to wash down the sides of the pan so there are no granules of sugar sticking to the sides of the pan (you probably won’t need to repeat this after the sides have been well-cleaned). This prevents the caramel mixture from crystallizing in later steps.
  • Cook until the boiling sugar turns a light amber color and registers 325 degrees F on the thermometer, about 15-20 minutes.
  • Slowly and carefully pour the warm cream into the caramel. It will bubble and produce a lot of steam! Add the molasses, butter, and salt. The mixture will bubble high during this step but will go down after a few minutes.
  • Begin stirring the caramel with a heatproof rubber spatula, making sure to scrape across the bottom of the pan (but avoid scraping the sides of the pan too much). Continue to cook, stirring constantly and slowly, until the mixture reaches 244-246 degrees F, about 10-20 minutes. Immediately remove from the heat.
  • Off the heat, scrape the vanilla/spices mixture into the caramel and stir gently until well-combined.
  • Pour the caramel mixture into the prepared pan. Let the caramels cool completely at room temperature.
  • Cut the caramel into squares using a sharp knife or bench scraper. Wrap the caramels and store in an airtight container at cool room temperature for up to two weeks.

Notes

Elevation: I live at about 2,400 feet elevation. This recipe has been tested at that elevation. You may need to adjust the temperature and/or reading of your thermometer based on the elevation you live at. Here is an article that talks more about calibrating thermometers for candy making and adjusting for elevation. 
Gingerbread Flavor: for more pronounced gingerbread flavor, the spices can be doubled.