Coconut Milk Caramels
These chewy, pleasantly salted coconut milk caramels can be purchased at roadside stalls in Lagos, Nigeria. Once the caramel has been combined with the coconut milk, stir constantly to keep the coconut milk solids from settling at the bottom of the pot and burning. Read more in Sweet Relief: Coconut Milk Caramels.
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Credit: Anna Stockwell
INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp. coconut oil, melted, plus more for cutting caramels
1-16 oz. can coconut milk
¾ cup light corn syrup
1 tsp. coarse sea salt
1¾ cup sugar
¾ cup water
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Line the bottom and sides of an 8"x8" square baking dish with parchment and brush with coconut oil; set aside.
2. Combine the coconut milk, corn syrup and sea salt in a 4-quart saucepan. Heat over medium low, stirring constantly for 2½-3 minutes until mixture is just warm and any coconut milk clumps are dissolved. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. In an 8-quart saucepan, combine the sugar and the water and stir until sugar is wet. Place over medium high heat and let cook, without stirring, till the sugar turns a light amber color and a candy thermometer reads 310°F. Immediately remove from heat and pour melted sugar into the coconut milk mixture. Be careful, as the mixture will bubble and splash. Return saucepan to medium low heat, stirring continuously until all the caramel is dissolved. Raise the heat to medium high, stir continuously, and cook until caramel becomes quite thick and a candy thermometer reads 240°F. Immediately remove from heat and pour into the prepared pan. Let cool completely and cut into 1" squares. Brush your knife with melted coconut oil between cutting to avoid sticking. Wrap individually in wax paper squares. Store at room temperature.
**Correction: December 22, 2011 An earlier version of this recipe did not include the amount of water required in step 3. The correct amount is ¾ cup. The recipe has been corrected to reflect this.
Overall a wonderful recipe and I will definitely make it again.
BUT, LISSABIRD is absolutely correct. They are a sticky mess to cut, and then stuck to the wax paper. For a few days the fridge helped a lot, but by day three, they were sticking badly to the paper when chilled as well.
So, next time I make these, I'm going to at least 250 if not 260, as these need to be a harder consistency when cooled.
Major, major error.
Another mistake in this recipe is the coconut oil - the ONLY time coconut oil is mentioned in the recipe is for cutting the caramels. The recipe calls for "2 tbsp. coconut oil, melted, plus more for cutting caramels" -- so WHAT HAPPENED to the 2 tbsp. called for in the recipe?
Seriously bad recipe as written