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    You are Here: Masala Herb » Recipes » RECIPES

    Old Fashioned Caramel Candy Recipe

    Published: Dec 20, 2019 · Modified: Dec 9, 2022 by Helene Dsouza

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    Helene Dsouza
    Old Fashioned Caramel Candy Recipe prepared with 2 ingredients only over the stove top.

    Total Time: 50 minutes
    Prep Time: 0 minutes
    Cook Time: 40 minutes
    Cooling Time: 10 minutes
    50 candy
    4.25 from 8 votes
    Jump to Recipe
    Old Fashioned Caramel Candy Recipe
    caramel candy with 2 ingredients

    Old fashioned hard caramel candy prepared with only 2 ingredients (yep I'm serious!)

    My grandmother used to make these for my dad when he was small and now I'm sharing it with you.

    wrap candy into paper
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    Jump to:
    • 📕 Recipe Origins
    • 🔪 How to make it?
    • 🍱 Storing
    • 📜 Variations
    • 👁️ More Recipes like this
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

    📕 Recipe Origins

    My grandmother in Austria used to make these 2 ingredient caramel hard candy back in the day when my father was a kid.

    Most of my dad's family made them for Christmas and so my dad's cousin was able to retrieve the old fashioned recipe.

    The caramel are made from scratch with only milk and sugar.

    This was a candy which they made when the second world war ended in rural Austria and it was considered a real special treat back then.

    The recipe was handed down by a neighbor lady to my folks, hence why it's called caramel from Sammerin (that was the ladies' family name).

    caramel candy square shaped

    🔪 How to make it?

    For this particular homemade caramel candy recipe, you will need a large pan and only plain milk and sugar.

    Here you can make caramel without a candy thermometer.

    The complete recipe with ingredient quantity and step by step instructions with video can be found at the bottom of this post.

    Step 1

    Place milk and sugar into a pan and heat up.

    Stir continuously over a steady heat and bring to a rolling boil.

    pour milk and sugar into pan and bring to a rolling boil

    Step 2

    Over time it will reduce but it will take at least 30 to 40 minutes.

    At the last stage, the caramel will thicken and turn brown.

    Just keep on stirring until you are satisfied with the color and consistency.

    reduce and thicken caramel so that it turns brown

    Step 3

    Pour the thick caramel quickly without wasting time on a buttered parchment-lined sheet pan.

    Spread out the caramel.

    pour caramel over butter paper and spread out

    You need to work fast because caramel thickens quickly the moment it is taken from the heat and you need to be careful because it's super hot.

    When the caramel is thick, you get to cut it into desired shapes.

    cut cooled caramel mass into squares

    🍱 Storing

    My grandmother would shape her caramel into balls and she would simply keep then in a tin box lined with parchment paper.

    I do almost the same, just that I cut them into squares to save time.

    You can also cut some parchment paper squares or waxed paper and wrap the caramel candies into the paper by twisting the ends.

    Another idea is to get candy wrappers but those tend to be made of plastic and that's not very environment-friendly.

    The caramel candy can last for up to 2 months in a cool and dry environment, away from direct sunlight.

    In a tropical climate, I recommend to keep your old fashioned caramels in an airtight container and you should consume them within weeks.

    If you want to extend the shelf life, you can do so by keeping your caramel in the fridge.

    store caramel candy in tin box

    📜 Variations

    You can enhance your caramels further by adding any of the following ingredients:

    • a tablespoon or two of butter - for a richer flavor and smoother consistency. The more you add the chewier they get.
    • thick sea salt - for salted caramel
    • red chili pepper flakes - for fiery caramel candies
    • chopped hazelnut or almond pieces - to add crunch to your hard candy
    • vanilla extract

    👁️ More Recipes like this

    • Candied Almonds
    • New Year's Marzipan Pigs
    • Key Lime Pie Truffles by infinetaste.com
    homemade candy caramel pin
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    📖 Recipe

    Old Fashioned Caramel Candy Recipe

    Old Fashioned Caramel Candy Recipe

    Old Fashioned Caramel Candy Recipe prepared with 2 ingredients only over the stove top.

    4.25 from 8 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: Austrian, German
    2 ingredients caramel, how to make caramel candy
    Prep Time: 0 minutes
    Cook Time: 40 minutes
    Cooling Time: 10 minutes
    Total Time: 50 minutes
    Servings: 50 candy
    Calories: 42kcal
    Recipe by: Helene Dsouza

    Ingredients

    For the Candy

    • 2½ cup Milk
    • 2¼ cup Sugar

    For the cooling

    • 1 sheet Parchment Paper
    • Butter
    US - Metric

    Instructions

    • Pour milk and sugar into a pan and heat up.
    • Mix while the milk and sugar are heating up over medium to high heat.
    • Bring to a rolling boil and take back to medium heat.
    • Stir occasionally while the milk and sugar get reduced.
    • At the last stage, the milk and sugar will get frothy and thick. Just keep on stirring over a medium heat setting while the ingredients are getting thick and darker in color.
    • Reduce and stir cook until you are satisfied with the color of your caramel.
    • Take from the heat and quickly pour liquid caramel over a buttered parchment paper. You need to be fast because caramel thicks quickly.
    • Swiftly spread out the caramel as good as possible and leave it to cool for about 10 minutes.
    • When the caramel can be touched without you getting burned, you can go ahead and cut the caramel into a desired size and shape.
    • Either wrap your caramel individually in butter paper or store them in a tin box lined with parchment paper.

    Notes

    1. I use a large skillet to prepare my old fashioned caramel so that it reduces faster and the caramel gets formed within 30-40 minutes.
    2. I use normal milk. I recommend to use a milk which contains enough fats or else the caramels won't shape the way they should. Don't use low fat milk.
    3. I used regular sugar but you can use brown sugar too.
    4. You may add flavors to your caramel with the other ingredients. For some ideas see in the post.
    5. Keep in mind that caramel is super hot so be careful and don't burn yourself!
    6. My grandmother would roll the caramel into balls. I think spreading out and cutting the caramels is easier and less time consuming.

    Equipment

    • Large Saucepan (a reader pointed that out in the comments)

    Nutrition

    Nutrition Facts
    Old Fashioned Caramel Candy Recipe
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 42 Calories from Fat 9
    % Daily Value*
    Fat 1g2%
    Saturated Fat 1g5%
    Cholesterol 1mg0%
    Sodium 5mg0%
    Potassium 16mg0%
    Carbohydrates 10g3%
    Sugar 10g11%
    Protein 1g2%
    Vitamin A 20IU0%
    Calcium 14mg1%
    Iron 1mg6%
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
    Made this? Get featured!Mention @real.masalaherb or tag #masalaherb!

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    Comments

    1. Anna says

      October 24, 2022 at 5:54 pm

      My mother and grandmother from the Austrian alps made this too. It’s very similar to the Mexican Leche Quemada. So interesting.

      Reply
      • Helene Dsouza says

        October 26, 2022 at 6:56 pm

        I didn't know about Mexican Leche Quemada. Thanks for sharing, will look it up.

        Reply
    2. Donita says

      October 03, 2022 at 1:23 am

      If one was to add butter to this recipe when and how would one incorporate that.

      Reply
      • Helene Dsouza says

        October 04, 2022 at 1:41 pm

        Hi Donita, I haven't tried it, but I think you can add the butter when you are heating the milk so that the butter melts in.

        Reply
    3. Mel says

      June 25, 2022 at 6:48 am

      5 stars
      Made this with cane sugar and whole milk tasted amazing i halfed the recipe.easy too make i loved it

      Reply
      • Helene Dsouza says

        July 03, 2022 at 6:15 pm

        Awesome, thanks for sharing Mel!

        Reply
    4. Anita Helbert Dee says

      December 16, 2021 at 4:19 pm

      Hi im excited to have found this recipe. Thank you for sharing. I have a question, is the candy finish like a sugary fudge or gooey carmel. The one my mom aunts and mamaw made was a sugary fudge like one. Cant wait to try recipe today.. Wish me luck 🍀 lol~~

      Reply
      • Helene Dsouza says

        December 17, 2021 at 9:19 am

        Hi Anita, this caramel candy is simpler than that, it's a hard candy, so it's neither gooey or fudgey. It's an old fashioned hard caramel candy.

        Reply
    5. N says

      March 06, 2021 at 7:32 pm

      What happens when you don’t add enough sugar?

      Reply
      • Helene Dsouza says

        March 07, 2021 at 6:38 am

        It won't candy soon enough. It's just milk and sugar so you would end up stirring and cooking it down longer and it wouldn't be less sugar at the end anyway.

        Reply
    6. Me says

      November 30, 2020 at 10:48 pm

      2 stars
      Look, I don't know if it was just me being the terrible cook that I am but, this was seriously hard to make and it overflowed 2 minutes in and got everywhere. And, when I say everywhere, I mean EVERYWHERE. This may not be the recipe's fault but still. On a positive note, on the edges of the pot, there were chunks of DELICIOUS caramel. It was sweet and chewy and soft. If there was any left after my "cleaning," which there was not, it would not have lasted a minute. Overall, it was a pretty good recipe. but you may want to change the medium saucepan to large saucepan.

      Reply
      • Helene Dsouza says

        December 01, 2020 at 1:42 pm

        Hi there, I'm sorry that happened to you. Working with moderate heat is definitely a key for success and yes caramel can be tricky. You can't leave it cooking alone, you need to stand at the side and stir and keep an eye on it. Control the heat and the more you stir the better the caramel turns out. The larger the saucepan the better, you are right. I will mention that more clearly in the post. That said, I thank your for sharing your experience, it will be useful to others.

        Reply
    7. Jamie Ellen says

      January 26, 2020 at 6:35 pm

      Thanks for posting this. My mother used to make this and I never got the recipe from her before her passing. I can remember stirring many batches at the stove.. She only made it in her cast iron skillet and tested readiness by dropping tests drops into water. For her it had to hold together in just a certain way or it wasn't ready. She added butter and vanilla to the mix and us kids would break up American walnuts to add in at the end before she dumped all into a buttered large dinner plate to cool.

      Been looking for this for a while. Thanks, Jamie

      Reply
      • Helene Dsouza says

        January 27, 2020 at 6:47 am

        You are welcome Jamie. 🙂

        Reply
    8. Sandy says

      December 21, 2019 at 8:29 pm

      Looks delicious! I can't wait to try.

      Reply

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