Smoked Salted Caramels

Step

• 1

  Smoked Salt: Set grill temperature to 180℉ and preheat, lid closed for 15 minutes.

  180 ˚F / 82 ˚C

• 2

  Take kosher sea salt, however much you want to smoke, and spread it out on a tray. Smoke on your Traeger for about 24 hours, stirring the salt every 8 hours.

  180 ˚F / 82 ˚C

• 3

  Once it has smoked for 24 hours, take off the grill and use in all your favorite dishes.

• 4

  Caramels: Prepare an 8” x 8” square pan by lining it with parchment paper, allowing it to hang over each of the sides by a couple inches.

• 5

  In a deep saucepan, combine water, sugar and light corn syrup. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Do not stir the pan -- just swirl it. Stirring it will disrupt the caramelization. Boil until the mixture is golden brown.

  Ingredients

  • 1/4 Cup water

  • 1 1/2 Cup sugar

  • 1/4 Cup Light Corn Syrup

• 6

  In a separate small pot, combine heavy cream, butter, and 1 teaspoon of the Smoked Sea Salt or Jacobsen Salt. Simmer over medium heat until the butter is melted. Turn off the heat and set aside.

  Ingredients

  • 1 Cup heavy cream

  • 5 Tablespoon butter

• 7

  Slowly add the cream mixture to the sugar mixture. Stir in the vanilla extract with a wooden spoon and cook over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes or until the mixture reaches 248℉ on a candy thermometer. If it's under temperature, the caramels will be too soft and if it's over temperature, the caramels will be too hard.

  Ingredients

  • 1/2 Teaspoon vanilla extract

• 8

  Pour the hot caramel mixture into the prepared pan and refrigerate for a few hours, until firm. When the caramel is cold, pry the caramel sheet from the pan and onto a cutting board. Cut the caramels into bite-size pieces and top with additional smoked salt. Enjoy!