Candy Corn Caramels

There is no candy more divisive, more hated, more loved, or that holds a deeper place in my heart than candy corn. It’s soft, it’s far too sweet, it’s packed with rich honey flavor, it’s absolutely perfect and I eat it by the handful until I make myself sick every single year without fail.

Most years, I grab a “small” (11 ounce) bag and eat it in its entirety on October 30 (National Candy Corn Day) while watching Hocus Pocus. I also choose this night to make pumpkin chili and bundle up in the coziest outfit I can find. I always end up feeling sick, but I still look forward to it every year!

My brother and I have a shared love of all overly sweet junk food, so think Oreos, s’mores pop tarts, candy corn and anything else that makes your teeth hurt after a few bites. So when my brother got married in October of 2015, our mutual friend (my food soul mate), was asked to make the groom’s cake since I was booked (making their wedding cakes!). We decided to meld our minds and both knew she had to pay homage to candy corn. We decided she should try melting them to make some kind of caramel, and that the cake had to include at least one other ridiculous sweet from his top favorites list. From there she ran with it and the cake was a gorgeous blend of Oreos and candy corn and glorious magic that she brings to everything she makes. But man, that neon orange stuck with me long after the two pieces of cake I devoured. As soon as I got home, I realized that I needed more.

I called her up and said “candy corn caramels!” and she said “YES!” and I quickly threw the ingredients together and barely jotted down a recipe. Somehow they turned out perfectly on the first try! A feat that only happens when you don’t think it’s going to work. I shared my poorly written recipe, but after a little sleuthing realized that they now make 20 ounce bags of candy corn! Absolutely ridiculous, but I respect the gluttony. So, when I wrote down “two bags” I ended up putting 40 ounces of candy corn into my first batch and ended up with some very chewy, sticky caramels. And a whoooole lot of them. Don’t get me wrong, I still ate them.

So the recipe I’m sharing with you is the original, adapted ever so slightly to include more salt and just one bag of candy corn. These caramels are buttery soft and with a little prep on the front end, they are the easiest recipe to whip up this Halloween. And if you’re feeling extra festive, you can look for a box of vanilla salt to top your caramels for those gorgeous, dark flecks which adds so much visual character and flavor! Or if you want to make your own, here’s a quick recipe:

Vanilla Salt

• 2-3 vanilla beans

• 1 cup flaky salt

Score and scrape out the seeds from the pod and add the seeds to the sea salt in a wide bowl. Blend delicately with your finger tips so you don’t break up the flaky salt too much! Store in an airtight container for up to a year. This vanilla salt also makes a beautiful holiday gift or would be so delicious to top holiday cookies.

Candy Corn Caramels

Ingredients

Caramels

• 3 cups candy corn (a 20-ounce bag)

• 3 tablespoons heavy cream

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 1/2 teaspoon flaky sea salt

• 1-2 tablespoons vanilla salt or flaky sea salt, for topping

Supplies

Since this project requires some additional tools, I’ve listed them below:

• 8-inch brownie pan

• Cooking spray (for pan)

• Parchment paper

• Candy thermometer

• Wax paper (I highly recommend using pre-cut pieces, like these)

Process

Spray brownie pan with cooking spray, line with parchment paper to edges in both directions, and spray down parchment paper as well. Set aside.

In a small, heavy bottom pan, heat up candy corn on medium-low until melted and smooth in consistency. Stir occasionally.

Once melted, take off heat temporarily and stir in butter and heavy cream. Add pot back onto heat and set heat to medium. Stir until homogenous. Heat until mixture is between 235-240F on candy thermometer. Turn off heat, stir in salt, and pour into sprayed and lined pan.

Sprinkle with vanilla salt or more flaky sea salt and let sit until room temperature.

Cut into rectangles and roll and twist into wax paper. I cut mine into four (4) 2-inch rectangles (made easy with the 8x8 pan and a ruler for guidance), and then cut slightly over 1/2-inch caramels, which yielded 60 caramels.