Dairy Free Caramel Candies

Heather Lionelle

Vegan, Grain Free, Dairy Free

• Prep: 10 minutes
• Cook: 30 minutes
• Inactive: Overnight
• Yield: ~64 One inch pieces

I’m a huge fan of all things dessert. I’ve never made caramel candies before and recently got a notion to try something new. I can’t ever do things the normal way so not only did I make normal caramels, but I attempted dairy free caramels as well. These have a delicious, tropical hint of coconut in every bite.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup water
• 2 cups turbinado sugar (you can use any cane sugar you like, evaporated, sucanat, or regular white)
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup coconut milk (do not use lite milk)
• 4 Tbsp coconut oil
• optional, up to 2 tsp flavoring (Vanilla, cinnamon, etc. I recommend 1 tsp vanilla and then whatever else you like up to another 1 tsp.)

Directions

1. Line an 8x8 pan with parchment paper and set aside. Make sure the parchment paper overlaps the pan edges on all sides.
2. Place the coconut milk, coconut oil, and sea salt into a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Keep it at a low simmer during the next step.
3. In a 4 quart pan bring the water and sugar to a boil on medium heat. Don’t forget to place a candy thermometer into the pan. Once the sugar has dissolved resist the urge to stir. If you see sugar crystals on the walls of the pan use a wet pastry brush to dissolve them. Allow to boil until the thermometer reaches 245–250 degrees F.
4. Add the flavoring to the coconut mixture and whisk briefly to combine.
5. Pour the coconut mixture into the boiling sugar and whisk quickly to combine. Allow to boil without stirring until the thermometer again reads 245–250 degrees F. If you notice sugar crystals forming on the walls use a wet pastry brush to dissolve them.
6. Pour the molten sugar mixture into the lined pan.
7. Allow to cool overnight.
8. Remove the parchment paper from the pan. Cut the caramel slab into 1 inch by 1 inch squares and cover each square with wax paper wrappers. (Cut the wax paper into approximately 4 inch squares.) The caramels will store at room temperature for about two weeks.