Fleur de sel caramels

Life and careers and friendships and paths ebb and flow and bend and twist, but at the end of the day we've always got those we love. I've got a wedding coming up soon. And my La Dolce Vita wedding fantasy isn't going to come true on it's own, and it's certainly not going to come true unless I get cookin'! There's something about delighting those whom I cherish on MY wedding day, I want to make sure everybody feels la Dolce Vita, not just me!

I'm a big fan of fleur de sel caramels. Big fan. So when I found out the one and only Barefoot Contessa herself Ina Garten had a recipe, I got real giddy. Her recipes are fantastic in their simplicity, and they always work (woo hoo!)

My great grandmother was a fantastic candy maker. Not a fantastic cook, but as a candy maker there was nobody better. So with her guidance in spirit I set forth with bringing the sugars to a golden brown tone. It'll seems like they're bubbling forever the same translucent color and then suddenly they're brown and going quickly. So watch it closely.

Add the cream mixture and be sure to continuously stir with a wooden spoon to get it incorporated. At this point, attach the thermometer and get comfortable with stirring. This can be tricky as you're also fumbling with the vanilla. Attach the thermometer taking care to not let it touch the bottom of the pan. And as you stir, don't allow the spoon to scrape the edges. This is where the sugar is crystallizing and if you bring those crystals into your caramel, you might get crunchiness in your creamy smoothness. You'll want to bring it to about 248 degrees or just below, do not let it get higher than this!

Pour the hot caramel into your parchment lined pan and take care because it's HOT and sticky. At this point you've got the best spoon in the world to lick. So pop the pan into the fridge to cool and get to work on that spoon! :)

You'll want to cool it enough so you can touch it and work with it, but not so much that it gets too hard to work with. Mine was in the fridge too long and it got a bit hard. Still chewy and delightful, but I had difficulties getting the salt to stick to it. Make sure you use parchment, not waxed paper.

Once they're ready, you can wrap them in glassine, or just serve them right away. I garnished them with Himalayan Pink Salts, and also with fleur de sel. I've got a ton of fancy salts and I can't think of a better way to try them out. Happy candy making!