Ooey Gooey Goodness...Caramels

I love these caramels. They are sweet, smooth, silky, soft and decadent. My aunt Nancy makes these caramels every year for Christmas. These caramels hold many wonderful Christmas memories for me and they are definitely a Christmas tradition that I want to carry on.

When I wanted to make these, I realized I didn't have a candy thermometer. I called all over Mankato to find one. Everywhere was sold out...I was crushed and losing hope. But then, I had a brilliant idea to call over to Cooks & Co. in St. Peter which is only about 10 minutes away. They had tons in stock and let me tell you that store is pure heaven. A store filled with only wonderful cooking tools and gadgets. Anyways, I love these babies so much I made a special trip just for that candy thermometer.

This caramel recipe stays nice and soft and chewy. These will make a wonderful addition to your Christmas treats or to your satisfy your sweet tooth any time of year. These will take all your will power to not eat the whole pan. Yum Yum!

Caramels
From Aunt Nancy
Yield: 1 9x13 pan
Cut into 40 caramels, 1 caramel = 3 POINTS+ per piece
Cut into 32 caramels = 4 POINTS+ per piece

2 c. sugar
3/4 c. light corn syrup
1/2 c. butter
2 c. heavy cream
*You will need a candy thermometer

Butter a 9x13 pan. In a large sauce pan, combine sugar, corn syrup and 1 c. of the heavy cream. Over medium heat, bring this mixture to a boil stirring constantly. Stir in the remaining 1 c. heavy cream and cook over medium high heat until candy thermometer reads 245 degrees, stirring occasionally. Immediately pour into buttered pan. Allow to set at room temp.
*Do not scrap bottom of pan otherwise you'll end up with hard bits in your caramels and that's no good.

You can leave these in the pan and cut into squares or you can wrap them up wax paper rounds that you can purchase for caramels. Store these at room temperature.

Oreo Truffles

No one can deny that Oreo Cookies are uber delicious. So, what could be better than turning them into a truffle?!? Lately I've been really into trying to make different types of chocolates and candies. I first had these truffles at my husband's cousin's wedding. Then, my sister-in-law Joni made them for my other sister-in-law's baby shower. They are fantastic. I dusted mine with cocoa powder, but they would be adorable sprinkled with Oreo crumbs. This made about 42 truffles for me. Next time, I will try to temper my chocolate so that it gets nice and shiny and won't get so soft at room temperature. If your chocolate chips are a little too thick, add about 1-2 Tbsp. vegetable oil per 1 cup of chocolate chips until desired consistency is reached. Here is the recipe from Joni:

Oreo Truffles

8 oz block of cream cheese, at room temperature
1 package of regular Oreo Cookies
1 tsp vanilla
1 pkg semisweet chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips

Twist apart Oreo cookies. Scrap out cream filling and place in mixing bowl. Crush cookies in ziplock bag with a rolling pin. Add to bowl with oreo cream filling. Add cream cheese and vanilla. Beat with mixture until no white remains. Roll into balls and place on parchment paper or wax paper lined baking sheet. Refridgerate for 1 hour. Melt chocolate chips over double boiler or in a microwavable bowl at 30 second intervals stirring until smooth. (Add oil to choclate if necessary to thin out for dipping if chocolate is too thick) Dip or Roll oreo mixture in melted chocolate. Place back on lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with cocoa powder or cookie crumbs. Refridgerate until hardened. Store in the refridgerator.