From eclairs to a light (and yummy) panna cotta, these delicious caramel desserts are sure to impress and leave your guests wanting more.
Sea-salt caramels
Makes 20 // Cooking time 2 hours 25 min
Ingredients
2½ cups sugar
1 cup water
385 g tin condensed milk
115 g butter, cubed
1 tbsp sea-salt flakes
Method
- Line and grease a loaf tin.
- Heat the sugar and water in a pot over low heat. Once the sugar has dissolved, bring to the boil and cook, swirling the pot occasionally, until the mixture turns a deep amber.
- Remove from the heat and add the condensed milk and butter. Allow to bubble for a few seconds, then whisk vigorously.
- Return to medium heat. Use a sugar thermometer to monitor the caramel. Cook, whisking all the time, until it reaches 115°C. Remove from the heat and add 2 tsp sea salt flakes.
- Pour into loaf tin and sprinkle with the remaining 1 tsp sea salt flakes. Leave to cool and set, at least 2 hours.
- Use a hot knife to slice into bite-sized caramels. Wrap in waxed paper and store in a cool place.
Recipe & styling: Diane Heierli
No-churn salted-caramel ice-cream sandwiches
Makes 10-12
Ingredients
500 ml cream
3 cans Caramel Treat, plus extra for drizzling
½ tsp sea salt flakes (or use fine salt)
1 box (400 g) ready-rolled puff pastry, defrosted
Chopped and toasted nuts or praline, for serving
Mint leaves, for garnish
Method
- Whisk the cream into stiff peaks.
- Whisk the caramel until smooth.
- Add half of the cream to the caramel and mix until well combined, then fold in the remaining cream.
- Pour into a 30×20 cm tray and freeze for 8–12 hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 200 °C. Prick pastry all over with a fork and cut into rectangles.
- Place on a baking tray and bake for 13–18 minutes or until golden. Cool.
- Cut ice cream into the same size as pastry shapes. Refreeze to set, if needed.
- Sandwich the ice cream portions between two pastry rectangles.
- Serve drizzled with extra caramel, top with toasted nuts or praline and garnish with mint leaves.
Cook’s note: Cut the ice cream before the party and refreeze to avoid a sticky, melting mess.
Recipe and photography: Fresh Living Magazine
Peppermint Crisp & Caramel Swiss Roll
Serves 6–8 // Total time 30 min + cooling
Ingredients
For the Swiss roll
3 eggs
1 cup (130 g) caster sugar
1 cup (130 g) cake flour
¾ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
To assemble
1 can Caramel Treat
1 (49 g) Peppermint Crisp chocolate bar, finely chopped
½ cup cream, whipped
Method
For the Swiss roll
- Preheat the oven to 180 ºC. Grease and line a 23×33 cm Swiss roll tray.
- Using an electric hand mixer, whip the eggs and caster sugar until tripled in volume and pale in colour, about 5 minutes.
- Sift the flour, baking powder and salt over the egg mixture. Gently fold in using a large metal spoon until the flour is just combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared tray and bake for 10 min until lightly golden.
- Line a kitchen cloth with a piece of baking paper and sprinkle a layer of castor sugar. When the cake is baked, tip it out on to the cloth and roll up into a tight coil starting from the short end. Leave for 10 minutes until cool, then carefully unroll.
To assemble
- Whip the caramel with an electric mixer until smooth.
- Spread three-quarters of the caramel in an even layer over the Swiss roll. Sprinkle over half the chopped Peppermint Crisp and top with a layer of whipped cream.
- Carefully roll up the Swiss roll and chill in the fridge until ready to serve. Decorate with the remaining caramel and chocolate.
Cook’s note: Experiment with flavour. You can also fill this Swiss roll with your favourite jam and serve with fresh berries.
Styling: Jezza-Rae Larsen
Photography: Callen Jefferson/hmimages.co.za
Salted-caramel panna cotta
Makes 4 // Cooking time: 1 hour 20 min
Ingredients
300 ml cream
250 ml milk
2 tsp salt, plus to decorate
3 gelatine leaves
200 g sugar
2 tbsp water
Method
- Lightly grease 4 moulds.
- Scald the cream and milk in a pot over medium heat. Add salt.
- Place the gelatine leaves in ice water to soak.
- Meanwhile, boil sugar and 2 tbsp water in a pot over high heat until the sugar reaches a dark caramel colour.
- Remove from the heat and add the warm cream and milk immediately. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Allow to cool to room temperature.
- Squeeze excess water from the gelatine. Add it, stirring until fully dissolved.
- Pour the mixture into the moulds and place in the fridge for at least 1 hour to set.
- Remove panna cottas from moulds by placing them in hot water for a few seconds before turning out.
Recipe & styling: Diane Heierli
Photography: Christoph Heierli
White-chocolate-and-caramel eclairs
Makes 10 eclairs // Hands-on 60 mins // Hands-off 75 min
Ingredients
For the choux pastry
85 g unsalted butter
220 ml water
100 g flour
Pinch of fine sea salt
3 large eggs, beaten
For the eclairs
150 g white chocolate
250 ml cream
360 g tin caramel
Method
For the choux pastry
- Preheat oven to 200 °C and grease a baking tray.
- Bring butter and water to the boil.
- Sift flour and salt on to a piece of waxed paper and pour into the boiling water.
- Beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until mixture is smooth and doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot. Spread out on a plate and allow to cool for 20 minutes.
- Once cool, return dough to the pot. Gradually beat in the eggs until it reaches a consistency that lazily drops off the spoon. (You may not need to use all the egg.)
For the eclairs
- Pour the pastry mixture into a piping bag with a wide nozzle tip. Pipe oblongs on to a baking tray. Bake for 25 minutes, until golden.
- Use a skewer to pierce a hole in the base of each pastry, then leave upside-down on a wire rack to cool completely.
- Melt the chocolate in a double boiler over medium heat.
- Whip cream until soft peaks form. Fold in the caramel.
- Cut each pastry in half and fill with caramel cream.
- Dip each filled pastry into the melted chocolate. Use a blowtorch to slightly burn it. Serve immediately.
Also read: Caramel 101
