Corn-free, Dairy-free Caramels

One of my favorite things in this little life of mine is dessert.  It has always been that way. I kid you not, almost every childhood memory I have is somehow centered around the making and/or eating of something sweet.  My sister called me out on it, while I was telling some story and I laughed it off and thought No way is that true.  Well, time (and several delicious stories later) proved otherwise.

Then we laughed so hard when I found a picture from when I was in kindergarten. The scene:  In the kitchen, early 80s decor, folding table, mother in tube-top and over-sized glasses placing tray of cookies on said table.  Where was I?  Oh, just leaning over the tray of cookies looking like a wolf approaching a vulnerable flock. How I wish I could find that picture now!  We’d all have a good laugh.  Trust me.

Anyway, my love for dessert is undying, but these days I have to be careful because of some food allergies/intolerances I have developed as I’ve gotten older and the kids have some as well.  Yes, it sucks, but what these allergies don’t know is that I am incredibly stubborn and have promised myself that I will figure out my all-time favorites.

I know there are a ton of you out there with allergies in the family, too. (Believe me, you’re not the only one!)  So I thought I’d pass on this adapted caramel recipe of Ina Garten’s – Fleur De Sel Caramels!  Because, um.  Yum!

The caramels above are gluten, corn and dairy free!  Aren’t they cute?!  It was my first time making them and didn’t get the temperature just right, so they’re a little too soft, but really good!

You can follow the instructions here, but I’ll tell you the ingredients I changed to make them allergy-friendly below:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup – I changed to Lundberg Brown Rice Syrup
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream – I changed to Coconut Milk
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter – I changed to Earth Balance Vegan Butter Sticks
• 1 teaspoon fleur de sel, plus extra for sprinkling
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Next time I make these I will try a different heavy cream option because I found the hint of coconut flavor distracting.  But let me tell you, my husband and son didn’t think I should change a thing and were ooh-ing and aah-ing over them for days.  Such a delicious treat for everyone… those with and without allergies!

I can’t wait to make these again.  Ah, sweet caramel.  How I’ve missed you….

I originally posted this on heylittlebirdie.com