baileys irish coffee caramels

Baileys Irish Coffee Caramels

Baileys Irish Cream, espresso and espresso flavored salt turn ordinary caramels into extraordinary bites of St. Patrick’s Day goodness in these Bailey’s Irish Coffee Caramels.

These Baileys Irish Coffee Caramels are incredibly addicting. The caramel is buttery rich with distinct pops of coffee and Bailey’s Irish Cream flavor. I had some Espresso Brava Salt from Saltworks on hand that enhanced the flavors beautifully, but plain sea salt could just as easily be substituted. Please don’t be intimidated by making homemade caramels – they’re foolproof with the help of a candy thermometer and this recipe is a must try this St. Patrick’s Day!

BAILEYS IRISH COFFEE CARAMELS
 
INGREDIENTS
  • ¼ cup black coffee
  • 1½ cups granulated sugar
  • ¼ cup light corn syrup
  • ¾ cup Baileys Irish Cream
  • ¼ cup heavy cream
  • 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt (I used Espresso Brava Salt)
  • ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
PREPARATION
  1. Line an 8×8 inch square cake pan by criss-crossing two sheets of parchment paper, being sure to cover all sides. Spray lightly with cooking spray and set aside.
  2. Combine coffee, sugar and corn syrup in a deep saucepan and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Boil until mixture is fragrant and a deep golden brown, swirling occasionally. The coffee makes this stage more difficult to judge on color alone, but the mixture should bubble and then clarify once the sugar has completely dissolved.
  3. In a small saucepan, bring Baileys, cream, butter and sea salt to a simmer while waiting for the sugar mixture to brown. Once simmering and butter melted, remove from heat and set aside.
  4. When sugar mixture is ready, turn off heat and slowly add cream mixture. Make sure that you use a deep saucepan for the sugar mixture and take caution as the sugar and cream combination will bubble violently at first.
  5. Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon and return the caramel to medium low heat. Stirring occasionally, cook for about 10 minutes until a candy thermometer reads 248 degrees Fahrenheit.
  6. Once desired temperature is reached, remove from heat and carefully pour caramel into prepared cake pan. Do not scrape sides of saucepan; this caramel will be slightly overdone and can be discarded.
  7. Refrigerate until caramel is set, about two hours.
  8. Remove caramel from pan and cut into desired size with a sharp knife. Wrap caramels with 4×4″ squares of candy foil or wax paper.

GADGETS
High Temperature Candy Thermometer

RESOURCES
Assorted candy foils can be found at the Layer Cake Shop.
Espresso Brava Salt available from Saltworks.

Baileys Irish Coffee Caramels