Hilly's Pumpkin Caramel Pie Recipe

Caramel Recipe

-measure out the heavy cream and butter (cut into tablespoons) in separate containers and place back in fridge, it’s best to keep these cold before use.

-measure your salt and vanilla into small vessels and keep close by. 

-keep a whisk nearby. 

-add the following to a medium saucepan: water, white sugar, corn syrup. mix well with heat proof spatula so all sugar is hydrated. then set over medium low heat. 

-you can stir this mixture until the sugar dissolves IE it turns clear, once it turns clear, only swirl the pan. you can also begin brushing down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush to prevent crystallization along the edges, if you wish. 

-continue cooking the sugar over medium heat, this is a nothing-then-all-at-once sort of thing -- your mixture will stay clear for a million years, then seemingly out of nowhere it will start to turn gold. this is the point you need to pay close attention or risk burning all your hard work. this may take 8 - 10 minutes, maybe more. 

-once the mixture begins to take on a golden color, make sure to gently swirl the pan often, so the sugar does not caramelize all in one place. at this point, bring your butter and cream out of the fridge and keep nearby.

-watch the caramel closely, keep cooking to bring it to a  deep, rich golden brown. when you see the first small whisps of smoke arise from the pan, that’s the moment you want to halt the cooking. 

-turn off the heat, and remove pan from heating element. 

-add butter one tablespoon at a time, whisking well in between each until fully incorporated — watch your hands as this will foam up, and produce a lot of steam. 

-slowly stream in your cream, whisking well and quickly. 

-add your vanilla, whisk. 

-add your salt, whisk. 

-pour into heat safe container and allow to come to room temp, then place in fridge to fully cool. 

-caramel can be made 1-2 days ahead, stored in fridge. reheat in 20 second increments in microwave to achieve pourable consistency to fill pie.