Apple cider caramel

In October a friend from work brought in these amazing caramel candies she had made herself. I was extremely impressed and delighted at the flavor, so I decided I would replicate it. At first I used apples that were given to me by that friend, but they were meant for direct consumption and I found them to be a little too sweet for my caramel. Then I purchased some Granny Smith apples, juiced them, and ramped up my caramel game. Beware, this recipe is a little time-consuming.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups of apple cider (or fresh juice from approx. 5 Granny Smith apples)
• 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 stick of butter
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1/2 cup of light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup of heavy cream

You will need a 8x8in pan and parchment paper.

Note: Line the pan with parchment paper while the juice is reducing. Once you add sugar and butter you will have minutes to be ready to pour.You don't want to be stuck with a pot-full of hardened caramel.

1. Boil the juice in a medium pot on medium-high until it reduces to a thick syrup (molasses-like). It should take about 30 minutes to do so. Turn down the heat to simmer.
2. Add sugar, butter & cream, then simmer until the temperature reaches 165F (If you don't have a candy thermometer, I suggest pouring some cold water into a bowl and occasionally drop a little of caramel in there. If it turns solid(ish), the caramel is ready).
3. Pour the caramel into the pan and set it aside for approx. 2 hours. I suggest setting a timer.
4. Cut into pieces and store in the fridge so it doesn't melt. As an extra step, I wrap mine in cut up pieces of parchment paper. It looks fancy!

Enjoy!