I am a huge fan of salted caramel and homemade chocolates. That's why I wanted to make salted caramel pralines last Christmas.
In today's recipe, I want to show you how you can easily make your homemade salted caramel cream and use it to fill delicious milk chocolate pralines.
An excellent combination of flavors, I have to say. These little delicacies are fructose-free and perfect as a small Christmas gift or to snack on yourself.
🥘 Ingredients
For the Salted Caramel Cream
- Granulated Sugar
- Unsalted butter
- Heavy Cream
- Fleur de sel
For the Milk Chocolate Truffles
- Pre-made Milk Chocolate Hollow Spheres
- Milk Chocolate Couverture
- Mini Sugar Christmas Trees Sprinkles for decorating
🍽 Equipment
- Waterbath (for melting the couverture) or a Candy Melts Pot
- Cooling Rack
- Chocolate Making Tools
- Squeeze Bottle
- Big Pan
- Cooking Pot
- Baking Paper
🔪 Instructions
How to make the Salted Caramel Cream
In a large saucepan, melt the sugar over low/medium heat until a nice light golden caramel is formed. This process can take up to 20 minutes. During this time, the sugar should not be touched with any objects. This means you can gently shake the pan, but please don't stir it with a wooden spoon! Ensure that the caramel does not get too dark when it forms; otherwise, it will taste bitter!!!!!
Once a beautiful caramel has formed, stir in the butter in small pieces until a creamy caramel is formed. Then add two pinches of fleur de sel.
Now heat up the cream (please do not boil!) and stir it carefully into the caramel. Let the caramel cream cook for two minutes, and then fill it immediately into the squeeze bottles. This prearrangement will make it easier for you to fill your chocolates later on.
To prevent the hollow spheres from melting when filling, allow the caramel to cool to 77 °F // 25 °C.
Filling up the milk chocolate salted caramel truffles
Place the milk chocolate hollow spheres on the kitchen table and fill them up with the salted caramel cream just below the rim. Put them for several hours (about 8 hours) into the fridge to settle.
Just like with all of my praline recipes, I try to plan ahead so that the chocolates can chill overnight, and I can close and cover them with the couverture the following day.
Sealing the chocolate hollow spheres
Now it's time to seal the hollow spheres. Although there is a separate utensil, a so-called closure plate you can manage without it. I took a disposable syringe because I did not have such a sealing plate at that time. A dropper or small squeeze bottle works fine as well.
Now melt the milk chocolate couverture in a water bath.
Take the cooled hollow spheres out of the fridge and seal them with your chosen sealing tool.
Then place the sealed chocolates in the refrigerator for half an hour until firm.
Coating and decorating the milk chocolate salted caramel truffles
There should be enough melted chocolate leftover from sealing to coat the chocolates. Nevertheless, it can always happen that you are a bit short of chocolate at hand, so always make sure to have more chocolate coating ready.
As for the ideal temperature of milk chocolate, it is around 84.2/86 °F // 29/30 °C. The melting temperature is 113 °F // 45 °C, so you have to let the chocolate cool down a bit after melting to reach the perfect working temperature.
A chocolate melter is very suitable for this, as you can work with it much more quickly than with a water bath.
Before starting the coating, prepare a cooling grid to place the chocolates to dry. If you don't have a cooling grid, place the truffles on wax paper after coating. Since I am using a cooling grid at home, I place parchment paper (or waxed paper) underneath the cooling grid to minimize the mess.
Now, one by one, take the chocolates, dip them into the tempered chocolate coating and then carefully lift them out.
I recommend using a chocolate lifter for this purpose. It makes the job very easy.
Let the excess chocolate drip off briefly and place them carefully on the cooling grid. Do so for each chocolate. While the chocolate coating is still soft and moist, you can decorate your salted caramel pralines with Mini Sugar Christmas Trees or whatever decoration you fancy. Once the chocolate coating is solid, your pralines are ready.
🌡️ Storage
The best way to store this delicacy is in an air-tight container in the fridge.
Enjoy your delicious chocolates with some good Christmas music and a cup of your favorite holiday drink! They taste the best at room temperature.
Looking for more delicious treats? Check out the following recipes: Linzer Cookies with homemade Egg Liqueur, Walnut Meringue Cookies, Advocaat Egg Liqueur Bites, Walnut Cookies, Coconut Meringue Cookies, and No-Bake Roasted Almond Slivers with Chocolate.
If you make this recipe, let me know how you liked it by ★★★★★ star rating it and leaving a comment below. This would be awesome! You can also sign up for our Newsletter or follow me on Pinterest or Instagram and share your creation with me. Just tag me @combinegoodflavors and hashtag #combinegoodflavors, so I don't miss it.
๐ Recipe
Milk Chocolate Salted Caramel Truffles
Ingredients
Salted Caramel Cream
- 1 cup Granulated Sugar
- ½ cup Butter unsalted
- ⅔ cup Heavy Cream
- 2 Pinches Fleur de sel
Milk Chocolate Pralines
- 21 pieces Hollowed Milk Chocolate Spheres
- ¾ cup Milk Chocolate Couverture
Decoration
- Mini Sugar Christmas Trees
Instructions
Salted Caramel Cream
- In a large saucepan, melt 1 cup Granulated Sugar over low/medium heat until a nice light golden caramel is formed. (Can take up to 20 minutes).1 cup Granulated Sugar
- During this time, the sugar should not be touched with any objects. (Don't stir, only shake the pan if necessary).
- Once a beautiful caramel has formed, stir in ½ cup Butter (already cut into small pieces) until a creamy caramel is formed. Then add 2 Pinches Fleur de sel.½ cup Butter, 2 Pinches Fleur de sel
- Now heat up ⅔ cup Heavy Cream (please do not boil!) and stir it carefully into the caramel.⅔ cup Heavy Cream
- Let the caramel cream simmer for two minutes, and then fill it immediately into the squeeze bottles.
- Let the caramel cool down to 77 °F // 25 °C
Filling up the milk chocolate salted caramel truffles
- Place the 21 pieces Hollowed Milk Chocolate Spheres on the kitchen table and fill them up with the salted caramel cream just below the rim.21 pieces Hollowed Milk Chocolate Spheres
- Put them for several hours (about 8 hours) into the fridge to settle.
Sealing the truffles
- Melt ¾ cup Milk Chocolate Couverture in a water bath.¾ cup Milk Chocolate Couverture
- Take the cooled hollow spheres out of the fridge and seal them with your chosen sealing tool.
- Then place the sealed chocolates in the refrigerator for half an hour until firm.
Coating and decorating
- There should be enough melted chocolate leftover from sealing to coat the chocolates.
- Prepare a cooling grid to place the chocolates to dry. Place parchment paper beneath to reduce the mess.
- Now, one by one, take the chocolates, dip them into the tempered chocolate coating and then carefully lift them out.
- Let the excess chocolate drip off briefly and place them carefully on the cooling grid. Do so for each chocolate.
- While the chocolate coating is still soft and moist, you can decorate your salted caramel pralines with Mini Sugar Christmas Trees.Mini Sugar Christmas Trees
Nutrition values are estimates only, using online calculators. Please verify using your own data.
⛑️ Food Safety
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
For further information, check Safe Food Handling - FDA.
Sue says
These are amazing! They'll be a perfect addition to my holiday goody tray!
Nora says
That's great to hear!
Addie says
So fun and festive! The perfect little bite!
Nora says
Thank you! ๐
Colette says
I love anything with chocolates in it! What a perfect treat for the holidays. Iโm going to make these with my daughters. Thanks for the recipe!
Nora says
Thank you! My daughter is always excited to help me with this too! What is special fun for children: to coat the chocolates with their hands. Simply take the sealed chocolate in one hand and dip the fingers of the other hand into the melted chocolate coating. Then rub both together with your hands. It's fun and works wonderfully. ๐
Maiko says
What a fun way to make little chocolates! Is crystal sugar any different to regular sugar? I've never heard of it. I don't eat dairy so maybe I can swap some of the ingredients with non dairy ones. Thanks for the recipe!
Nora says
Thank you, Maiko! Yea, crystal sugar = granulated sugar. ๐ You can switch the homemade salted caramel, with a vegan one (coconut milk based) and the coating and the hollows through dark chocolate based ones. That should work. ๐
Linda says
Caramel and chocolate are my favourites! Thanks for an easy to follow recipe.
Nora says
You are very welcome, Linda! ๐