While looking through some of my grandma's old letters and notes, we found this recipe. Although we have been making them for as long as I can remember, this was our first time seeing this. It is dated at the top, which I never saw the purpose of until recently. However, there are some things she forgot to mention, things such as

• Scraping the sides to control burning
• Buttering the pan ahead of time to insure they don't cool before you can get them in the pan.
• The wrapping process
• The correct size of the pan used

The process of stirring lasts closer to 20 minutes if left on the right heat, andn while stirring you have to follow a pattern of up and around. With a metal spatula you will want to start by pushing straight up and away from your body then around to one side and repeat on the other side until you start to see a dark brown color. Sometimes it won't start to burn at 241 degrees, so it is more important to check the color and consistancy rather than the temperature. The temperature should still be between 230-240. Anything over 240 will be burning.

When preparing to make caramels, you need to have everything prepared ahead of time so they won't burn while tryingh to find an ingredient. While the stove heats up, I like to butter the pan and get all the ingredients, and while the butter is melting, I open everything else up.

The wrapping process isn't too complicated; it's almost like wrapping a gift. Place it in the center, fold up to the middle, then on the opposite side. After that fold up to the middle on the other sides and you're done.

The size of the pan is not the most important thing, but if you use a pan that is 9x9, they will be much thicker and you will probably like. It's a lot easier to use a 9x13. It would make more, and be a lot less stress to cut. When using a 9x13, you should end with approximately 120 to 150 caramels in a batch.