Caramel for cake

Caramel is a sweet syrup heated over high heat.
The precision of making caramel is very important, the difference between a narrow and sweetish taste and one that burns in a few seconds. It is better to start cooking the caramel on high heat and after a minute reduce the heat to low, stirring from time to time. It is important to prepare all auxiliary tools in advance. Because the caramel quickly cools down, it is necessary to have time to transform it into the required forms. If the caramel has already hardened, you can gently heat it up and it will return to the desired state. Very important : Because caramel can reach a temperature of about 160C, you must work in such a way as not to cause burns to yourself or others.

Caramel. Main recipe .

Ingredients:

½ tbsp.
(100 g) sugar 2 tbsp. l. water (the amount of water should slightly cover the sugar)

It is better to use a pan with a thick bottom, which ensures uniform and not sharp heating. As mentioned above, we start heating for a minute on high heat, then reduce it to less than medium. Before boiling, you need to stir the sugar completely. There is no need to interfere after this. It will take about 7-10 minutes for a golden mass to begin to form on the sides of the pan, which evenly fills the entire pan. You can rock the pan from side to side to improve the process. When the golden mass covers the entire pan and all the sugar has dissolved, the caramel is ready. We wait until all the bubbles disperse (we shake the pan) and the caramel becomes transparent.

Remove the pan from the heat and lower (carefully) into a large pan filled with cool water to stop the caramel heating process.
From time to time it is recommended to take a brush, dip it in cool water and run it from the inside along the sides of the pan during production (do it very carefully). We prepare the decorations, thought out in advance, so that the caramel does not have time to harden. The taste depends on the color of the caramel. When it is light, the taste is simply sweet; the darker the caramel, the more fascinating and narrow the taste.

Difficulties that may arise during the cooking process:

If crystallization of sugar begins and it evenly transforms into a solid mass, you will have to redo it at first or it will be easier to heat it up (the main thing is not to burn it).

To remove the hardened mass from the pan, you will have to pour boiling water over it all and scrape it with a rubber whisk or something else without damaging the coating of the pan.

Strawberries in caramel

Grease the surface where the caramelized strawberries will be placed. Thread the strawberries onto a wooden toothpick or skewer. Carefully dip into the caramel and place on the prepared surface.

Caramel braid

Turn the silicone mold upside down. If you don’t have a suitable one, you can use a plate of a similar shape, covered with aluminum (foil) or just a metal plate of a suitable shape and oiled (some people use a ladle upside down). We scoop the caramel into a spoon and first make a thick strip of caramel at the base of the mold or plate. Then we make longitudinal and then transverse stripes, trying to achieve a design like a prison bars. We wait for the caramel to cool a little, but remove it while still warm. Carefully remove the braid from the foil or silicone.

The amount of caramel purchased from the main recipe should be enough for 8 molds.

Caramel ball

To do this, you will need a device in the form of two skewers (skewers) at a distance of 20 cm from each other, fixed motionless. Take a fork and drizzle caramel over the skewers. We collect the purchased threads from the skewers into one ball.

Caramel tube

A small glass jar will come in handy.

Caramel spiral

Lubricate the musat with oil. While rotating the mousse, pour in the caramel. Let it cool and remove from the mousse.

Figures on parchment paper

Naturally, we rub the parchment paper with oil and write out the pretzel or shapes as we wish.

Homemade caramel for cake

Kefir caramel, easy to prepare without a temperature indicator! A caramel recipe accessible to everyone, for the production of which a drink is used, and not cream, which is expensive in our time. It’s easy and quick to prepare; you just need to set the time on the timer.

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Recipe groups
Homemade caramel for cake

Ingredients and how to cook

ingredients for 8 servings or - the number of products for servings suitable for you will be calculated automatically!'>

tea spoon	5 ml
dessert spoon	10 ml
tablespoon	20 ml
cup	200 ml

Step-by-step production

Step 1:

How to cook caramel for a cake? You will be surprised how simple it is! Measure and weigh all ingredients according to the list.

Step 2:

Place all the ingredients in a thick-bottomed, large-capacity saucepan and place over medium heat.

Step 3:

Bring to a boil while stirring constantly. Please note that the mass will increase greatly (for this we needed dishes with a huge volume).

Step 4:

After boiling, reduce the heat and cook the mixture for exactly 7 minutes (it is best to set a timer), making sure to always stir. After the time has passed, finish heating, while continuing to stir the mixture with a whisk.

Step 5:

Don't stop stirring. The mass will evenly decrease in volume and acquire a caramel color. A small foam remains on the surface, don’t let it bother you; it will disappear when the caramel cools.

Step 6:

Pour the caramel that has cooled to room temperature into a container with a lid and refrigerate for at least 12 hours.

I liked this caramel recipe because it is simple and convenient: you don’t need to use a temperature indicator, so it’s easier to cook this caramel, and expensive cream is replaced with economical kefir. The result with all this does not suffer at all. Caramel, in my opinion, turns out delicious! I suggest you try making this homemade caramel for you, and later try it and treat it to your loved ones.

Ready-made caramel can be used for the inside of cakes, as well as for creating prestigious smudges when decorating; the cost of the cake is significantly reduced. You can also use it as a sauce for baked goods, pancakes, cheesecakes, desserts, ice cream, pour berries on top, or just eat caramel with a spoon from the jar! Delicious!

A few more words about the features of this particular caramel:

Freshly prepared caramel is quite watery, but after overnight in the refrigerator it will thicken. The mixture will be a little thicker on top, so after settling in the refrigerator it needs to be mixed. When stirring, the caramel will become homogeneous.

Instead of sugar, you can use a sweetener that is not subject to heat treatment.

Caramel cake decor

Caramel candies, balls, flowers, vases, splashes, sails, crowns... Decorating cakes with caramel figures is very popular, and this is understandable: they are not very difficult to prepare, from the most common and cheap ingredients, often without the use of any special equipment and molds, and the effectiveness of such decor gets 10 out of 10 points.

To make caramel, we choose dishes with a thick bottom; this significantly reduces the possibility of burning the caramel. If your cookware has a thin bottom, cook on a very low heat, it will take much longer, but you are more likely to get a suitable result.

We also immediately prepare a wooden skewer, a glass of cool water and something on which you will form the decor itself. I most often make round lollipops or without them or a splash vase. All you need is a silicone mat, lollipop sticks and a splash glass.

Ingredients:

220 g sugar
100 g glucose syrup (available in confectionery stores, cheap)
70 g water

Place all ingredients in a saucepan and place over medium-low heat. Do not interfere, you can shake the saucepan a little from time to time.

The temperature of the finished caramel is about 150 C. But, I am used to cooking without a temperature indicator, focusing only on the method described below.

From the moment of boiling, the caramel cooks for about 4-7 minutes (depending on the cookware and the heating strength), while we do not go anywhere and from time to time we check the readiness in the following way: we lower a wooden skewer into the caramel and then immediately into a glass of cool water. If you hear the crackle of caramel on a skewer during all this, it’s ready. After this, you can knock it on the table, it should be hard, like glass, and make a corresponding sound from the impact. If the caramel is soft, cook further.

The caramel does not have to turn yellow, otherwise it will not be possible to paint it the appropriate color. So be careful. If you don't cook it enough, the candy will be sticky; if you overcook it, it will turn yellow.

When the caramel is ready, remove the pan from the heat, add water-soluble coloring if desired (gel coloring works best, dissolves instantly), mix gently and not very vigorously. Add coloring just a little at a time, the caramel colors very well. For opaque products, titanium dioxide is added to caramel (a snow-white dye in powder form, sold in confectionery stores).

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Next, you form lollipops or other decorations from caramel, pouring it into molds or onto a silicone mat. Round lollipops are simply made using a spoon, the main thing is to pour the caramel into one point. You can insert them into sticks, but do this immediately after casting any candy and turn the stick in it. Confetti or other decor must be sprinkled onto the candies immediately after casting, so that they adhere to the caramel and do not fall off later. To create a gradient of candies, dye is added to the caramel evenly: added at the very tip of a toothpick, mixed, and poured a couple of candies; they added a tiny bit of dye and cast it again, and so on. You can get noticeable stains in caramel if you don’t stir the coloring in it completely. In general, there is room for flights of fancy.

How to create a caramel splash or vase? We put the glass upside down, put a silicone mat on it, make bends as you like, fixing them at the bottom with clothespins, pour caramel on top, wait for it to cool completely, remove the clothespins, and carefully take out the mat. The sails are made in a similar way, only first we pour caramel onto the rug and very quickly give the rug a suitable shape using clothespins, a roll of parchment or other available materials.

You need to work quickly and carefully with caramel. If you see that it begins to harden in the saucepan before you have finished working, reheat it over low heat, but DO NOT stir it at this point. Complete caramel must be stirred very carefully and as little as possible, otherwise it may become cloudy and become sugary . Unfortunately, you can’t create anything with caramel like this.

After casting the appropriate decoration, wait until the caramel decorations have cooled completely, only then remove them from the mat or molds. If the caramel was cooked correctly, the decorations will be hard as glass, dry and not sticky. If the frozen caramel bends or sticks , it means it was undercooked. Place it in a clean, dry saucepan and melt it again over low heat, cook to a suitable state and pour the decor again.

straighten the uneven edge of a lollipop or other caramel decoration using the usual method: after hardening, rub this bulge with a finger dipped in water.

Now I will answer the most common questions about caramel for decorating cakes.

Does the caramel melt on the cake?

Yes, it melts, but how quickly depends on the coating of the cake and the humidity of the environment. Caramel is afraid of water, and therefore the drier the air and conditions around, the longer it will live. In an airtight container, it can be perfectly stored for months.

Chocolate ganache, mastic and rich butter creams are ideal for caramel coatings. Caramel decor on a cake lined with butter cream cheese can only withstand about 3-4 hours in the refrigerator, but again it depends on the criterion: different refrigerators have different humidity (with the no-frost system it is always drier).

You can also increase the shelf life of caramel by isolating the decoration from the cake with chocolate, but this will not protect it from water in the air.

Therefore, I advise you to strengthen the caramel decorations as close as possible to serving the cake. A common practice among confectioners is to give the customer the cake and caramel decoration separately from each other, then the customer himself places the decoration on the cake before serving. Obviously, we are talking about ordinary decor, when you just need to stick candy canes into the cake or put balls/flower/crown/vase on top.

How to attach the caramel decoration to the cake?

Depends on the final coating of the cake. For a cream coating, ganache or mastic - cream, chocolate or ganache, respectively. It’s quite easy to apply it to the butter cream cheese from time to time: the water in the cream will make the caramel a little sticky and stick. The cake should be perfectly frozen before decorating. Coatings with a huge amount of water (curd cream, creams with a huge amount of cream) may not be able to withstand the caramel at all; it will simply slide off the cake or quickly flow.