Source: Candymaking by Ruth A. Kendrick & Pauline H. Atkinson
Makes 50 servings.
Preparation time: 2 hours
Tips: Make caramel a week or two ahead before dipping.
Shit Sticks
Soft caramel treats
Ingredients
Preparation
SOFT CARAMEL:
2 cups whipping cream
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk (5 5/8 oz on scale)
2 cups light corn syrup (22 oz. on scale)
1/2 cup water
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter ( 1 stick = 4 ounces)
1 to 2 lbs. Tempered dipping chocolate, see note (4)
Pretzel rods, mini stick or mini knots.
"SHIT STICKS" are pretzel rods dipped in soft caramel and chocolate. For smaller treats try the same using mini pretzel sticks or small pretzel knots.
SOFT CARAMEL: easier to work with if wrapped in plastic, let cool and store at room temperature for a week or two to decrease soft consistency. Re-heat using a double broiler and then dip. Caramel will keep it's shape better, maintaining a soft consistency.
1. Butter a 9-inch square baking pan; set aside.
2. In a quart saucepan, combine cream and milk. Place over low heat and let warm but do not allow to boil while cooking sugar.
3. In a 4-quart saucepan, combine corn syrup, water and sugar. Place over high heat and stir with a wooden spoon until well-mixed. If sugar crystals are present, wash down sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush.
4. Clip on candy thermometer. Reduce heat to medium. Bring to a boil and cook to 250 F (120C) degrees (almost hard-ball stage).
5. Stir in butter and warm cream-milk mixture. Temperature will decrease. Stirring constantly, continue cooking over medium heat until thermometer reaches no more than 244 F degrees or firm-ball stage, this will take about 20 to 30 minutes. Because candy thermometers are often off by few degrees, it is best to test the caramel once it reaches about 230 F degrees. To test, place a cup full of cool water nest to stove. Do not touch the caramel with your hands, it will burn you, with a spoon drop a small amount of hot caramel into cool water, wait few seconds for caramel to cool then reach with your hands for the caramel at the bottom and shape it into a ball with your hands. If the caramel keeps it's shape, it is done. Keep testing until you get the desire soft with shape consistency. Remove from heat.
6. Caramel can be let to cool for dipping or pour into prepared pan. Cool overnight. Cut in 1-inch squares. Wrap in wax paper or plastic and store at room temperature. Caramel may also be stored in bulk.
7. CARAMEL DIPPING.
Using freshly made caramel: cool to about 190-180 F degrees before dipping. Using pretzel rods, mini stick or mini knots, dip and roll a thin layer of caramel. If caramel runs easily cool a little longer. Place each stick carefully in a silicone mat or parchment paper. For a thicker layer, dip once again after cooled. If caramel runs while resting on mats, shape by rolling while waiting to completely cool.
To re-heat stored caramel: place to melt in a double boiler or at direct heat. A double boiler allows you to control the desired melting point, if butter is separating, stir and warm longer until all incorporated and just until a consistency that will allow coating. If caramel is to thick, add few drops of whipping cream while heating until you obtain a desirable consistency, test in cool water as per step 5 if unsure.
Cool completely before dipping in chocolate.
8. CHOCOLATE DIPPING: For other methods of tempering chocolate, refer to "Chocolate Tempering" in this section.
-Place small, less than 1-inch pieces of chocolate in a bowl.
If you have a baking oven with a light, with oven OFF place the bowl with the chocolate inside the oven, turn oven light ON . The heat from the light will melt a pound of chocolate in about 2-3 hours or leave overnight.
OR
Place bowl over a double boiler keeping the water just warm to slowly melt the chocolate, the bottom of the pot containing the chocolate should not be touching the warm water. Overheated chocolate will develop white spots when it hardens. This won't affect the flavor, just the looks.
9. Roll each stick or pieces in melted chocolate to coat the caramel portion, return to mats to dry. Chocolate will turn solid in about 1 to 2 hours.
10. Place treats in airtight glass jar, they will keep fresh for several weeks. Caramel is so soft that tiny drips may later show through the chocolate layer.
TURTLES. Pecan clusters topped with soft caramel and coated with chocolate.
- Using soft caramel and melted chocolate, place a clusters of 4-5 pecans halves on silicone
mats. Drop a spoonful of soft caramel on the center of each cluster, it should run slightly to keep pecans together. Let cool completely. Spread melted chocolate over caramel portion to coat. Let chocolate to harden about 1 to 2 hours. Store in airtight containers.
NOTE: 1) Caramel is very soft, hard to keep in shape. It will stay soft for several weeks. Great to eat plain, it melts in your mouth.
2) Amount of rods that caramel will coat varies depending on the layer of coating. If leftovers, store at room temperature for several weeks.
3) Amount of chocolate needed may vary depending on the thickness of coating layer. Leftover melted chocolate can be store, harden and re-use.
4) Use a good quality semi-sweet or bitter-sweet chocolate such as Callebaut (Belgian).
Makes about 50 pretzel Rods.
