Caramel in Two Acts

While the better part of the Midwest is being blanketed in snow, it's raining here.  Dreary, drizzly, grey, cold-to-your-bones raining.  If I'd had any citrus I would have made some more lovely, sunny marmalade.  But I didn't.  So instead I made more caramels.

Act I was an attempt to do half of a batch of goat's milk caramels.  Other than scorching them slightly, I thought they were going to turn out well.  When I gave one corner a poke to see how they were setting up, I knew I had a problem.  This was confirmed when I attempted to cut them.  They didn't cut so much as they broke.  Instead of caramel, apparently I made toffee.  Before I had a chance to get all disgruntled about this, inspiration hit me as I was staring at some of the small shards on my cutting board:  toffee chips.  Goat's milk toffee chips.  Brilliant!  I will now be in search of the perfect recipe for which to use my goat's milk toffee chips.

Shards of goat's milk toffee waiting to be broken into chips.

Act II was a departure from goat's milk caramels.  I made the same recipe (the full recipe this time) but used cow's milk and butter instead.  And I added some ancho chile powder right before I poured them.  I won't really know how these turn out until tomorrow, but from what I chewed off the spatula, I'm predicting two outcomes:  1) the ancho chile is not coming through the way I had hoped and 2) I am so infatuated with the goat's milk caramels that I may never make caramels with cow's milk again.  Actually three outcomes.  The third being that I should probably stop making/eating caramels in light of the fact that I've pulled my crown off - again.  Oh Dr. Milligan . . . .


The mess waiting for me in the kitchen and ancho chile caramels waiting to cool.