Old Fashioned Homemade Caramel Icing Food

OLD TIMEY CARAMEL ICING

Steps:

• 1. Combine 3 cups sugar and milk in a heavy sauce pan on medium heat. Stir together for a few minutes. Allow to continue to heat.
• 2. While milk and sugar are heating, place a small black iron skillet on med. to med. high heat. Add the 5 tablespoons on sugar. Stir in the skillet until the sugar liquifies and then turns golden brown. It will be bubbling hot.
• 3. Now the milk and sugar should be very hot. Carefully pour in the browned sugar from the skillet. Whisk together and cook for about 15 minutes or until the mixture reached the very soft ball stage. (test by dropping a little off a spoon into a small glass of cool water. When a small soft ball forms, it's ready.)
• 4. Remove from heat and using an electric mixer, mix in 1 and 1/2 sticks cold butter...never margarine! Continue to beat until cooled to spreading consistency.
• 5. If too thick, you can thin by beating in milk a tablespoon at a time. Make sure your cake in completely cooled or this heavy icing may cause the top to split. It'll still taste super though!

LIZZIE'S OLD FASHIONED COCOA CAKE WITH CARAMEL ICING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and lightly flour two 9-inch cake pans
• For the cake: Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt and set aside. With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat on high speed for 3 minutes. Add the flour mixture in stages with 1 1/3 cups water, beginning and ending with the flour.
• Divide the batter evenly between the pans and bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Turn the layers out onto racks that have been sprayed with cooking spray.
• For the caramel icing: Mix 3 cups of the sugar and the milk in a heavy 3-quart saucepan. Bring slowly to a boil and keep it hot. Caramelize the remaining cup of sugar in an iron skillet. Do this by cooking over medium-high heat and stirring and scraping the pan with a flat-edged spatula as the sugar melts. Continue to cook until the syrup turns to medium or dark brown in color. This occurs at about 320 degrees F to 350 degrees F on a candy thermometer. Do not scorch the syrup. Stream the syrup into the boiling sugar and milk mixture and cook to the soft ball stage, about 238 degrees F. Add the butter, vanilla extract and baking soda.
• Pour the hot mixture into the bowl of an electric mixer and beat as it cools until the icing is creamy, 15 to 20 minutes. Watch the icing because it will go from runny to too thick very quickly. Spread on the cake layers while the icing is still warm. If it becomes too stiff, add a few drops of hot water.

HOMEMADE CARAMEL FROSTING

Steps:

• Melt butter in a pan.
• Add brown sugar and boil for two minutes, stirring constantly.
• Add milk and stir until mixture boils, remove and cool.
• Pour into mixing bowl and add powdered sugar a little bit at a time.
• Beat well after each addition of powdered sugar.

CREAMY CARAMEL ICING

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine ⅓ cup shortening, ¼ cup hot milk, confectioners' sugar, and vanilla and beat until smooth, about 2 min. Set aside.
• In a saucepan, boil together 1 tablespoon shortening, ½ cup cold milk, corn syrup and brown sugar until temperature reaches 235°F (soft-ball stage) on a candy thermometer, about 10 minutes.
• Pour the boiled mixture over over shortening mixture and beat until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. If icing isn't smooth enough, add 1 tablespoon hot water.

GRANDMA'S CARAMEL FROSTING

Steps:

• Combine brown sugar, milk, and butter; bring to a full boil and cook for exactly 2 minutes. Remove from heat; add baking powder and vanilla. Beat until thick enough to spread.

OLD FASHIONED CARAMEL PIE

Steps:

• Leave oven on from baking pie shells. Whisk together the 1-2/3 cups sugar and cornstarch in a large (at least 2 qt.) microwaveable bowl until there are no more lumps from the cornstarch. Pour the milk into the sugar mixture and whisk together until smooth. Add the butter to the top of the mixture.
• Microwave on high for 3 minutes. Whisk thoroughly. Microwave for 3 more minutes, whisk again. Have the egg yolks in a separate bowl. Beat them slightly. Add a tablespoon full of the hot mixture at a time to the egg yolks, stirring well after each addition. Do this until the yolk mixture is warm. (This will keep it from getting lumpy.) Then add the yolk mixture to the cooked mixture. Microwave in one minute increments, whisking each time, until the mixture is of pudding consistency. Whisk in the vanilla. Set aside.
• Put the 2/3 cup sugar into a small iron skillet. Cook, stirring constantly, on high until brown and bubbling. It will look like it's going to boil over. Pour IMMEDIATELY into cooked filling and whisk thoroughly. Divide between the 2 pie shells.
• Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar (if using) until foamy and slightly holding shape. Turn beaters on low speed. Add the 3/4 cup sugar. After sugar is mixed in, turn beaters on high again. Beat until meringue is hard to shake off a spoon (or it stays on beater when you turn off mixer and pull beaters out of bowl). Spread meringue onto filling all the way to the edges.
• Bake about 10 minutes or until brown. Watch closely. Turn off oven, open oven door slightly, and let pies cool in oven for 1 hour. Let pies cool completely on counter. Spray plastic wrap with Pam, cover pies and refrigerate.

CARAMEL ICING (NANA'S BOILED)

Steps:

• Melt butter over low heat.
• Stir in brown sugar and salt.
• Bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add milk and return to heat until boiling.
• Remove from heat and let cool until lukewarm.
• Add sugar and beat until smooth. If too thick, add milk by tablespoons.

OLD FASHIONED CARAMEL CAKE

Steps:

• Beat 1 cup butter at medium speed of an electric mixer until it is creamy; gradually add 2 cups sugar, beating well. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
• In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and coca; Stir well. Then add to the butter mixture, alternating with the buttermilk and water, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Mix after each addition. Stir in 1 tsp vanilla.
• Pour the batter into 2 greased and floured 9-inch round cakepans. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool pans on wire racks for 10 minutes; then remove from pans and let cool completely on wire racks.
• For the frosting, combine 2 cups sugar, 1 cup butter, and 1 cup evaporated milk in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cover and cook for 2 to 3 minutes to wash down the sugar crystals from the sides of the pan.
• Uncover and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture reaches soft ball stage or a candy thermometer registers 234 degrees. Remove from heat and add vanilla (do not stir). Let cool for 10 minutes.
• Beat at medium speed of an electric mixer for 8 to 10 minutes or until the mixture is spreading consistency. Quickly spread the Caramel Frosting between the layers and on the top and sides of the cake.
• Garnish with pecan halves and grated chocolate if desired.