What I love most about the Holidays is being able to spend time with the ones I care about most.
Which means I am not interested in spending countless hours in the kitchen cleaning up sticky messes, and stuck on food. We all know that I am always looking for the easiest way to do things, and this Holiday is no different. I’ve got my secret weapon that I’ll use to ensure that all my recipes come out right the first time and I’m not left cleaning up a mess in the kitchen and missing the party.
So what’s my secret weapon? PAM Cooking Spray!
I love using this handy non-stick cooking spray to save me precious time AND valuable ingredients while making my recipes.
Take these Honey Salted Caramels for instance…
Have you ever tried to measure out 1 cup of honey? You almost never get every drop of honey back out of the measuring cup, which can result in a recipe FAILURE!
When it comes to making your Holiday recipes – every. drop. counts.
Solution – use PAM! 🙂
Simply spray the inside of your measuring cup with a little bit of PAM Cooking Spray, and watch the honey come sliding right out.
Every. Last. Drop.
Isn’t that neat!?
This trick works for any sticky substance – corn syrup, maple syrup, agave nectar, etc.
Not only can you use PAM to coat the inside of your measuring cup, I even used it to coat the inside of the pot I made these Honey Salted Caramels in! After my 3rd attempt of perfecting this recipe, and seeing all that leftover caramel sticking to my pot, a light bulb went off. Spray the pan with PAM too!
Did you know that PAM Cooking Spray leaves up to 99% less residue buildup than margarine or bargain brand cooking sprays, while still offering superior no-stick results? Winning!
Plus their formula contains zero calories, so no worries on that end!
Making Caramels can be a teensy-bit intimidating, but I’ve taken step by step pictures to show you how simple it can be.
There are a couple things you’re going to need to make sure you get perfect results: A candy thermometer and PAM.
Start by tracing around a 9×9 or 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper, leaving 1 inch on each side. Cut and place the parchment paper inside the pan, then spray lightly with PAM Cooking Spray.
Make sure you have all your ingredients out and ready to go because the process can go quickly if you’re not prepared.
Spray the inside of your pot (I used a 3 quart size pot) with PAM Cooking Spray to make sure you get all your caramel out later on.
Spray the inside of the measuring cup that you’re going to use for the honey, and get that ready to go!
Melt the butter over medium high heat, reduce heat to just over medium and then add the cream, honey and brown sugar.
Give it a little whisking to break up any brown sugar that is being stubborn.
Attach the candy thermometer to the side of your pot, making sure to NOT let it touch the bottom of the pan (if it does it can give you an inaccurate reading).
Bring the mixture to a boil then reduce the heat again to just below medium.
The caramel mixture will rise and bubble rapidly, but just let it do it’s thing. Don’t stir it.
We are trying to bring the caramel slowly up to 250 degrees F, while still set just below medium heat. This process should take around 30-40 minutes. Hang out nearby, grab a magazine, play Candy Crush, surf Facebook… just don’t go too far cause you want to keep an eye on the temperature.
You’ll notice you’re getting close because the caramel mixture will reduce in size. Once it reaches 250 degrees remove it from the heat.
Carefully add the vanilla and use the end of your thermometer to gently stir the caramel. Pour the honey caramel into your prepared pan. Use caution because it’s EXTREMELY hot!
Let your caramels sit and come to room temperature. I set mine on a cooling rack by an open window to speed up the process.
Once it’s cool you can sprinkle it with coarse or flaked sea salt.
This caramel is a very soft caramel at room temperature. It’s best when stored in the fridge. So once they are at room temperature throw them in the fridge for at least 3 hours before cutting into pieces and wrapping with wax paper.
I could not be more happy with these sweet little caramels.
The touch of sea salt on top really brightens the flavor of the honey.
I love wrapping these tiny morsels in wax paper and keeping them in the fridge for when friends or family come to visit.
It’s the perfect way to let them think I slaved all day in the kitchen for them… when really, it was a snap thanks to PAM! (and this crazy awesome tutorial…)
So tell me…
What’s your favorite holiday “time-saving” tip??
(giveaway closed)
What secrets do you have that allow you to spend less time in the kitchen and more time with your loved ones? Your answer could win you a $100 Visa gift card! Wouldn’t that just be perfect for the upcoming holidays?! Imagine… $100 and some Honey Salted Caramels… life couldn’t get any better! 😉
Honey Salted Caramels
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 cup honey
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Be sure to have all ingredients measured and ready to go before starting.
- Line an 8x8 or 9x9 baking pan with parchment paper, so that it comes up 1 inch on all sides. Lightly spray with PAM Cooking Spray. Set aside.
- Spray a 3 quart size pot with PAM Cooking Spray, add the butter and melt over MEDIUM-HIGH heat.
- Add the honey, cream and brown sugar. Stir gently with a whisk. Reduce heat to JUST ABOVE MEDIUM.
- Attach your candy thermometer to the side of your pot, making sure that it does not touch the bottom of the pan.
- Once the mixture starts to boil, reduce the heat to JUST BELOW MEDIUM, and let it simmer there for 30-40 minutes until it reaches 250 degrees F.
- Remove from heat, add the vanilla and use the candy thermometer to gently stir it in. Carefully pour the caramel into the prepared pan. Let cool until room temperature and then sprinkle with the sea salt.
- Place in fridge and let chill for at least 3 hours before lifting parchment out of pan and cutting into small pieces. Wrap pieces in wax paper and store in fridge. Enjoy!
Nanaimo Cheesecake
BusyWorkingMama
Oh my, these look incredible! I like to save time during the holidays by planning ahead. I pre-chop veggies, make dishes that can refregerate, etc.
vivian
prepare things ahead of time
Sarah L
https://twitter.com/slehan/status/417445456479010816
Allie
I use parchment paper for easy clean up
Sarah L
Do as much as you can beforehand to make it easy on yourself.
Thanks for the contest.
Joanna Allison
My secret is to clean as you go.
Susan Ladd
I plan out what day I am going to be baking and make sure that I have everything before I start . Thanks for this awesome sweep and have a Happy New Year 🙂
mickeyfan
4 friends and I had a cookie party. Each of us brought one type of dough already mixed up so we could begin baking right away. This make what could be a huge chore into a really fun day! (we ended up making 14 different things) Oh, and the hostess supplied lunch and sangria and one gal made a spreadsheet and did all the shopping so we could easily split the costs.
Whitney
https://twitter.com/electricstar/status/417431395636486144
Whitney
Always do prep work first.
Hollie Jahnke
We make things the night before so we have more time with family.
susan smoaks
to save time during the holidays i bake my favorite recipes that i have down to a science
Amy Self
My favorite tip is to let my husband do the preparation and cooking so that I have more time to spend with the rest of the family. Seriously, I like to prep everything ahead of time and be familiar with the recipe before I begin.
Amy
Sarah Hirsch
to spend less time in the kitchen and more with family, bring the whole family into the kitchen and have everyone help out
Janice Cooper
https://twitter.com/disneyfan40/status/417395687253639169
Janice Cooper
My tip is to plan and prepare ahead of time. This way you will be organized and have all your ingredients for your meals and make sure the ingredients you have already are fresh. For instance my lemon extract had expired.
Beverly Metcalf
I have never made caramels, but those look really good. I try to plan ahead as much as possible. I make out my menu and then go shopping and then prepare as much as possible before the holiday comes. Thanks.
Tanya
Prepare as much of your recipes ahead of time as you can.
Buddy Garrett
I use canned or frozen fruits and vegetables to cut down on the preparation time.
Anna Pry
Tweeted https://mobile.twitter.com/pryfamily5/status/417359812633296896?screen_name=pryfamily5 pryfamily5@gmail.com
Anna Pry
I buy pre-chopped onions to save time pryfamily5@gmail.com
Tabathia B
tweet
https://twitter.com/ChelleB36/status/417370440731201536
tbarrettno1 at gmail dot com
Tabathia B
I have my oldest kids make desserts and side items
tbarrettno1 at gmail dot com
Thomas Murphy
https://twitter.com/thomasmurphy40/status/417369232473866240
Thomas Murphy
Prepare as much as possible ahead of time.
Nicole Larsen
tweeted https://twitter.com/pittsy82/status/417355457909772290
Nicole Larsen
I split the cooking with the in laws which makes our holidays a TON easier! I also do as much prep work as I can the night before!
Amanda Sakovitz
https://twitter.com/aes529/status/417346377887125504
Amanda Sakovitz
I make easy recipes
klynn
tweeted https://twitter.com/klynn6161/status/417341193669058560
klynn
I use a food chopped or food processor as often as I can to speed things up in the kitchen.
Karen Gonyea
I start thinking about Christmas on January 1st…..whenever I see a little something that someone might like, I pick it up, or when I see really good deals on baking supplies, I pick those up so I’m one step ahead !!
Carolyn
Have everything out, measured and ready so you can just follow the recipe quickly and easily!
DanV
We love our food processor for chopping and slicing and saving time
tracey byram
I make as much as possible the day before and enlist family help in the kitchen
joseph gersch
my favorite holiday time saving tip is to enlist in family help for cooking
lorayne gothard
I tweeted about the giveaway
https://twitter.com/lgothard/status/417220823590510592
@lgothard
lorayne gothard
My best time saving holiday tip is simple, you make sure you start dinner in a clean kitchen with an empty dishwasher. That way, as you are cooking, you can rinse your used dishes off and stick them in the dishwasher as you go along. At the end of the meal you will have very little mess left, and more time with family.
Alexandra Roach
https://twitter.com/AlexandragRoach/status/417205224659369985
tweeted!
Alexandra Roach
I love caramel!!