Cayenne Caramels with a Pretzel Bacon Crust
On November 30, 2021 (Updated December 13, 2022)
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Whether you’re looking for a unique and addicting holiday treat, or you need something quick and easy to give out to neighbors and coworkers, these cayenne caramels with a pretzel bacon crust are the perfect holiday treat.
Cayenne Caramels
These chewy cayenne caramels are amazing by themselves but drizzled them over a buttery, sugary, savory pretzel bacon crust and you’re in for a TREAT. The crust at the bottom adds the most amazing crunch and texture to the caramels. It’s like a salty surprise that hits you right at the end of the bite and then melts into the warm heat from the cayenne. It also makes these already addictive caramels completely irresistible. Be prepared to eat half of the pan by yourself while you are wrapping the rest up as gifts.
This caramel is a generations-old family specialty. I can’t remember a Christmas that my Aunt Barb didn’t make this. I can still picture her cozy kitchen with a bowl of these golden morsels lovingly wrapped in wax paper sitting on the counter.
That same caramel recipe plays a starring role in these jazzed-up caramels in this BBQ-inspired recipe. It’s old school, but totally unbeatable. Add in the subtle heat from the cayenne and these caramels will rock your socks off.
Ingredients for Cayenne Caramels
You don’t need much to make these caramels. In fact, most of the ingredients you’ll already have in your pantry. The rest can quickly be picked up at the grocery store. Here’s what you’ll need to make these caramels (exact amounts are in the recipe card below):
For the caramel:
- Butter or margarine. My family recipe uses margarine, but butter will work great as well.
- Sugar. With details.
- Light corn syrup.
- Sweetened condensed milk.
- Vanilla.
- Cayenne Pepper. The magic ingredient!
For the pretzel bacon crust:
- Bacon. Cooked, drained, and crumbled.
- Mini pretzels.
- Butter.
- Brown sugar.
How to Make Cayenne Caramels
These caramels are so easy, just about anyone can make them. I especially love them because kids can get in on the fun and help make them as gifts for neighbors. Here’s the process:
- Crust. Mix pretzels, bacon, brown sugar, and butter in a food processor. Press the crust into a 9 x 13 glass baking dish coated in non-stick spray. Bake for 15 minutes in an oven preheated to 350 degrees F.
- Caramel. The details for making this caramel are in the printable recipe card below, but the best thing about this is it’s made in your microwave! Simply combine all ingredients and heat until the caramel reaches 240 degrees F.
- Assemble. Once your caramel has reached that magical temperature, add in vanilla and cayenne pepper. Carefully pour the caramel over the pretzel bacon crust.
- Cool. Allow the caramels to cool for around 5-6 hours before slicing. I prefer to cool these on my counter, but you can speed up the process in the fridge. Just be aware that cold caramels are harder to slice.
- Enjoy. These caramels are ready to be enjoyed immediately, or you can individually wrap them in wax paper to enjoy later or give as gifts.
Tips for Making Caramel Caramels
Here are some tips to ensure your caramel is cooked to perfection and these caramels are consumed quickly!
- Use an instant-read thermometer. These are microwave caramels, and you will be cooking and stirring, and taking temperature readings at timed intervals. Having a quick-read thermometer will allow you to get your temperature readings quickly and efficiently, ensuring you don’t over or under-cook your caramels. You are shooting for a finished temperature around 240 degrees F for the perfect chewy texture.
- Skip the cayenne. If you’re shy about heat, you can still enjoy these as sweet and salty treats by leaving out the cayenne. The pretzel bacon crust packs a huge flavor and texture punch, even without the spice of cayenne.
- Swap the margarine for butter. The original recipe (from my aunt) called for margarine, and really, I think when I make these caramels is the only time I buy margarine, ever. It’s just one of those things. However, if you are completely opposed to margarine, you can absolutely swap it out for butter. I actually recommend salted butter if you are swapping, as it more closely matches the margarine flavor.
More BBQ Dessert Recipes
Got a sweet tooth that needs to be satisfied? These other BBQ desserts are here to satisfy any day of the week!
Cayenne Caramels Recipe
P.S. These make the absolute best neighbor gifts on the planet. The reason being, they are spicy so the kids don’t want them and the adults actually get to enjoy the treats. Ha!
If you are feeling like being accommodating, you can just make a separate batch of just the plain caramels (sans cayenne) for the kiddos.
We’ve had a glow up! This post was originally published in December 2015. We recently updated it with more information and helpful tips. The recipe remains the same.
Cayenne Caramels with a Pretzel Bacon Crust
Ingredients
Caramels
- 1 cup margarine or equal amounts butter
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Pretzel Bacon Crust
- ½ pound bacon cooked, drained, and crumbled
- 1 ½ cups mini pretzels
- 4 Tablespoons butter melted
- 4 Tablespoons brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Make the crust. In a large food processor, pour in the pretzels, bacon, brown sugar, and butter. Pulse 10-15 times until the pretzels have broken down into very small pieces. Press the crust into an even layer on the bottom of a 9x13 inch glass pan that has been coated in non-stick spray. Bake for 15 minutes and then remove from the oven to cool.
- Make the caramel. While the crust is baking, begin making your caramel. In a large 3-5 quart mixing bowl combine the margarine, sugar, and corn syrup. Microwave for 5 minutes. Stir the mixture with a wooden spoon and slowly add in the can of sweetened condensed milk. Continue stirring until the milk is well combined.
- Finish cooking. Microwave for an additional 10 minutes, stopping the microwave to stir the caramels every 2-3 minutes. Stir the mixture each time until no more bubbles appear. Temperature test the caramel each time it comes out of the microwave. Your target temperature for the perfect chewy texture is 240 degrees F and the color of the caramel closely resembles a paper sack. Use a quick read digital thermometer to take your temperature readings.
- Adjust cook time as needed. If your caramels are close to the correct temperature, but not quite done after 10 minutes, return to the microwave in 1-minute intervals until the correct temperature is reached.
- Assemble. When the caramel is done cooking, stir in the vanilla and cayenne pepper. Carefully pour the hot caramel over the pretzel bacon crust and
- Cool and slice. Allow the caramels to cool for about 6 hours before slicing into 1-inch squares and wrapping in wax paper. You can let them cool in the fridge to speed up the process and have a firmer caramel, but cold caramels are harder to slice than at room temperature.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made these and they turned out perfect! Wow! My tongue couldn’t decide is it sweet or spicy. Great choice of flavors! I give this a 5 stars
Thanks so much I’m happy you and your tongue enjoyed these!!
I made this! My caramel turned out perfect on the stove with thermometer. More pretzels next time and no bacon.
I am a chef. Your flavors are all there. However, when I microwaved the caramel, I got to 12 minutes total, breaking every 3 minutes, stirring til the bubbles were gone but had to stop. It was too well done. So I didn’t refrigerate it. I just left it on the counter for dessert tonight. It was too hard for my family. Although, I love a hard chewy candy one leaves in their mouth for a long period of time, I did find that without refrigeration, I was able to cut it into small candies to wrap. Too bad, only I will be eating them ????
It can be tricky determining the cooking times on this one as you can imagine. Each microwave is different. My sister can cook it for 15 minutes and it is fine, where I can’t go that long. If you do make it again, I suggest testing the caramel when you get to 9 minutes in cold water to check the firmness.
Hello! I was wondering have you ever made this recipe with store bought caramels or do you think the recipe would become to hard? Can’t wait to try it!
Hey Melinda- I haven’t tried them with store bought caramels, but they should be ok if you just melt them enough to pour over the crust. Don’t overcook the caramels when they melt or you will probably run into them becoming hard.
I followed the directions to a tee, did the least amount of microwaving time she recommended, and they turned out hard as a rock. I had to break them with a mallet and they were super difficult to eat. Wondering if doing the caramel on the stove, or in the microwave under less power might help.
Dumb question maybe, but is the margarine melted or just soft when you’re making the crust? Thanks. I want to try these for a family Christmas dinner. How spicy is the caramel?
best way to store them?
Once they’re wrapped, they are fine at room temperature for 3 or 4 days. You can refrigerate if you need to hold them longer than that.
I made these last night. I tried following your directions very carefully, but they got too hard — overcooked, I assume. They taste delicious!! But are impossibly hard to cut and must be carefully eaten so they can soften in our mouths and we won’t break a tooth on them. I plan to try them again. One question: What did you mean by “no more bubbles appear”? I was going for that and never got there. I think that’s how I ended up with one too many 3-minute sessions in the microwave.
So sorry there was confusion! The no more bubbles instruction is for each time you remove the caramels from the microwave. Every interval that I take them out of the microwave, I stir them until the bubbling conpletely stops before returning them for another 3 minutes. My suggestion next time would be to start testing in the ice water a few rounds of microwaving sooner. Caramels can require a little bit of trial and error just because every microwave is a little different. I hope your next batch works better!
These bars look wonderful, what a great treat!!
What a cool recipe!