Crockpot Caramel

I'd seen this pin many times over, so I finally gave in and pinned. It's a recipe for turning condensed milk into caramel overnight. The original pin comes from the blog Perfect Imperfections and her directions were very easy to follow. So here it goes:

My crockpot

My condensed milk 

I removed the label, filled the crockpot with water, placed the unopened can in the water (making sure it sat well under the waterline), and set it for 8 hours on low. 

When my husband got up the next morning, I got up to put the can in the fridge. I put the can inside a thick plastic cup because it was VERY hot. It had to stay there for at least 2 hours. I noticed rust on the bottom of the can that wasnt there before. I wiped it away as best I could. 

Four hours later, I began fighting the can trying to open it. 

My electric can opener didn't like the can, and my hand-held one just plain sucks. 

I chose a knife, it helped tremendously. 

I also popped a hole into the bottom to making pouring easier. You can see the rust on the bottom. 

Then I tipped the can onto the top of the jar that would be its new home, and let gravity do the rest. It took about 10 minutes to get all I could out of the can. 

My 14 oz. can made about 8 oz of caramel. 

Now...what would I do differently? Use one of these bad boys instead of fighting the can. It would work much better than the electric can opener, or hand operated one I have (that thing may not be with us much longer). 

The finished product lasts about a week in the fridge. As it gets closer to the 'best by' date, I noticed a slight grittiness in it (like sugar that isn't dissolved enough) but it in no way affected the awesomeness. It is by far the best caramel I've ever tasted. 

Kristen: 1 Pinterest: 0 

And so it begins...