Maple Sugar Caramel

A two-ingredient maple caramel that relies entirely on cooking the cream and sugar to the right stage. A candy thermometer removes all the guesswork the original leaves in.

• The hinge: cook to 244-248FThe hinge: cook to roughly the firm-ball stage -- "Hardens on ice" points to the old cold-water test: a drop of syrup dripped into ice water should form a ball that holds its shape and is firm but still yields to pressure. On a thermometer that corresponds to about 244-248F (firm-ball). Much below 240F the squares will slump; well above 250F they turn hard and chewy rather than soft.
• "Sugars around the edge of the kettle"Crystals forming on the sides of the pan were the old visual cue that the syrup was concentrated enough, and this recipe uses them as its doneness signal. Be aware that if quantities of those crystals fall back into the pan the batch can crystallize coarsely.
• KettleUse the heaviest saucepan you own, at least three quarts — cream and sugar foam up to several times their starting volume. A thin pan scorches the milk solids at the bottom long before the syrup reaches temperature.
• Stir constantly means constantlyWith dairy in the pan this is not optional. Keep a flat-edged wooden spoon or silicone spatula moving across the whole bottom of the pan; anything left sitting will brown and give the batch a burnt taste.
• Maple sugarOne pound of hard maple sugar is roughly two cups once broken up or grated. Granulated maple sugar works directly. If you substitute maple syrup you will need more evaporation time and a longer cook; the ratio is not one for one.
• CreamA pint is two cups. Use heavy cream — modern light cream and half-and-half have less fat and are more prone to breaking or scorching.
• ButternutsButternut is the white walnut, Juglans cinerea, once common in the Northeast and now scarce because of canker disease. Chopped walnuts or pecans, lightly toasted, are the practical stand-in.
• Pan and cuttingAn 8-inch square pan, buttered or lined with parchment, gives caramels about half an inch thick. Score the surface while still warm and cut through once fully set, about an hour. Yield is roughly 50 to 64 small squares.
• WrappingThese are soft caramels and will flow together in a tin. Wrap each square in waxed paper and store in a cool place, not the refrigerator, where they pick up moisture.