Homemade Turtle Candy . . . these decadent little clusters are a perfect combination of crunchy and chewy all rolled into one amazing candy. A simple homemade caramel makes this recipe the best!
Turtles have always been one of my favorite candies. The crunchy pecans, the chewy caramel, the melt in your mouth chocolate. Simply incredible. I don’t know why I never thought to make a homemade version before now.
Guys, this homemade turtle candy is amazing. Way better than any store bought turtles I’ve ever tried!
HOW TO MAKE TURTLE CANDY
Don’t be intimidated about the candy making process, these turtles are really quite simple to make. You start by toasting your pecans. Toasting makes a huge difference in the flavor of the finished product, so don’t skip this step. Just place your pecans on a cookie sheet and bake at 350° for about 10 minutes. They will smell amazing!
Arrange the pecans in clusters of 3-4 on baking sheets lined with silicone baking mats. If you don’t have them, you can use waxed or parchment paper sprayed with non-stick spray.
As soon as your caramel is ready, immediately spoon the hot caramel on top of the clusters, making sure each pecan is covered with some caramel. Don’t worry about perfection, just work fast. If the caramel starts to set up, you can pop it back on the stove for a minute or two.
You can wait for the caramel to set up, or just add the chocolate now. Just melt the chocolate and oil in a small glass bowl in the microwave at half power, stirring often. Then spoon a small amount of chocolate on top of each turtle. Use the back of your spoon to make a little swirl in the chocolate as you lift it.
The hardest part about homemade turtle candy is waiting for the chocolate to set up. Be patient, it can take awhile. Mine weren’t totally set up for a couple of hours. Of course, you don’t have to wait that long to eat one! 🙂
You can tell they are set up when the chocolate loses its shiny luster.
Now you can go ahead and dive right in. Mmmmm.
For more treats perfect for the holidays, checkthese out:
Homemade Turtles Candy recipe - Baked pecans covered in a delicious homemade caramel and topped with with melted chocolate! These treats make perfect neighbor gifts for the holidays!
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Ingredients
3 cups whole pecans
1/2 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
Dash of salt
1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp sweetened condensed milk (half of a 14oz can)
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate chips)
1/2 tsp vegetable oil or shortening
Instructions
Place pecans in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 350° for about 10 minutes or till lightly browned and fragrant. Let cool. Arrange in clusters of 3-4 on silicone liners or parchment paper.
Combine butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt in a 6 quart pot. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Add the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla.
Continue cooking and stirring till mixture reaches 235-240 degrees. I like to use the ice water test, it's more accurate. Drop a small spoonful of the hot caramel into a bowl of ice water. When you take it out, you should be able to roll it into a ball. Then it's done.
Quickly spoon the caramel over the pecan clusters, making sure caramel is touching each of the pecans. Let sit to harden.
Melt the chocolate chips and oil in the microwave at half power, stirring often till smooth. Spoon chocolate on top of each layer of caramel. Let sit for 1-2 hours, or till hardened.
Leave a comment below and pin the recipe to Pinterest!
This turtle recipe is perfect for holiday gift giving, but seriously, homemade turtle candy with pecans and caramel is going to be well received any time of year!
It's no surprise that Turtles® clusters have been popular for more than 100 years. The original caramel nut cluster filled with crunchy pecans, creamy caramel, and luscious chocolate was just the beginning.
The chocolate turtle today is a trademarked candy from Chicago's DeMet's Candy Company. However, candy history tells us that the "turtle" originated in San Francisco during the early 1900s. The chocolate candy with caramel and pecans was the creation of a candy chef named Louis Gordon Hooper.
Turtles are a candy made with pecans and caramel dipped in chocolate, with a shape resembling a turtle. The name is trademarked by DeMet's Candy Company.
Developed in 1918 by DeMet's Candy Company, these delectable bites were made of pecan pieces that were coated in caramel and then enveloped inside a glob of gourmet chocolate. And why were they called turtles? Because they actually looked like turtles with a large, chocolate covered shell.
The turtle pie got its name due to the caramel, chocolate and pecans that are used to top the pies, which are said to have a similarity in flavor to that of DeMet's Turtles, which use similar ingredients.
Ye Olde Pepper Candy Companie in Salem is the oldest, continuously operated candy company in America, and much of its early history was rooted in Peabody. In 1806, Mrs. Spencer began selling gibralters, a hard sugar candy, from her wagon in Salem.
The English-speaking sailors who gave us our word turtle may have in fact been largely unaware of the implications, but they apparently modeled tortu, which became turtle, on the French word tortue, which itself was from the Late Latin tartarucha.
Eunotosaurus, a reptile who lived about 260 million years ago during the Permian period, is the earliest known ancestor of modern turtles. This animal had wide, elongated ribs, but had not developed an actual shell.
The main ingredient in caramel is sugar. However, depending on the recipe you use, you may have to incorporate butter, heavy cream, water, or corn syrup as additional ingredients. High-quality, real caramel is always made with three basic ingredients and those are sugar, heavy cream, and butter.
The meat of a snapping turtle is fairly unique in the wild game world. A lot of people compare it to chicken but it's more along the line of pork with a bit of a seafood edge. Like squirrel, most people who try snapping turtle for the first time are utterly surprised with just how good it tastes.
"Turtle meat has a lot of protein but very little fat and almost no carbohydrates," she says. It is also a source of several micronutrients - including selenium, vitamin B12, iron, potassium, thiamine, riboflavin and zinc.
DeMet's started in 1898 as a candy store business and soda fountain shop by George DeMet of Chicago — subsequently creating Turtles candies in 1966. After a series of mergers and acquisitions, DeMet's was purchased by Nestlé in 1988. In 2007, Signature Snacks, acquired the DeMet's brand from Nestlé.
Swirling with notes of creamy caramel, buttery pecan and smooth dark chocolate flavors, Turtle Love® flavored coffee is a dark roast that will have you head over heels at first sip.
The Turtles were played by various actors in costumes featuring animatronic heads, initially produced by Jim Henson's Creature Shop. The fourth film, a computer-animated film titled TMNT, was released in 2007.
Each irresistible piece of TURTLES® is made using the classic recipe of rich milk chocolate, smooth caramel, and delicious pecan pieces. It's no wonder TURTLES® have been a Canadian Christmas favourite since 1949.
A Culver's Classic! We begin with creamy Vanilla Fresh Frozen Custard and swirl in ribbons of old fashioned salted caramel, novelty chocolate, and toasted pecan pieces.
Introduction: My name is Barbera Armstrong, I am a lovely, delightful, cooperative, funny, enchanting, vivacious, tender person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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