Originally, I had planned to start my scheduled baking activities on Saturday. The kitchen beckoned a bit earlier, however, and the games began Friday night.

The plan was to finish 340 caramels, 120 mint brownies and 120 Italian rainbow cookies, all packaged and boxed, by Sunday evening.

First up: the caramels. My chosen cooking utensils: Le Creuset pot, candy thermometer.

The Le Creuset pot is a godsend when it comes to making caramel. Nothing sticks to it, it conducts heat evenly with no hot spots, and it is very, very easy to clean. Come to think of it, everything I’ve ever cooked with it (Mark Bittman’s No-Knead Bread, beef burgundy, etc.) has turned out beautifully. Amazing.

I used a standard caramel recipe, adding some vanilla to the mix for some extra flavor. (Click “Read the rest of this entry” for recipe.) The tricky part in making caramel is watching the temperature as the sugar boils. Ideally, I wanted soft caramels with a bit of a chew to them, so I settled at taking the caramel off of the heat at 243 degrees – a tiny bit higher than soft-ball stage.

In the end, there were two baking sheets full of caramel. I left them out overnight to cool and harden, and it was off to bed. (Click on “Read the rest of this entry” below for more)
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