Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Caramels

For Christmas my mom sent us a huge case of dark chocolate sea salt caramels. We quickly (too quickly!) devoured them and after they were gone they were all I could think about. Earlier this week I was craving them so badly I thought, why not just try to make them? Best and worst idea of my life! Now that I know how easy and delicious these are I’ll probably be making them WAY too frequently.
Here’s how you make them – first make my 6 minute microwave caramels, recipe here. Let them set in the pan, cut them up and then you can be ready to make the chocolate. They are REALLY REALLY easy! Huzzah!
Ingredients, caramels:

• 1/4 c. butter (1/2 stick)
• 1/2 c. white sugar
• 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 c. light corn syrup
• 1/2 c. sweetened condensed milk
• Cooking spray
• Wax paper for wrapping

Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Set aside. Pour all ingredients in a bowl. Microwave for 6 total minutes, but remove every 2 minutes to stir. Mixture should be bubbling when you remove it. Quickly pour into prepared pan and spread evenly. Let cool. Cut into squares and set on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Set aside and get ready to make your chocolate. *Note to make the best squares you have to kind of push each side of the caramel flat against a pan or cutting board to get an even square.
Ingredients, chocolate topping:

• 1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips (12 oz.)
• 1/3 c. shortening
• coarse ground sea salt

Melt together in a glass bowl in the microwave on 1/2 the full power level (my microwave’s highest power is 10 so I melted them on 5). Melt them in 1 minute increments, stirring after each minute, until smooth.
Using a spoon, lower caramel squares, one by one into chocolate. Remove with spoon and set onto pan with wax paper. Immediately sprinkle with sea salt. Let cool until chocolate hardens. This is the BEST homemade almond bark because it is a really good dark chocolate from the chips, rather than the candy chocolate “flavor” of most “chocolate” bark.
Eat some, then wrap the rest up for friends. Or eat them all. You choose ;)