Our Favorite Recipes with Caramel

Whether it’s a nut tart, an ice cream dessert, plain old cookies or a cup of latte: caramel in or on top makes everything just that little bit tastier and prettier. These are our five favorite recipes with caramel in the starring role.

Nougatientjes

These Amsterdam cookies — sometimes also called koggetjes — are even more delicious homemade than ready-made. You can make them in no time. The dough is made with butter, flour, vanilla sugar and brown sugar, and you knead plenty of caramelized sugar pieces through it. Once in the oven, they melt a little again. That gives the cookies a fantastic crunch.

Shortcake

This pastry has a crumbly base topped with a firm layer of caramel and a dark chocolate topping. You could compare this shortcake to a Twix in cake or cookie form. Either way, it is incredibly delicious. Eat small portions, because it is quite heavy.

Pecan Caramel Tarts

Fill these creamy-sweet and crunchy tarts with roasted pecans and pour as much caramel over them as you like. We would happily eat them every day.

Tarte Tatin

The most delicious apple pie in the world is the French tarte tatin. If anything about this classic recipe by Joop Braakhekke is complicated, it is making the caramel. You have to do it carefully, otherwise it will burn. Tip: serve the tart with a generous dollop of crème fraîche.

Caramel Falafel

The famous French pastry chef Dominique Ansel is the inventor of this intensely sweet falafel. The outer layer is made of crisp puff pastry, coated with a layer of dark-chocolate breading. Inside, there is plenty of soft caramel.