I'm planning to make a batch of soft caramels. Whole milk makes up about half the recipe. Since I only have skim milk on hand, can I substitute skim milk for the whole milk?
asked Dec 18, 2010 at 22:57
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Can you tell us more about what's in the recipe? Most of the caramel recipes I'm familiar with either use cream, evaporated milk, or both.– AaronutDec 19, 2010 at 0:45
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It's the fresh dairy products version of Peter Greweling's caramel recipe from Chocolate and Confections. It also contains cream, but whole milk is almost 50% of the recipe. I believe the evaporated or sweetened condensed milk versions are more common, since they take less time to cook.– ComputerishDec 19, 2010 at 3:09
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2 Answers
You can but the result will be much thicker than that with the whole milk, and they won't taste as good due to the reduction of fat. You could add some oil or other fat to make up the diffrence, although that will most likely change the taste as well.
answered Dec 19, 2010 at 0:47
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Yes! Do that. Man, I can't believe I haven't thought of that before. Dec 19, 2010 at 1:30
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1I'm not so sure they will be "thinner". The main determinant of texture in a caramel is the temperature it is cooked too; almost all of the water will have been cooked off and what is left is the compounds from cooking the sugar, and the fat. With less fat, if anything I think they will be harder. To take the idea to the extreme, think of the caramel made from just sugar and no other ingredients. It is rock hard at room temperature. I heartily agree it won't taste as good though! Dec 19, 2010 at 4:25
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@micheal after further research, you are correct. Answer changed in light of invalidated personal experience. Dec 20, 2010 at 8:32
According to this site, you can substitute one cup of skim milk plus two teaspoons of melted butter for each cup of whole milk.
answered Dec 21, 2010 at 19:58
