Pecan Caramel Clusters

Pecan caramel clusters come together with just a handful of ingredients for an easy candy that is sweet, a bit salty, and totally perfect for gift giving.

Having a candy-loving husband and kids means that Mama’s candy stash is never really Mama’s candy stash – it’s more of a family stash.

And I’m totally fine with that… until someone eats my very last sour gummy.

Then Mama contemplates placing all the candy into a decoy bag of kale chips. Because let’s be honest here, no one in my family is crunching on kale chips.

They’re just not the same as regular chips, no matter how hard you try to convince me.

Two types of candies remain untouched by Elle and Eric. Black licorice and caramel.

Okay, so I totally get the black licorice thing because it’s definitely not for everyone. But I LOVE it. So much so that I was the kid at the grocery store checkout begging her mom for boxes of Good & Plenty and eating all the black jelly beans from everyone’s Easter baskets.

But caramel? Come on now, caramel is EVERYTHING.

So, clearly there is something deeply wrong with both Elle and Eric because they both loathe that sweet, buttery flavor as much as I loathe tomatoes.

Whether it be in a froo-froo coffee drink, or a cheapo box of chocolates from the drugstore, one thing is for certain – I’m always going with caramel if it’s an option.

Like salted caramel brownies. And caramel pecan bars. And salted caramel pretzel cookies.

And I could pretty much drink my salted caramel sauce. But I won’t, because I feel like I would end up in an ultra-sticky situation.

But I 100% eat it straight from a spoon. No shame in my game, friends.

I first made these pecan caramel clusters after trying something similar from our local chocolate shop. They were so, so good, I knew I had to remake them at home.

When I tell you this recipe is easy, I mean it. You really only need handful of ingredients.

Oh, and parchment paper. Because caramel is sticky.

Quick and easy pecan caramel clusters

If you’ve ever had chocolate turtles, then you already know what these pecan caramel clusters taste like! They have all of the components of chocolate turtles, but in a quicker and easier form.

When making these clusters, we don’t have to worry about shaping them to look like turtles or even fully coating them in chocolate. 

Instead, we’ll mix the caramel and pecans together, spoon that mixture out onto parchment, and then drizzle the tops in melted chocolate.

They are still amazing and delicious and perfect for gifting, but the process is simpler. Which is perfect for the holidays when everyone is so busy, right??

How to make pecan caramel clusters

Even though they’re easy to make, these pecan caramel clusters look really pretty. So no one will guess they only took you a matter of minutes to make! 

Ingredients you’ll need

To make these delicious little clusters, you will need:

• 11 ounces caramel squares (unwrapped)
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups pecan halves, coarsely chopped
• ½ teaspoon sea salt (use less if you aren’t a fan of salted caramel)
• 1/4 cup semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon shortening or coconut oil
• additional flaky sea salt for sprinkling on top (optional)

If unwrapping 30-something caramel squares isn’t accessible for you (or you just don’t want to do it), feel free to use an 11-ounce bag of Kraft Caramel Bits instead. 

I loooove salted caramel, so I like to use 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt in the clusters and add a bit more flaky sea salt on top. If you aren’t a big salted caramel fan, feel free to reduce the salt to 1/4 teaspoon.

You can use semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips on these clusters – go with your personal favorite!

The chocolate will get melted with 1 teaspoon of shortening or coconut oil. I know that doesn’t seem like much, but it will make a big difference in the texture of the melted chocolate and how easily it can be drizzled over the clusters. So don’t skip it!

Making this recipe

Before you start, line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

To make the caramel base, melt the caramels and the heavy cream over medium-low heat, stirring constantly. Once the caramels are fully melted, take the pan off the heat.

Stir in the vanilla, pecans, and salt until well combined. 

Now it’s time to scoop this mixture onto the lined baking sheet. To do this, I like to spray a small (1 tablespoon) cookie scoop with nonstick spray and use that to portion the caramel mixture onto the tray.

The caramel will spread some, so make sure you leave a couple of inches between each cluster. You should get 16-18 clusters from this mixture.

Now mix the chocolate and shortening/coconut oil in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave until smooth, stirring every 30 seconds.

Drizzle the chocolate over the clusters. If you’d like, go ahead and sprinkle the tops with some extra sea salt.

Pop the pan into the refrigerator to set the clusters before serving.

Storage tips

These pecan caramel clusters are sticky, so I recommend storing them on parchment paper in the refrigerator. Line the bottom of a tin or airtight container with parchment and place the clusters on top.

If you need to layer them, make sure you put a piece of parchment between the layers.

You could also place the clusters in mini cupcake liners. That would allow you to easy grab them out and place them on serving platters for a party. Or to box them up alongside other treats like Christmas Oreos and peppermint marshmallows for gifting.

Before serving, let the clusters rest at room temperature for about 30 minutes. This will allow the caramel to soften just enough so that it isn’t too hard to eat!