These Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles are what I pull out when I need everyone at a party to think I spent days in the kitchen. Smooth chocolate fudge wrapped around gooey caramel centers, dipped in more chocolate, finished with crunchy sea salt on top. They look like something from a boutique chocolate shop that charges seven dollars per piece. Reality is I make them in about thirty minutes of actual work, plus chilling time. I've been making these salted caramel truffles for three years now and people always corner me asking if I do custom orders for weddings.
Why You'll Love These Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles
Look, I'm not somebody who makes complicated candy normally. But these are actually simple once you get the timing down.
What Actually Works: These Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles combine chocolate and caramel with flaky sea salt that makes both flavors taste more like themselves. The base is chocolate fudge made with sweetened condensed milk, which sets up firm but never gets hard or brittle. You freeze caramel drops until solid, wrap them in fudge, then coat everything in melted chocolate. Takes about forty minutes of hands on time, though you need a few hours for chilling. These homemade salted caramel truffles work as holiday chocolate treats or random Tuesday when you want something fancy.
Why Other Methods Fail: I've tried probably fifteen different chocolate caramel truffle recipes and most have real problems. Some use ganache that splits easily. Others skip chilling the caramel centers and you end up with caramel oozing everywhere. A bunch had you roll the fudge at room temperature which creates sticky disasters. This caramel fudge truffles recipe fixes all those issues.
The thing that changed everything: Cold is your friend here. My first batch I tried making without freezing the caramel centers because I was in a hurry. Wrong. The caramel squished out the sides. Looked like I'd murdered something chocolatey all over my kitchen. Second time I actually froze the caramel drops rock solid. Suddenly everything worked. Once I accepted that these chocolate caramel bite treats need proper chilling at every stage, they became stupid easy.
Jump to:
- Why You'll Love These Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles
- What You'll Need for Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles
- How to Make Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles
- Top Tip
- Ingredient Substitutions & Variations
- Storage and Serving Instructions
- What to Serve With Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles
- My Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles Journey
- FAQ
- More Recipes You'll Love
- Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles
- Related
- Pairing
What You'll Need for Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles
For the Fudge Base
- Dark or milk chocolate
- Sweetened condensed milk
- Butter
- Caramel sauce
For the Coating
- More chocolate for dipping
- Heavy cream
- Flaky sea salt , this is what makes these decadent fudge truffles incredible)
Everything here is pretty standard grocery store stuff. Nothing fancy or hard to find. The key is using real chocolate, not chocolate chips for coating since those have stabilizers that make them thick and clumpy. I usually grab a couple chocolate bars from the baking aisle and chop them myself. Way better results and honestly not much more effort. Exact measurements are down in the Recipe card below so you can get the proportions right.
How to Make Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles
1. Make the Chocolate Fudge
Chop your chocolate into small pieces. Toss the chocolate, condensed milk, and butter into a microwave safe bowl. Zap it for thirty seconds, stir, repeat until smooth and glossy. Stir in a quarter of your caramel sauce. Pour into a parchment lined pan, spread flat, and refrigerate for two hours.
2. Freeze the Caramel Centers
Drop small spoonfuls of caramel onto a parchment lined baking sheet to make twenty four drops. Freeze for thirty minutes until rock solid.
3. Wrap and Roll
Cut chilled fudge into twenty four squares. Flatten one square in your palm, place a frozen caramel drop in the center, wrap the fudge around it, and roll into a smooth ball. Keep finished balls in the fridge.
4. Coat with Chocolate
Melt coating chocolate with heavy cream if using. Let it cool until warm but not hot. Dip each truffle with a fork, let excess drip off, place on parchment paper, and immediately sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Let set for thirty minutes.
Top Tip
Keep a bowl of ice water next to you while you're rolling these Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles. Your hands put off heat. That heat softens the fudge as you work. After rolling three or four truffles, the fudge starts sticking to your palms instead of forming smooth balls. Dip your hands in ice water between every few truffles. Shake off the excess water, dry your hands completely on a towel. Suddenly you can roll twenty four perfect spheres without wanting to throw the whole batch in the trash.
Also, seriously freeze those caramel centers rock solid. Not just cold. Actually frozen hard. Room temperature caramel squishes everywhere. Frozen caramel makes these easy salted caramel fudge truffles actually easy instead of an exercise in frustration.
Ingredient Substitutions & Variations
Different Chocolates
White chocolate instead of dark or milk makes these sweeter and changes the whole vibe. Mix dark and milk chocolate together, half and half. Gets you somewhere in the middle of bitter and sweet.
Add Coffee
Stir a teaspoon of instant espresso powder into your fudge base. Coffee and caramel together is magical. Makes the chocolate flavor deeper too.
Go Nutty
Press a toasted pecan half on top of each truffle before the coating sets. Suddenly they're turtle candies in truffle form. Chop up toasted almonds really fine and roll the coated truffles in them.
Boozy Version
Add a tablespoon of bourbon or rum to your caramel before freezing the centers. Makes these rich caramel truffles sophisticated party food instead of kid friendly treats.
Storage and Serving Instructions
Stack them in an airtight container with parchment paper between layers. Keep for two weeks easy in the fridge. They actually taste better after sitting a day because the flavors blend together. These freeze perfectly for three months. Wrap them individually in plastic wrap if you want to grab one at a time. Thaw in the fridge overnight before eating.
What to Serve With Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles
Strong black coffee or espresso cuts right through the sweetness. Cabernet or merlot works surprisingly well. The wine tannins balance the chocolate and caramel. Put out a bowl of raspberries or strawberries. The tart fruit gives people a break between truffles.
My Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles Journey
I first attempted Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles about three years ago after eating something similar at a fancy chocolate shop. They wanted eight dollars for three pieces. Figured I could make them cheaper at home.
First batch was a complete disaster. Didn't freeze the caramel centers long enough. Tried wrapping fudge around them and the caramel squished out everywhere. My kitchen counter looked like a crime scene. Chocolate and caramel everywhere. The few truffles I managed to form were lumpy and leaking. My husband ate them anyway and tried to be supportive about the mess.
Second attempt I froze the caramel properly but then made my coating chocolate too hot. Dipped the first truffle and watched the chocolate underneath start melting. The whole thing fell apart in the bowl.
Third time I actually followed temperature guidelines at every step. Kept everything cold when it needed to be cold. Let the coating chocolate cool before dipping. Used the ice water trick for my hands. Suddenly I had twenty four perfect looking homemade salted caramel truffles sitting on my counter. Took them to a holiday party and people were asking if I'd ordered them from that expensive chocolate place downtown.
Now I make these Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles constantly. Christmas gifts for everyone. Teacher appreciation. Random Tuesday when I want something sweet.
FAQ
What are Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles?
Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles are bite sized desserts made with chocolate fudge wrapped around frozen caramel centers, coated in more chocolate, and topped with flaky sea salt. They combine creamy chocolate fudge texture with gooey caramel inside and that perfect salty sweet contrast on top. Different from regular truffles because the base is fudge instead of ganache, which makes them more stable and easier to work with.
What type of chocolate works best for fudge truffles?
Dark chocolate with sixty to seventy percent cacao makes Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles taste balanced and not too sweet. The bitterness from dark chocolate plays against the sweet caramel really well. But milk chocolate works great too if you prefer sweeter candy or you're making them for kids. I've made batches with both and honestly it depends on personal taste.
Can these truffles be made without caramel?
Yeah absolutely. The caramel center is what makes them Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles specifically, but you can substitute other fillings. Peanut butter works really well. Nutella is good if you want chocolate hazelnut flavor. You could also skip the filling entirely and just make solid chocolate fudge balls rolled in sea salt.
Are Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles gluten free?
Yes, Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles are naturally gluten free as long as you check your ingredient labels. Pure chocolate, condensed milk, butter, cream, and caramel sauce don't contain gluten. But some brands add stuff processed on equipment that handles wheat. If you're making these chocolate caramel candies for someone with celiac disease, verify every ingredient label says gluten free.
More Recipes You'll Love
After you master these Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles, try my Turtle Cheesecake Recipe for another dessert that makes people think you went to culinary school. My Spicy Salmon Sushi Bake Recipe is perfect when you want to impress dinner guests. And my Spiced Christmas Margarita Recipe gives you something festive to drink while you're eating these giftable chocolate truffles during the holidays.
Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles
Equipment
- 1 8x8 inch baking pan To chill the chocolate fudge base
- 1 Microwave-safe bowl To melt chocolate and make fudge
- 2 Baking sheets with parchment paper One for freezing caramel, one for finished truffles
- 1 Fork or dipping tool To dip truffles in coating chocolate
Ingredients
- 12 ounces dark or milk chocolate chopped (for fudge base)
- ½ cup sweetened condensed milk
- 2 tablespoons butter softened
- ¾ cup caramel sauce divided (¼ cup for base, ½ cup for centers)
- 8 ounces dark or milk chocolate for coating
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream optional, for thinning coating
- Flaky sea salt for topping
- ¼ cup cocoa powder optional, alternative coating
- ½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts optional, for topping
Instructions
- Chop chocolate into small pieces. Microwave chocolate, condensed milk, and butter in 30-second intervals, stirring between each, until smooth (about 4 rounds). Stir in ¼ cup caramel sauce. Pour into parchment-lined 8x8 inch pan, spread flat, and refrigerate 2 hours until firm.
- Drop 24 small spoonfuls of remaining caramel (about ½ teaspoon each) onto parchment-lined baking sheet. Freeze 30 minutes until rock solid.
- Cut chilled fudge into 24 squares. Flatten one square in your palm, place frozen caramel drop in center, wrap fudge around it, and roll into smooth ball. Keep finished balls refrigerated. If fudge gets sticky, dip hands in ice water and dry completely.
- Melt coating chocolate with heavy cream in 30-second intervals until smooth. Let cool until warm but not hot. Dip each truffle using a fork, let excess drip off, place on parchment paper, and immediately sprinkle with sea salt. Let set 30 minutes at room temperature.
Notes
Nutrition
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with Salted Caramel Fudge Truffles:
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