Homemade Salted Caramel Nut Rolls are made with a fluffy marshmallow nougat coated in caramel and rolled in salted peanuts.
Pearson’s (a Minnesota company) has been making nut rolls for almost 90 years at this point! Now, they have come out with some new flavors like peanut butter, apple pie, and pumpkin spice. But, I think the original is the best. These homemade nut rolls stand up to the original in flavor and texture; and, they are not super hard to make!
Nut Roll Ingredients
Marshmallow Creme: Marshmallow creme is a spreadable and sticky marshmallow concoction. You may also see it as marshmallow Fluff in recipes, but marshmallow Fluff is actually a specific brand of marshmallow creme.
Almond Extract: The nutty flavor of the almond extract is perfect for this nutty treat. You could leave it out or use vanilla if preferred.
Confectioners’ Sugar: Also called icing sugar, the confectioners’ sugar sweetens the nougat center.
Caramel: I melted about 2 1/4 cups of caramel bits to coat the nougat center. That ended up being about 1 1/2 11-ounce bags of caramel bits.
Heavy Cream: Heavy cream is at least 30% fat (as opposed to half and half, which is only 10-18% fat). This will be added to the melted caramel to make it a little looser for rolling the nougat.
Nuts: Grab a jar of salted nuts to cover the candy.
How to Make the Nougat
These candy bars are not difficult to put together. Just be aware that you will have to chill the rolled nougats in the freezer for a couple of hours before coating them with caramel and nuts.
To make the nougat, combine the marshmallow creme, extract, and confectioners’ sugar in a large bowl. Use your hands to form the mixture into a disc or hockey puck shape. The mixture will be slightly crumbly, but the more you work it with your hands, the more it will stick together.
Once in the disc shape, cut the mixture into eight equal pieces, like cutting a pie. You can cut them into as many pieces as you prefer, depending on the size of the candy you want. Take each piece and roll it in a cylindrical shape. Wrap each cylinder in parchment paper and place in the freezer for at least 2 hours.
How to Make Homemade Caramel Nut Rolls
When ready, after the nougats have been in the freezer for a couple of hours, melt the caramel in the microwave. Next, add the heavy cream to the caramel. Then, place the peanuts onto a baking sheet.
Remove the rolls from the freezer and, working one at a time, dip each into the melted caramel. Use two forks to do this, unless you want the process to get really messy! Roll the caramel-coated nougat into the sheet of peanuts, again, covering the roll completely.
Finally, place the nut rolls on a piece of parchment paper. Place the homemade caramel nut rolls in the refrigerator to store.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 jar (7 ounces) marshmallow creme
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 3 cups (375g) confectioners’ sugar
- 2¼ cups caramel bits, approximately 1½ bags (11 ounces each)
- 6 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 jar (16 ounces) salted peanuts, approximately 3½ cups
INSTRUCTIONS
In a large bowl, combine the marshmallow creme, extract, and confectioners’ sugar with your hands. This can take a few minutes! The nougat mixture will be slightly crumbly, but it will stick once packed together. (I recommend putting your hands in the sugar first to prevent sticking.) Form the mixture into a hockey puck, or disc shape.
Cut the mixture into 8-10 pieces (like cutting a pie), depending on how big you want your nut rolls to be. Then, roll each piece into a cylindrical shape. (You want each roll roughly the size of a candy bar.)
Wrap each cylinder in parchment paper and place them in the freezer for at least 2 hours.
When ready, melt caramel bits in the microwave for 2 to 2½ minutes, stirring at 30-second intervals, until completely melted. Add the heavy cream and stir until combined.
Place salted peanuts onto a baking sheet.
Remove the rolls from the freezer. Working one at a time, dip the roll into the caramel, coating it completely. Try not to use your fingers! This gets really messy if you do; you can use two forks to dip and remove.
Place the caramel-covered roll onto the sheet of salted nuts and cover it completely with nuts.
Transfer the nut-covered roll onto parchment paper. Repeat with the remaining rolls. Store the nut rolls in the refrigerator.
