Soft, chewy, crunchy and full of amazing pumpkin and bittersweet chocolate flavor – these Crunchy Chocolate Pumpkin Caramels are easy to make and have just the right amount of sweetness, and are perfect for gift-giving during the holidays as caramel rice krispie bars or as caramel toffees!

These chocolate pumpkin caramels are pumpkin pies in caramel bite form!

I grew up eating rice krispie treats and Mars bar slices, so I didn’t have my first rice krispie treat until I was much older. And to be perfectly honest, I’m not disappointed! I’d have a rice krispie slice over a rice krispie treat any day.

So I decided to take regular rice krispie bars and give them an addictively delicious Fall makeover, that would make them PERFECT for Thanksgiving! Or any time during pumpkin season.

Regular rice krispie bars (or slices) are made with chocolate and caramel mixed with rice krispies, then topped with a layer of melted chocolate. They taste just as amazing as they sound.

But these Crunchy Chocolate Pumpkin Caramels (or Pumpkin Caramel Rice Krispie Bars) take them to a whole new levels of autumn awesomeness. The base for these chocolate pumpkin caramels is a caramel base that I made from scratch which was mixed with pumpkin puree, pumpkin spice and then rice krispies! Then this base is pressed into a prepared dish and then after it sets in the fridge, a dark chocolate ganache is spread on top. It’s that simple, but they make the most decadent, gift-worthy, fall-inspired pumpkin caramel rice krispie bars!

Crunchy Chocolate Pumpkin Caramels - Soft, chewy, crunchy and full of amazing pumpkin and bittersweet chocolate flavor and cruchy rice krispies. Perfect for gift-giving, especially for the holidays — This is the color you want from your cooked sugar before you add the pumpkin

Making the caramel is really the “hardest” part of this recipe, but the good news is that it’s really not that difficult. All you need is patience and a sugar thermometer. BUT, to make things even easier, I’m providing you with some tips to make these chocolate pumpkin caramels even WITHOUT a sugar thermometer. You can also check out my comprehensive posts on types of sugar and cooked sugar stages (candy temperature chart) for more information!

The pumpkin caramel layer for these pumpkin caramel rice krispie bars was adapted from The Kitchn’s caramel recipe. The major change I made to that recipe was the inclusion of pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice to give them a decidedly autumn-esque feel. And it was a truly glorious addition.

These crunchy pumpkin caramels are really great as family-friendly dessert bars or slices. AND they also work perfectly as Christmas or Holiday gifts too! I like to serve these pumpkin caramel rice krispie bars in small squares since they are rich and full of flavor and really quite addictive. And then I cut them into even smaller pieces and wrap them in wax paper or parchment paper so I can serve them as caramel toffees! 🙂 They are great for pot lucks, or your Thanksgiving meal or any Fall gathering! In fact, I made these for a pot luck at a friend’s place, along with these soft pumpkin scones!

And if you guys needed any more convincing why these crunchy chocolate pumpkin caramels are so much better than regular rice krispie treats –

Caramel tastes better than marshmallow (duh). So caramel mixed with rice krispies taste infinitely more delicious than regular rice krispie treats.
Pumpkin caramel gives that caramel an additional layer of amazing flavor.
Caramel + Chocolate + Pumpkin = HEAVEN! The soft, chewy, decadent caramel together with bittersweet chocolate make for a powerful combo (like with these chocolate caramels!).
These pumpkin caramel rice krispie bars are both chewy AND crunchy. So they’ve got great texture too.

I actually made a few batches of these chocolate pumpkin caramels to get the best balance of flavor and texture. Call it my “Goldilocks syndrome”, I just had to find that perfect sweet spot with these babies.

So, on my first attempt, I added a full 1 cup of pumpkin. While I absolutely loved the pumpkin caramel flavor, it didn’t quite set the way I wanted it to and made the caramel base too soft.

For the next batch, I made it with half of the pumpkin. While the caramel did set well, I wanted to see if I could add even more pumpkin flavor.

So the third batch was made with 3/4th of a cup and that was just right! Since I added extra pumpkin, I made sure the caramel was heated to 250°F (hard-ball stage) instead of the soft-ball stage. This is because I wanted these chocolate pumpkin caramels to set even after the addition of rice krispies, and still maintain a good soft, chewy, flavorful texture.

I add the vanilla and pumpkin spice while the temperature is at about 248°F. This is because I wanted these flavors to be fresh and prominent, and not be “cooked off” if I added them too early while the candy was continuing to boil.

So after the candy and chocolate layers have set, you can cut them into bite-sized slices. I went with 25 bars for this recipe, and then cut them further in half to make 50 small candy pieces that are perfect for gift-giving as toffees.

RECIPE VIDEO FOR THE CRUNCHY CHOCOLATE PUMPKIN CARAMELS

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