A sweet block of salted caramel.

My heart is an idiot, but I love dessert. That’s why I’m generally supportive of Valentine’s Day. During February, it’s almost socially unacceptable to not indulge in sugar, which I endorse year-round.

I particularly enjoy a box of chocolates, but I want the accompanying menu. Few dessert experiences are sadder than biting into what looks like a chocolate-coated caramel, and it turns out to be a humdrum vanilla cream disappointment.

I’d rather my caramel disrobe from its chocolate clothing, so I don’t pick incorrectly and have to incessantly bite into another chocolate, and then another. This is a testament to why people don’t enjoy sharing dessert with me. Apparently, pre-teeth pierced chocolates are undesirable.

Make your clothing-optional caramels year-round, and never pick the vanilla cream in sheep’s clothing again.

Salted caramels

Yields about 32 caramels, adapted from Claire Saffitz

Ingredients

• Vegetable oil spray

• 2 cups granulated sugar

• 1/4 cup light corn syrup

• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream

• 4 tablespoons unsalted

butter, cut into ½-inch

pieces

• 2 teaspoons vanilla

extract

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

• Flakey salt, for

finishing

Directions

You’ll need an instant-read or candy thermometer and a wet pastry brush for these caramels.

Lightly coat the inside of an 8-inch square pan with vegetable oil spray. Line the bottom and sides with parchment paper, then lightly spray the parchment paper. Set the pan aside.

Combine the sugar, corn syrup and 1/3 cup water in a large, heavy saucepan and stir gently over medium-high heat to dissolve the sugar, about 3 minutes. Let the mixture come to a boil and use a wet pastry brush to brush down the sides of the saucepan and dissolve any stuck-on sugar crystals.

Boil the mixture without stirring, occasionally gently swirling the saucepan and brushing down the sides of the saucepan if you see crystals forming until the syrup takes on a pale golden color and the bubbles become large and slow to pop.

Turn the heat to medium and continue to cook, until the bubbling has almost subsided, and the mixture is a deep amber color, 4 to 7 minutes. Do not let the mixture scorch.

Immediately remove the saucepan from the heat and add the butter a few pieces at a time. Gradually pour the cream and stir until the caramel is completely smooth. Be careful during this step, the mixture will bubble up. Stir in the vanilla extract and kosher salt.

Return the saucepan to the heat and bring to a boil over medium heat. The mixture will bubble up, turn the heat down if needed so it doesn’t overflow. Use a candy thermometer and occasionally scrape the sides and bottom of the pan, until the mixture reaches 250 degrees. Immediately pour the mixture into the prepared pan.

Allow the caramel mixture to cool in the pan for about 15 minutes, then sprinkle with flaky salt. Let the caramels cool completely at room temperature, which will take several hours.

Before cutting the caramels, refrigerate the pan for 15 minutes, then use the parchment paper to lift the slab out of the pan and transfer it to a cutting board. Use a knife to cut 32 bar-shaped caramels. Wrap them individually in parchment paper.