Fat Toad Farm

In 2007, Judith Irving, Steve Reid, and their daughter, Calley Hastings, brought home a single French Alpine doe named Jupiter. They had a modest plan for a backyard homestead on their property in Brookfield, Vt. What grew out of it was Fat Toad Farm, and eventually, one of the more beloved caramel sauces in the country.

The herd expanded over the years, from Jupiter to eventually 80 goats. The farm made cheese for a while, then caramel, and as demand for the caramel grew, the milk went entirely toward that. Fat Toad Farm had become a dedicated producer, slow-cooking its caramel in small batches using the same method it always had. The original recipe was simple, a handful of ingredients cooked low and slow, and it remains the base of everything from the Salted Bourbon to the Vanilla Bean.

Their caramel is made from just a few ingredients, stirred by hand and cooked low and slow until it reaches a deep, smooth consistency. Goat’s milk gives it a subtle tang that sets it apart from other caramel sauces, and keeps it from being too sweet. In 2022, the founders passed the operation to Butterfly Bakery of Vermont in Barre, where it continues to be made by hand in small batches, the same recipe intact.

The arrival of October makes reaching for a jar almost natural. The Mulled Cider variety is exactly what the season calls for, with bright apple notes wound through with warm spice, the kind of thing that tastes like the first cold weekend of fall. Drizzle it over a wedge of aged cheese, swirl it into oatmeal, or spoon it over vanilla ice cream.

The Spicy Dark Chocolate is the one for after dinner. Rich cocoa up front, with cayenne that builds slowly and lingers. It works over ice cream, but it also belongs on a cheese board next to something sharp.

For an autumnal project, the Caramel Apple Kit comes with a jar of Classic Cinnamon caramel, four hand-stamped wooden skewers, and a recipe card. Pair it with apples from your farm box and you have an afternoon activity that doubles as dessert.

(If you can’t decide, the Sweet Quartet Petit Caramel Sampler covers the classics: Original, Salted Bourbon, Vanilla Bean, and Cinnamon.)

Nearly two decades later, it’s still still made in small batches and the recipe hasn’t changed since Brookfield. Neither has the reason to keep a jar in the fridge.

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Photos: Butterfly Bakery of Vermont/Fat Toad Farm