Chewy Caramel with our without salt?

I went to the fancy food show in San Francisco with my boss and some other girls from work, there was so much food. Sweets, savories, drinks.... you name it, they had it. One of the best things we came across was some really good chewy caramels. They had a bunch of flavors, plain caramel, sea salted caramel, chocolate caramel with our with out sea salt, chipotle caramel and more. We are getting some in at work, but i thought until then i'd try my hand a making some.
I found two recipes that sound really good, one with Sea Salt and one with out (for all you anti-salties)

Chewy Caramel Recipe from www.grouprecipes.com
Ingredients

• 1 c butter or margarine
• 1 lb light brown sugar
• 1 c light corn syrup
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 1/2 tsps vanilla extract

Directions

• Step #1 In a heavy bottomed saucepan over med-heat/flame, brown sugar, mix the butter, sweetened condensed milk, corn syrup & salt.
• Step #2 Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
• Step #3 Heat to between 234 & 240 degrees F (112 to 116 degrees C), or until a small amount of syrup dropped into cold water forms a soft ball that flattens when removed from the water & placed on a flat surface.
• Step #4 Cook for 2 mins at that temperature.
• Step #5 Meanwhile, butter a 9x13 inch baking pan.
• Step #6 When the caramel is ready, pour this into the buttered pan.
• Step #7 Allow to cool completely at about room temp.
• Step #8 Remove from the pan & cut into squares using scissors.
• Step #9 Wrap individual pieces in waxed paper or cellophane.

Salted Butter Caramels from www.recipezaar.com

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (preferably unflavoured like safflower)
• 1 1/3 cups heavy whipping cream
• 2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• 1/3 cup honey
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, cut into pieces
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (paste if available)
• 3 teaspoons fleur de sel or other fine sea salt
• 1 lb bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

Directions

1. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil that overhangs. with a paper towel, coat the bottom and sides of the foul with 1 tbsp of the oil.
   
2. In a 4-quart heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat, bring the cream to a boil. Add the sugar, corn syrup and home and stir constantly with a wooden spoon or heatproof spatula until the mixture comes to a boil (about 5 minutes).
3. Wash down the sides of the pan two times with a pastry brush dipped in water to prevent the sugar from crystallizing.
4. Place a candy thermometer in the pan, increase the heat to medium-high, and cook the mixture, stirring occasionally until it registers 257°F on the thermometer (about 15 minutes [ hard ball stage if dropped in a glass of cold water].
5. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the butter, vanilla paste, and 2 teaspoons of the sea salt.
6. Pour the caramel into the prepared pan and let it sit at room temperature until cool and set (about 1 hour).
7. With the remaining tbsp of oil, coat a cutting board and the blade of a large chefs knife. cut the caramel into eight 1-inch wide strips, then cut each strip into four pieces.
8. Melt and temper the chocolate. place a caramel in the chocolate, coating it completely. with a fork, remove it, shake off the excess, and let fry on a baking sheet.
9. While the chocolate is still not set, sprinkle on the remaining sea salt, and let set up for about 2 hours.