Step 1 Gather ingredients and preheat oven (when ready to bake). Prepare baking sheets lined with parchment.

Step 2 In a bowl, cream together softened butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until pale and fluffy.

Step 3 Beat in egg and vanilla extract until smooth and well incorporated.

Step 4 In another bowl, whisk together flour, leavening agents (if specified), and salt.

Step 5 Gradually add dry ingredients to wet mixture, mixing until a dough forms.

Step 6 Chill or freeze the dough balls: portion dough into rounds; freeze them for a set time (often overnight) so they’re firm before baking. This helps with the crispy edge and avoids caramel burning.

Step 7 When dough is frozen, place dough balls onto lined baking sheets. Press a soft caramel in the center of each ball (if recipe uses insert-center method). Some recipes place caramel pieces in the middle before freezing.

Step 8 Bake from frozen in preheated oven, typically 10 minutes or until edges are golden and crisp but center still has a molten caramel.

Step 9 Immediately upon removing from oven, sprinkle flaky sea salt over cookies for contrast.

Step 10 Cool cookies on baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to wire rack to finish cooling.