Pumpkin Hazelnut and Cinnamon Caramel Candy Bars

Because of the time of year, I've been thinking recently about recipes involving pumpkin. Eventually I decided to make a candy bar similar to a Snickers, but more Fall/pumpkin oriented. These bars would have a pumpkin flavored nougat with hazelnuts and toasted pumpkin seeds in it. This is topped by a caramel that's flavored with cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove to mimic some of the flavors of pumpkin pie. The whole thing is covered in semi-sweet chocolate.

CAUTION: This recipe includes several steps that involve boiling hot sugar mixtures. Be extremely careful with these mixtures as they can cause serious burns if they come in contact with your skin.

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Step 1: Ingredients

There are three main sections to this recipe: nougat, caramel, and chocolate coating.

The ingredients you'll need for the nougat are:
1 cup coarsely chopped toasted hazelnuts (see next step)
1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds (see next step)
2 cups sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup water
1/8 tsp salt
2 egg whites
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup unsalted butter
about 5oz pumpkin puree
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp clove

The caramel will require:
1 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup water
1 cups sugar
a pinch of baking soda
1/4 cup butter
6 oz evaporated milk
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp clove

The chocolate coating will require (roughly):
2 12oz bags of semi-sweet or milk-chocolate chips.