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Sauce: Salted Caramel Sauce

Source of Recipe

From "Back in the Day Bakery: Made with Love" by Cheryl Day


Recipe Introduction

"How can something so simple be so good? Salted caramel sauce is just sugar, cream, salt, and your loving time. You will be tempted to lick the spoon, but wait until the sauce is just warm to the touch. Drizzle it over ice cream or use it for the Caramel Cake."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ ¾ cup heavy cream
â—¦ 1 cup granulated sugar
â—¦ ¼ teaspoon flaky sea salt, such as Jacobsen or Maldon



Recipe

Pull the cream out of the refrigerator an hour or so in advance to come up to room temperature. Or heat it in a microwave-safe bowl for 30-second intervals until it is at room temperature, a minute or so. Set aside.

Put 2 tablespoons of the sugar in a heavy nonreactive saucepan and set over medium heat. Watch closely as the sugar melts around the edges and starts to turn a beautiful amber color: you are making caramel. Stir the sugar with a heat-resistant spoon, then add another 2 tablespoons sugar and cook it in the same way. Continue to add the rest of the sugar 2 tablespoons at a time, waiting for it to be completely melted each time before adding more and stirring frequently as it melts and the color deepens. Do not walk away even for a second—the sugar can go from golden caramel to burnt in a flash.

When the caramel is a deep mahogany color, remove the pan from the heat and immediately, but slowly, pour in the cream. (If the cream is cold, the caramel will seize up and you may get some lumps of hardened caramel, but if this happens, there is no need for panic—just return the pan to the stove and stir over low heat until the caramel is completely melted and smooth.) Stir in the sea salt and let cool.

The sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. When you are ready to use it, place the container in a large bowl of hot water and gently stir until it warms up and is ready to drizzle.

Makes about 1 ½ cups