Salted Caramel Sauce is a classic that you need to keep stocked in your fridge. This 5-ingredient delicious topping is the perfect addition to any dessert. Drizzle it over your pie, ice cream, cheesecake, brownies or dip some apple slices in it… the possibilities are endless!
If there is one topping that is worth making, it’s Salted Caramel. That sweet and salty flavor awakens your taste buds and is just so pleasurable. I use this caramel on Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars, Dutch Apple Pie, and Spiced Apple Cupcakes with Caramel Frosting.
Salted Caramel Sauce
It’s amazing how just a few simple ingredients can create something so delicious as caramel. Yes, this is a great topping but you’ll want to eat it by the spoonful! Or you can swap the spoon for something more nutrient dense like sliced apples. But if it gets you to eat your fruit, that’s a win. Right?
How to make Caramel Sauce?
- In a 2 quart sauce pan, mix sugar, water, and salt together and heat over medium until sugar is dissolved.
- Place the heavy whipping cream in a liquid measuring cup in the microwave. Heat it for 40 seconds as soon as the color of the sugar starts to turn yellow.
- Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat and do NOT stir. The agitation can cause the sugar to crystallize. Boil until the sugar turns amber. (First, it will turn yellow, orangish, and then reach it’s final amber stage.)
- Remove the pan from the heat and immediately whisk in the butter.
- Whisk in the warm cream (It will boil rapidly so use caution. You might want to wear hot pads if your whisk isn’t very long.) and then the vanilla extract.
- Pour the caramel sauce into a glass jar and let cool on the counter. Once cool, screw on the lid and store in the fridge. Caramel will thicken once cool and even more in the fridge.
- Heat in the microwave at medium power for about 30 seconds before serving.
What is salted caramel?
Caramel is basically just sugar cooked until it browns through the process called the Maillard reaction. To make the delicious sauce, butter, heavy cream, and vanilla are added after browning the caramel to add flavor and a smooth and creamy texture.
Salt is added as a second flavor but it also acts a flavor enhancer. It’s important to not add too much salt. You need just enough to wake up your taste buds. Too much and it will overstimulate, and seem biter and sour.
Tips for success:
- Using a pastry brush, wet down any crystals that form on the edges of the pan while it boils.
- Give the pan a gentle swirl if you notice sugar is darkening more on one side of the pan.
- Watch the pot closely! There is a fine line between the caramelization of caramel and burnt sugar.
- Use room temperature or softened butter.
- Warm up the whipping cream. This can be done in the microwave or in a pot on the stove. This is important so that the sauce doesn’t go through a quick temperature change.
What to put Salted Caramel Sauce on:
- The BEST Caramel Pecan Carrot Cupcakes
- Mini Triple Chocolate Cheesecakes
- Raspberry Brownie Cheesecake Trifles
- Caramel Apple Poke Cake
- Mini Caramel Pecan Pumpkin Cheesecake Trifles
LOOKING FOR MORE YUMMY TOPPINGS? CHECK OUT THESE:
- I’ve been eating this Chocolate Syrup since I was a kid. We use it to make chocolate milk, hot cocoa, and on ice cream. We always have a jar of this in the fridge.
- Once you try Buttermilk Syrup you won’t ever buy cheap syrup at the store again. It’s so smooth and buttery!
- 5-Minute Orange Syrup is similar to buttermilk syrup but adds a little brightness.
- Dulce de Leche is a sweet caramel-butterscotch-like sauce, made from cooking sugar and milk until it is browned, thick, and creamy. So many yummy ways to eat this!
- White Chocolate Fudge Sauce is great on ice cream or cheesecake!
TOOLS USED TO MAKE THIS CARAMEL SAUCE RECIPE:
- Pot & Skillet Set– These are the skillets and pots I use. They have a heavy bottom making them sturdy and cook the food evenly. I use these multiple times a day.
- Whisk– I prefer this narrow whisk when cooking sauces in a skillet compared to the balloon whisk I use when mixing batters in a bowl.
- Liquid Measuring Cup– Adequately measure your liquid ingredients! I like to measure everything in the same measuring cup to cut down on dishes.
Salted Caramel Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, or more to taste
- 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream, warmed for about 45 seconds in the microwave
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, cut into pieces
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Mix together sugar, water, and salt in a 2 quart sauce pan over medium heat until sugar dissolves.
- Increase heat to medium-high so it comes to a boil (Do NOT stir at all during this step. You can gently swirl the pan occasionally). Cook 5-8 minutes or until a rich amber color. Using a pastry brush, wet down any crystals that form the sides of the pan while it boils.
- Once amber, remove pan from heat, whisk in the butter and then the cream. Caramel will bubble up so use a long whisk or wear a hot pad. Stir in the, vanilla.
- Pour the caramel into a glass jar. Let it cool completely. Cover with a lid and store in the fridge. Heat in the microwave at medium power for about 30 seconds before serving.
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