Salted Caramel and Hot Fudge

I got to “spread my wings” in the kitchen this month when my friend, Ryan, asked for homemade hot fudge sundaes for his birthday. Homemade means homemade vanilla bean ice cream (I have made it before here) and homemade hot fudge sauce and homemade salted caramel sauce. To be fair, he didn’t ask me to make everything rather than buying it, but I decided if I was going to do it, I would do it right. I scoured the Internet for recipes for homemade ice cream toppings and found both of these, which were delicious. The sundaes were rich, creamy and amazing and the sauces last well in the refrigerator for a few weeks. I used the left over salted caramel for a “Fall dinner” party this weekend and served it with sliced apples for dipping. I love the salt added but you can also make this recipe without the salt for just regular caramel sauce. For Thanksgiving, I am using this sauce to make a slated caramel apple pie. Stay tuned…

Salted Caramel Sauce

Ingredients:

2 cups sugar
12 Tbs. butter, at room temperature, cut into pieces
1 cup heavy whipping cream, at room temperature
1 Tbs. fleur de sel (or any other flaky sea salt)

Directions:

Add the sugar in an even layer over the bottom of a heavy saucepan, with a capacity of at least 2 or 3 quarts. Heat the sugar over medium-high heat, whisking it as it begins to melt. You'll see that the sugar will begin to form clumps, but that's okay. Just keep whisking and as it continues to cook, they will melt back down.

Stop whisking once all of the sugar has melted, and swirl the pan occasionally while the sugar cooks.

Continue cooking until the sugar has reached a deep amber color. It should look almost a reddish-brown, and have a slight toasted aroma. This is the point where caramel can go from perfect to burnt in a matter of seconds, so keep a close eye. If you are using an instant-read thermometer, cook the sugar until it reaches 350°F.

As soon as the caramel reaches 350°F, add the butter all at once. Be careful, as the caramel will bubble up when the butter is added. Whisk the butter into the caramel until it is completely melted.

Remove the pan from the heat and slowly pour the cream into the caramel. Again, be careful because the mixture will once again bubble up ferociously.

Whisk until all of the cream has been incorporated and you have a smooth sauce. Add the fleur de sel and whisk to incorporate.

Set the sauce aside to cool for 10 to 15 minutes and then pour into your favorite glass jar and let cool to room temperature. You can refrigerate the sauce for up to 2 weeks. You'll want to warm the sauce up before using.

Hot Fudge Sauce

Ingredients:

2/3 cup heavy cream
½ cup light corn syrup
1/3 cup brown sugar
¼ cup cocoa powder
¼ tsp. sea salt
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped, divided in half
2 Tbs. butter
1 tsp. vanilla

 Directions:

In a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the cream, syrup, brown sugar, cocoa powder, salt and half of the chocolate to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low or low (enough to maintain a low simmer), and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove from the heat and stir in the remaining chocolate, the butter, and the vanilla extract, stirring until smooth. Let cool for 20 to 30 minutes before using (it will thicken as it cools). Store in a jar or airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. To reheat, microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute until it's pourable but still thick.