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Do-it-yourself Caramel Recipe | Life, Love and Sugar

Foodworldlife
By Foodworldlife
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This simple do-it-yourself caramel sauce solely requires 3 easy elements and 10 minutes of your time. Its irresistible taste and nutty aroma will make you wish to put it on every part from cheesecake, cake and cupcakes, to ice cream and cookies. Skip the store-bought stuff. That is so significantly better.

Overhead of drizzling caramel sauce into a jar.

The Finest Do-it-yourself Caramel Sauce Recipe

Caramel sauce is a type of issues that may appear a bit of intimidating – till you truly strive it for the primary time. After which as you make it extra, you understand it’s truly tremendous simple and fast to make. There are only a few issues to bear in mind so that you’re profitable.

This recipe has been on my web site perpetually and is well one of the vital used and cherished recipes. Now, you’ll discover step-by-step photos that stroll you thru the method, in addition to a video the place I stroll you thru the entire course of! What has all the time been simple is now even simpler with all my steering. And belief me, you need this recipe. It’s all the time a success!

And within the curiosity of serving everybody and having choices, I even have my Salted Caramel Sauce and Brown Sugar Caramel Sauce, that are each fabulous and 100% deserve your consideration.

A jar of caramel sauce with a spoon on it.

Why Make Caramel Sauce From Scratch?

From scratch is sort of all the time higher for my part. Caramel sauce isn’t any exception. Right here’s why.

  • Higher taste. Do-it-yourself caramel sauce has incomparably higher taste than store-bought renditions which are typically sickly candy and lack taste.
  • Consistency. Making caramel sauce from scratch means you might have management. Retailer-bought sauces are sometimes very skinny and don’t work effectively for all makes use of. They’re usually within the part with ice cream toppings, as a result of they work effectively for that, however not as effectively for different issues. This do-it-yourself caramel sauce is ideal for every kind of desserts.
  • It’s faster and surprisingly simple. Certain you would run seize a jar of caramel sauce from the shop, however that might take you a minimum of 20 minutes. This do-it-yourself model solely takes 10 minutes of lively time (plus some for cooling) and the directions are tremendous simple to comply with.

What You’ll Want

You’ll solely want 3 elements to make this tremendous easy, fast, and straightforward do-it-yourself caramel sauce. Right here they’re. Make sure to scroll to the recipe card under for exact measurements.

  • Sugar – Simply common granulated sugar right here.
  • Butter – Unsalted butter at room temperature is finest (you possibly can add your individual salt later, if you happen to like). You wish to make sure that the butter is at room temperature or perhaps a bit hotter. You may even soften it! The large factor right here is that the melted sugar is SUPER delicate to temperature modifications. In case you add butter that’s too chilly, the caramel will seize up into a tough rock.
  • Heavy Whipping Cream – Make sure that it’s at room temperature. Once more, the caramel sauce is delicate to dramatic temperature modifications. This ought to be a minimum of room temperature. You may even heat it up a contact. I typically try this, simply to be similar. Particularly within the winter when my house is cooler. Don’t exchange this with milk or half and half, you want the additional fats content material to get a creamy texture. Different milks will skinny it out an excessive amount of.

Find out how to Make Do-it-yourself Caramel Sauce

Caramel sauce actually is straightforward to make. Step one is to soften the granulated sugar. It’s a considerably gradual course of, however simple. Enable it to caramelize, then stir within the butter and incorporate it (it might take a minute). Lastly, add the heavy cream. That’s it! You’re executed. However so simple as it’s, it may be difficult. Right here’s the step-by-step course of to assist guarantee your success.

  • Soften the sugar. Pour the sugar right into a pot (I like to recommend a lightweight coloured pan, so you possibly can see the colour of the caramel sauce) and warmth over medium warmth. Stir the sugar till it has melted fully and has turned a deep, amber coloration. You’ll discover the sugar actually clump up at first, then slowly start to soften. Preserve stirring because it melts, in order that no a part of it burns whereas the remaining remains to be melting.
Side-by-side images of sugar undergoing the dry melting process.
Side-by-side images of sugar in a pot going from clumpy to almost melted.
Side-by-side images of sugar going from almost fully melted to nice and brown.
  • Take away from warmth. As soon as melted and the suitable coloration, cease stirring and take away the caramel from the warmth.
  • Add butter. Add the butter (make certain it’s room temperature or hotter) to the sugar and whisk till easy. It might take a minute to totally incorporate and may look a bit of stringy. It would bubble up quite a bit, so watch out.
Whisking butter into melted sugar to make caramel sauce.
  • Add the cream. Slowly pour the heavy cream (make certain it’s room temperature or hotter) into the caramel and whisk till easy. Once more, it’ll bubble up quite a bit, so watch out.
Whisking heavy cream into hot melted sugar and butter to make caramel sauce.
  • Cool. Pour the caramel right into a jar (ideally the one you intend to retailer it in) and permit it to chill for about 10-Quarter-hour earlier than utilizing.

Do I Want a Sweet Thermometer?

One of many nice issues about this caramel sauce is that you do not want a sweet thermometer. As soon as your sugar is melted and turned a beautiful amber coloration, it’s able to go. Additionally, you will discover a beautiful, nutty aroma. The longer you prepare dinner it, the deeper the colour and the caramel taste. Simply use your eyes and finest judgement and also you’ll be set.

How Do You Know When Caramel is Prepared?

You’ll know your caramel sauce is prepared when the sugar has totally melted and reaches a deep amber coloration. As soon as it will get there, take away it from the warmth instantly. If you’d like a barely richer caramel, you possibly can permit it to prepare dinner for a bit longer, however preserve a really shut watch as caramel can go from lovely golden brown to burnt in a short time.

Why is my Caramel Sauce Skinny?

This caramel sauce is kind of skinny when it first comes off the range and may be very scorching. The hotter is it, the thinner it’s. The cooler it’s, the thicker. After which when it’s chilly, it’s fairly agency and exhausting. You should use it at totally different consistencies relying on what you’re utilizing it for. I typically let it cool fully within the fridge, then heat it up within the microwave in 10-15 second increments, stirring between every, to get it to the consistency I would like.

Overhead image of caramel sauce being drizzled into a jar.

Ideas for Success

Caramel could be a little difficult however don’t be intimidated. You may 100% do it and do it effectively. Simply preserve these easy suggestions in thoughts and also you’ll be in your method.

  • Room temperature elements. This one is crucial. It’s extraordinarily essential to not add chilly butter or cream to your melted sugar except you need rock-hard caramel sauce. Be certain they’re at room temperature (or hotter!). You may even soften the butter a bit and heat up the cream. I typically try this within the winter, when my house is a bit of cooler.
  • Don’t use an excessive amount of warmth. You don’t need elements of the melted sugar to prepare dinner too rapidly whereas different elements are nonetheless melted. Purpose for medium warmth and err on the facet of warning. If it looks as if the sauce is cooking too rapidly and never every part is melted, flip the warmth down a bit.
  • Preserve it shifting. As a way to stop the sugar from burning, preserve the caramel sauce shifting because it cooks. I like to make use of a silicon spatula or a wood spoon.
  • Regulate the sugar. This recipe melts the sugar utilizing the “dry methodology” (simply sugar, nothing else). Because of this the sugar may be very inclined to burning. So keep watch over it and don’t stroll away from the range. No potty breaks allowed on this course of!
  • Sluggish and regular. When including the cream, I discover it useful so as to add only a bit at a time till the caramel begins to skinny out. Then you possibly can add the remaining.

Methods to Use This Simple Caramel Sauce

Actually, you should use caramel sauce on nearly any candy factor (and even some savory). Listed below are a number of of my favourite methods to make use of it, although. What are yours?

  • As a dip. Heat this candy sauce up and serve it with apple slices or different fruit, graham crackers, do-it-yourself chocolate chip cookies, or churros. You may even dip savory treats. Pretzels or potato chips could be tasty.
  • Over dessert. Whether or not it’s a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a slice of apple pie, cake, and even cheesecake (take a look at my library of scrumptious cheesecake recipes for inspiration), this caramel sauce is the proper strategy to prime off your favourite dessert.
  • Popcorn. Drizzle some caramel sauce over popcorn for a salty-sweet deal with.
  • With breakfast. Caramel sauce is the proper strategy to sweeten up breakfast. Use it in lieu of (or along with) maple syrup over your favourite pancakes, waffles, or French toast. Strive my In a single day Cinnamon Apple Baked French Toast Casserole or these Thick and Fluffy Banana Pancakes.
  • In one other recipe. I take advantage of this caramel sauce on a regular basis in different recipes. Need to strive some for your self? Take a look at the part under titled “Extra Recipes With Caramel To Strive” to get began.

Can I Use This For Caramel Apples?

Sadly, this specific caramel sauce is a bit too skinny to work for caramel apples. It gained’t cling to the fruit correctly. You may strive decreasing the quantity of heavy cream within the recipe to make it thicker. Simply because this recipe gained’t work for traditional caramel apples, that doesn’t imply you possibly can’t dip slices of apple into the caramel for the same impact.

Drizzling caramel sauce into a jar.

Find out how to Retailer Caramel sauce

  • Fridge. As soon as the sauce has cooled to room temperature, seal it in an hermetic container (I like to make use of a glass mason jar) and retailer it within the fridge for as much as 2 weeks.
  • Freezer. Enable the sauce to chill fully earlier than sealing it in a freezer-safe hermetic container. You may retailer it within the freezer for as much as 3 months. Enable it to thaw within the fridge earlier than utilizing.
  • To reheat. The sauce shall be fairly stiff once you take away it from the fridge. I counsel heating it within the microwave in 10-15 second increments, stirring between every, till it reaches the consistency you need it at. It would get thinner because it will get hotter.

Extra Recipes With Caramel To Strive

It’s fall and, to me, meaning caramel season. When you get this caramel sauce down, you’ll be dying to make use of it in all types of recipes. In that spirit, listed here are a few of my favourite caramel-inclusive candy treats.

Watch Find out how to Make Caramel Sauce

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Drizzling caramel sauce into a jar full of it.