Smoky Caramel Sauce Food

EASY CARAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• Mix the brown sugar, half-and-half, butter and salt in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook while whisking gently for 5 to 7 minutes, until it gets thicker. Add the vanilla and cook another minute to thicken further. Turn off the heat, cool slightly and pour the sauce into a jar. Refrigerate until cold.

CARAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• Combine the sugar and salt in a 3- to 3½-quart stainless steel saucepan and pour the water over them. Place the pan over medium to medium-high heat, stirring gently with a wooden spoon. As soon as the mixture comes to a boil, stop stirring.
• Cook the mixture for 5 to 6 minutes, gently swirling the pan to "stir" the caramel so it colors evenly. As soon as the mixture turns a medium amber color, remove the saucepan from the heat and add the cream all at once. Stir well, and don't be concerned if it clumps up at first; it will smooth out.
• Put the saucepan back over medium-low heat and boil, stirring virtually nonstop, until the caramel reaches 220 to 225°F (104 to 107°C) on a candy thermometer. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Cool briefly, then transfer to heatproof jars to store. Cool to room temperature before refrigerating. It will keep for at least several weeks. To reheat, microwave the jar in 5- to 10-second intervals, stirring in between, until pourable.

CARAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• Mix the water and sugar in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until the sugar dissolves. Do not stir. Increase the heat to medium and boil uncovered until the sugar turns a warm chestnut brown (about 350 degrees F on a candy thermometer), about 5 to 7 minutes, gently swirling the pan to stir the mixture. Be careful - the mixture is extremely hot! Watch the mixture very carefully at the end, as it will go from caramel to burnt very quickly. Turn off the heat. Stand back to avoid splattering and slowly add the cream and vanilla. Don't worry - the cream will bubble violently and the caramel will solidify.
• Simmer over low heat, stirring constantly, until the caramel dissolves and the sauce is smooth, about 2 minutes. Allow to cool to room temperature, at least 4 hours. It will thicken as it sits.

SMOKY CARAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• COMBINE all the ingredients in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until smooth and creamy.
• Toasted pound cake with ice cream and caramel sauce. Add sliced fresh peaches, bananas, or pecans, if you like.
• Banana caramel sundaes with vanilla ice cream, caramel sauce, sliced bananas, and toasted nuts.
• Turtle brownie sundaes with ice cream and caramel sauce.
• Vanilla ice cream with caramel sauce topped with bits of crystallized ginger.
• Stir a couple tablespoons of spiced rum, bourbon, Tennessee whiskey, or Scotch whisky into the sauce and serve over ice cream.

OH-SO-EASY CARAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• Bring brown sugar, butter, and milk to a gentle boil and cook until thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat; add vanilla extract.