Salted Whiskey Caramel Sauce

I’m sorry chocolate. I’m even sorry Peanut butter, but there’s a new favorite flavor making my taste buds do the “happy dance.” Earlier this summer I made Sea Salt Caramel Ice Cream, and from the first melty spoonful I was hooked. I have a new-found appreciation for salted caramel and the delicate steps that require you to keep your eye on mounds of sugar that disappear as quickly as they are created. What makes caramel stand out above the rest, and give it that touch of “gourmet” is the sea salt. It’s the perfect combination of bitterness, rich sweetness, and slight saltines. I like to take my caramel to a deep mahogany color only because I feel it possesses different levels of flavor, but you can add the cream when the sugar is a lighter shade if you prefer a tamer flavor.

Serve warm over a scoop of ice cream and apple pie and let yourself escape to a whole new fall flavored world!I just love this deep rich caramel color…to me its the color of Fall.

Be very careful when adding the cream, the sugar will bubble furiously, so add a little bit at a time.

The kicker for this caramel is not only the sea salt but the addition of Honey Whiskey.

If you need one thing on hand this Fall, it has to be salted caramel sauce. It’ll make all your fall favorites even more rich in flavor!

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Salted Whiskey Caramel Sauce

Ingredients {Makes 1 1/4 cups}

1/2 cup – Heavy Cream {room temperature}

1 cup – Granulated Sugar

1/4 teaspoon – Sea Salt

1/4 cup – Whiskey or Bourbon { I used my favorite Honey Whiskey because of its smoothness but choose your favorite liquor. You might even want to try apple juice, coffee, or brandy}

Recipe 

Set the cream and sugar near the stove. Put 2 tablespoons of the sugar in heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Once the sugar begins to melt around the edges and turns amber in places {about 2 minutes} gently stir and add another 2 tablespoons of the sugar. Continue this process stirring constantly making sure the sugar is dissolved before each addition. Watch the sugar it will darken.

When the caramel turns a dark mahogany, remove the pan from the heat and slowly pour the cream. {It will steam and bubble over so be careful!} Once the bubbling slows down, continue adding the cream stirring gently until it is all combined. {If you have lumps, heat the caramel over low heat until it is smooth again.}

Stir in the salt, and let cool until just warm and add the whiskey. Transfer to a container and refrigerate. Re-heat whenever you want to use it.