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Salted Caramel Ice Cream

April 19, 2012 by Audra 33 Comments

If you have kept up with my blog with any regularity in the last year, you know I have a mild salted caramel obsession. Any time any dessert involves this delicious and addicting ingredient, I don’t hesitate to go for it. It’s just SO good. The buttery, rich caramel flavor accented by a hint of salt just kills me every time. So, it was only a matter of time before I ventured to the Salted Caramel Ice Cream route. I mean, I had to right?

This recipe is wonderful. It is the richest, creamiest ice cream I’ve ever made and the salted caramel flavor is just perfect. Little caramel bits, sprinkled throughout the ice cream, end up melting a bit-creating little pockets of caramel. Also- the presence of salt keeps this ice cream perfectly creamy, never allowing it to get rock hard. (You know- that whole salt melts ice thing?) Rather than adding extra salt to the mixture, I sprinkled some flaky bits on top to really give it that perfectly salty flavor.

For this recipe, I combined two different ones that both looked good for different reasons. I didn’t want anything too complicated or time consuming (since by nature ice cream demands an overnight step,) but also wanted to make sure this was the saltiest, caramel-iest version I could find.  I’m so happy with this end result! The only thing I may change when I make it next is to experiment with cream vs. half and half/milk to see how much richness I can take away without compromising flavor. Guess I’ll just have to make it few more times to test it out. :)

IMG_68311

I know not everyone has an ice cream maker, and I totally get that they can be bulky and take up space. But- if you were ever going to get one for a specific recipe, this is the one! I have this inexpensive machine, and I love it. If you really want to try this but don’t see an ice cream maker in your future, try David Lebovitz’s “Ice Cream without a Machine” method here

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Salted Caramel Ice Cream
Yield: about a quart
 
Ingredients
  • For Caramel Candy Mix in:
  • ½ cup sugar
  • ¾ teaspoon sea salt, such as fleur de sel
  • For the Ice Cream Base:
  • 1¼ cups sugar, divided
  • 2¼ cups heavy cream, divided
  • ½ teaspoon flaky sea salt such as Maldon
  • ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 3 large eggs
Instructions
  1. To make the caramel praline, spread the ½ cup of sugar in an even layer in a medium-sized, unlined heavy duty saucepan: . Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or spray it lightly with cooking spray
  2. Heat the sugar over moderate heat until the edges begin to melt. Use a heatproof utensil to gently stir the liquefied sugar from the bottom and edges towards the center, stirring, until all the sugar is dissolved. (Or most of it—there may be some lumps, which will melt later.)
  3. Continue to cook stirring infrequently until the caramel starts smoking and begins to smell like it’s just about to burn. It won’t take long.
  4. Right afterwards, sprinkle in the ¾ teaspoon salt without stirring, and immediately pour the caramel onto the prepared baking sheet and lift it up immediately, tilting and swirling it almost vertically to encourage the caramel to form as thin a layer as possible. Set aside to harden and cool. Once cool- place caramel pieces into a large bag and crush with a rolling pin until pieces are small.
For Ice Cream:
  1. Heat 1 cup sugar in a dry large heavy skillet (I just rinsed the first one and used it again,) over medium heat, stirring with a fork to heat sugar evenly, until it starts to melt, then stop stirring and cook, swirling skillet occasionally so sugar melts evenly, until it is dark amber.
  2. Add 1¼ cups cream (caramel will totally seize up ) and cook, stirring, until all of caramel has dissolved. (it may seem like something went wrong but it didn't, just stir the lumpy caramel patiently until it all melts.) Transfer to a bowl and stir in sea salt and vanilla. Cool to room temperature.
  3. Meanwhile, bring milk, remaining cup cream, and remaining ¼ cup sugar just to a boil in a small heavy saucepan, stirring occasionally.
  4. Lightly whisk eggs in a medium bowl, then add half of hot milk mixture in a slow stream, whisking constantly. Pour back into saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until custard thickens and coats back of spoon (do not let boil). Pour custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, then stir in cooled caramel.
  5. Chill custard, stirring occasionally, until very cold, 3-6 hours (I always chill mine overnight.) Freeze custard in ice cream maker (it will still be quite soft), then mix in the caramel bits. Store in an airtight container overnight or until ice cream firms up a bit!
3.5.3251

Recipes adapted from David Lebovitz and Gourmet

Filed Under: Ice Cream/Sorbet, Recipes Tagged With: Caramel, Salted Caramel

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Comments

  1. Themessybakerblog says

    April 19, 2012 at 2:11 pm

    Holy mother of pie! This looks amazing. I’m going to dream about this ice cream until I make it.

    Reply
  2. Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar says

    April 19, 2012 at 4:46 pm

    Oh boy!! This looks fabulous!

    Reply
  3. Lauren at Keep It Sweet says

    April 19, 2012 at 4:47 pm

    Um, I JUST got my hands on an old school ice cream maker… this could be the most dangerous recipe ever!

    Reply
  4. BigFatBaker says

    April 19, 2012 at 6:26 pm

    Salted caramel is the best thing ever!! I’ve made David’s version of this and it’s delicious…now I want some… Lol

    Reply
  5. Cassie @ Bake Your Day says

    April 19, 2012 at 7:50 pm

    My salted caramel obsession isn’t even mild. I am head over heels in love with this, Audra!

    Reply
  6. amanda says

    April 19, 2012 at 8:39 pm

    That looks perfect! I’m with you on the salted caramel obsession – and I can’t wait to make this!

    Reply
  7. Lisa @ Sweet 2 Eat Baking says

    April 19, 2012 at 10:42 pm

    I’m so embarrassed to admit that I’ve never tried salted caramel yet. I guess I need whipping into shape and soon, lol!!

    Reply
  8. PaulCCarter says

    April 19, 2012 at 11:06 pm

    That, looks SO amazing to go with some pie!

    http://goo.gl/TlNLc

    Reply
  9. Becca Looney says

    April 20, 2012 at 2:25 am

    Oh man you are a woman after my heart. This really looks amazing. I’ve never tried making ice cream because of the lack of ice cream maker but maybe some day i will make this :D

    Reply
  10. Samantha says

    April 20, 2012 at 2:40 am

    I’m not quite sure “mild” describes your obsession!

    Reply
  11. Audra says

    April 20, 2012 at 3:25 am

    Ok, ok you’re right :) I’m majorly obsessed with salted caramel!!!

    Reply
  12. Susanne Voros says

    April 20, 2012 at 4:49 am

    I love salted caramel everything!!!! This ice cream looks amazing and I could eat it all by myself as long as no one was there to witness it happening. :)

    Reply
  13. Choc Chip Uru says

    April 20, 2012 at 7:54 am

    This ice cream has stolen my heart – how could you possibly resist it :D

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

    Reply
  14. ConfessFoodie says

    April 20, 2012 at 12:16 pm

    This looks ah-ma-zing. I went over to David Lebovitz’s blog and was happy to see that he has a few recipes for making ice cream without an ice cream churn. I have always wanted one but my waistline would not fare well.

    Reply
  15. Maria says

    April 20, 2012 at 1:32 pm

    My favorite!

    Reply
  16. healthyfoodietravels says

    April 20, 2012 at 1:44 pm

    Looks. I know you have a fiancee. Forget him. Live in my kitchen and make salted caramel things for me :D

    Reply
  17. Samantha says

    April 20, 2012 at 1:44 pm

    I’m torn between trying this ice cream next, or the roasted banana ice cream posted by Baker Street yesterday. So many tasty options!

    Reply
  18. Audra says

    April 20, 2012 at 1:45 pm

    Ooh that sounds good too! Whichever you try tomorrow- try this eventually and then let me know what you think. I haven’t really been able to share this with anyone and I need someone else to enjoy it! :)

    Reply
  19. Audra says

    April 20, 2012 at 1:54 pm

    Ok sounds good :) Then I won’t be in the situation of eating this ice cream for breakfast 3 days in a row :)

    Reply
  20. Audra says

    April 20, 2012 at 1:55 pm

    Yes! He has instructions that I linked to above as well :) Ice cream makers can be dangerous, but I also have made some yummy all-fruit options which are great!

    Reply
  21. Audra says

    April 20, 2012 at 1:55 pm

    Becca- check out the instructions above for making it without a machine :) I’m sure this would still be amazing! :)

    Reply
  22. Katie|Epicurean Mom says

    April 20, 2012 at 1:56 pm

    Now this is my kind of ice cream! I too am a salted caramel fanatic!

    Reply
  23. Audra says

    April 20, 2012 at 1:56 pm

    Yeah- who am I kidding- mine isn’t mild either :)

    Reply
  24. Audra says

    April 20, 2012 at 1:56 pm

    Yes! I think it would be so yummy sandwiched between some of your cookies?

    Reply
  25. Kelly says

    April 20, 2012 at 4:38 pm

    OOOH! I can’t wait to try this one out. I am obsessed with making ice cream right now (http://kellyscravings.com/2012/04/malted-milk-ice-cream), so this will have to be on my to do list very soon. The best salted caramel ice cream I had was in San Francisco. We traveled 45 minutes by bus just so I could have some!

    Reply
  26. Vicki @ WITK says

    April 21, 2012 at 1:09 am

    Mmm, salted caramel! THis looks amazing. I’ve got my ice cream maker bowl ready in the freezer for summer, I might have found my first recipe to break it in…

    Reply
  27. Stephanie @ Eat. Drink. Love. says

    April 21, 2012 at 3:27 am

    I love all things salted caramel! This ice cream looks wonderful!

    Reply
  28. Lizzy Do says

    April 21, 2012 at 11:36 am

    Oh, gosh, this is one irresistible ice cream! SO amazing…I wouldn’t be able to keep my spoon out of it :)

    Reply
  29. Crojasandonie says

    April 23, 2012 at 5:00 pm

    I made this last night. It is saltier than I thought it would be, but it is AMAZING. It tastes like a butterscotch or caramel candies that you find in your grandmothers purse (the yellow wrapping ones). It is super decadent too. I probably left the “custard” on the oven top (without letting it boil) a little longer while i constantly whisked it so it was thicker than usual, this may be why my ice cream is super thick and decadent. Love this recipe. Thanks!

    Reply
  30. Audra says

    April 24, 2012 at 1:11 pm

    Mine was thick and rich too. So good right? Very glad you liked it :)

    Reply
  31. Samantha says

    April 29, 2012 at 1:08 am

    We made this frozen custard tonight. The base sort of reminded me of dulce de leche before I put it in the ice cream maker. oh man, was hard not to eat all right out of the ice cream maker! I’ll definitely be making this version again…and now I have egg whites to whip together a pavlova for a “lighter” dessert!

    Reply
  32. Audra says

    April 29, 2012 at 1:15 am

    I know what you mean! My sister actually said it reminded her of Haagen Das Dulce de Leche Ice Cream. Glad you’re also a fan- and I had zero self-control :)

    Reply
  33. Leigh says

    May 14, 2013 at 4:33 am

    I made this last weekend……. Wow!! It was amazing. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply

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