Caramel Sauce
Caramel Sauce is a great topping to put on vanilla ice cream. Another option for making caramel for ice cream would be to make Homemade Caramel Sauce from Sweetened Condensed Milk, a caramel more like dulce de leche.\
Butterscotch and caramel sauces are both cooked sugar sauces, but they differ primarily in the type of sugar used and resulting flavor profiles. Butterscotch uses brown sugar, which gives it a deeper, molasses-like flavor, while caramel typically uses granulated white sugar. Caramel sauce does not have to include butter, but butter is an integral part of butterscotch.
Caramel Sauce
This sauce will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
In a small heavy saucepan over medium-high heat, stir together the heavy cream and brown sugar and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
Add the butter, reduce the heat to low and simmer until thick and caramellike, about 2 minutes.
Remove from the heat, cover to keep warm until ready to use.
Caramel Sauce
Courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 1997
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup roasted pecans, finely chopped
In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the sugar and water and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring often. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is a deep caramel color and has the consistency of a thin syrup, 10 to 15 minutes.
Stir in the cream, return the saucepan to the high heat, and boil until it regains the consistency of a thick syrup, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool completely. Stir in the pecans.
The sauce can be refrigerated until ready to use. Allow it to reach room temperature before using.
