I have been on something of an ice cream bender recently; not all of them have made it as far as the blog though for the simple reason that they got eaten before I took any photos... I made sure that I photographed this one in time though (before it got devoured...) as it is exceedingly good...
I am a big fan of making my own caramel, it can take a bit of practice and bravery to get right (and probably a couple of burned batches...), but once you've mastered it....oh the delicious things you can create! Home-made caramel sauce is one of the most dangerously addictive things you can make...That caramel is enhanced even more by the addition of a bit of sea salt, it takes the edge off the sweetness and intensifies the flavour. Note that I like it salt-ED not salt-Y, hence I have given a range of quantities for the salt - start by adding half a teaspoon, taste, and add more as required, tasting as you go.
This ice cream is created by making a caramel with sugar and water, to which you add double cream (hot - so it mixes in more easily) then full fat milk. Add your salt then whisk together some egg yolks and cornflour, into which you whisk the hot caramel mixture, pour it back into the pan and heat gently while stirring until it thickens. The mixture will need to be chilled thoroughly before you freeze it in an ice cream maker, I make it the day before I want to freeze it and leave it in the fridge overnight; you can speed up the process by cooling it over an ice bath.
The ice cream is amazing by itself, smooth and creamy with a deep caramel flavour and backnotes of vanilla; but to take it into true food-gasm territory, serve it with a warm, gooey brownie and some hot fudge sauce...
Salted Caramel Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 300 g (1 + ½ cups) caster (superfine) sugar
- 60 ml (¼ cup) water
- 300 ml (1 + ¼ cups) double (heavy) cream, hot
- 600 ml (2 + ½ cups) full fat milk
- ½ - 2 teaspoon sea salt flakes
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon cornflour (cornstarch)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla paste or extract
Instructions
- Place the sugar and water in a large, deep, heavy bottomed saucepan. Cook, swirling the pan (don't stir it, use a wet pastry brush to brush down any sugar crystals clinging to the sides), until the sugar has melted and turned a deep amber.
- Immediately remove from the heat and pour in the hot cream (be careful - it will bubble up ferociously), wait until the bubbling has subsided then add the milk. Whisk until smooth then whisk in the salt, start with a small amount, taste, and add more as needed. Return the pan to the heat and heat until it is just starting to come up to the boil.
- Meanwhile, whisk together the egg yolks and cornflour until smooth. Gradually pour the hot caramel mixture into the eggs, whisking constantly.
- Return the mixture to the pan over a low heat, stir constantly until the mixture has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon, then pour it through a fine mesh sieve into a clean bowl.
- Whisk in the vanilla paste then cover the bowl and chill until it is completely cold, at least four hours.
- Churn the custard in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturers directions.
I am sharing this with Totally Talented Tuesdays, Create Link Inspire, Foodie Fridiy, Fiesta Friday and Foodie Friends Friday 
annainternational
Oh wow Hannah! You had me at salted caramel, and then ice cream?! <3 I am in love. I've got people round for a roast on Monday, and I wasn't going to do dessert because we need to spend the weekend working on our house, but you have totally changed my mind - we need to eat this! Now I just need someone to bring the perfect brownie recipe to the party, and I'm sorted! Thanks for coming!
hannahhossack
Lol! thanks Anna 🙂 for me dessert is the most important part of a meal :p
Amanda @ The Chunky Chef
Ohh wow... my husband would FLIP over this ice cream!! Happy FF 😀
Julie is Hostess At Heart
Hanna, this looks amazing! I am so hooked on salted caramel. I make an ice cream but very different than this one!
hannahhossack
Thank you! Salted caramel is incredibly addictive...
J Seaton
I don't know why, but salted caramel has been popping up on my radar so much lately. I'm extremely tempted to go out, buy an ice cream maker, and try this for myself. Thanks for sharing, and happy FF.
hannahhossack
People are realising how amazing and addictive it is! :p I LOVE my ice cream maker 🙂
Michelle @ Giraffes Can Bake
This ice cream looks amazing!!! It's been too long since I made ice cream, gotta get back into that!
hannahhossack
My partner is a bit of an ice cream fiend so I make A LOT of ice cream!
Arl's World
I have never made homemade ice cream. I remember as a girl my dad made it often. Yours looks wonderful! Happy FF! 🙂
hannahhossack
Thank you! I almost never buy ice cream as homemade is so much nicer! 🙂
breakfastdramaqueen
Wowzah! I'm so glad you photographed this before it disappeared, because your pictures are amazing 🙂 And I totally agree- it's salted caramel, not salty
hannahhossack
Thank you! Yes I find that some people over-salt it a bit - too much and it makes me feel a little bit ill...
Natasha Fredrickson
My favorite flavor! I think my heart just broke a little, please share with your friends
Aruna Panangipally
Looks delicious. I love anything with Salted Caramel. Yours was the first recipe that caught my eye at FF! 😀
hannahhossack
Thank you! I too am a bit of a salted caramel addict... 🙂
Whisked Away
Mmmm...looks and sounds absolutely delicious! So glad I found your blog on Fiesta Friday, you've got some great recipes and I'm looking forward to following along!
hannahhossack
Thank you! I'm so glad you like my blog and thank you for following! 🙂
skd
Just what we need this summer...cool and delicious...
chefjulianna
Oh, very yum! One of my favourites is salted caramel and now you have put it in ice-cream ! This is going to be a summer classic! 😀
hannahhossack
Thank you! Salted caramel works in just about anything! 🙂
Steph @MisplacedBrit
YUM! We're ice-cream CRAZY in this house
...Bring it on! 😀
hannahhossack
Us too, I make some at least a couple of times a month!
Justine @ Born and Bred in Brooklyn
Sounds delicious!
hannahhossack
Thank you 🙂
Sarah
Hi I am another one who can't skip past the words ' Salted Caramel'. This looks totally scrumptious! It's gone straight to the top of my to make list!
hannahhossack
Ha ha! Thank you! I hope you enjoy it 🙂
FrugalHausfrau
I don't know if I've had a caramel ice cream, but I'm going to now! This looks amazing!
Honest Mum
Wow, heavenly. Thanks for linking up to #tastytuesdays x
Connie
Oh, WOW. Can't wait to make this. Any suggestions for a chocolate salted caramel variation?
hannahhossack
Hmm, I would swirl through some chocolate fudge sauce http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2005/12/the-best-chocol/ or make salted caramel stracciatella by gradually drizzling in about 150g of melted chocolate in the last minute of churning 🙂
Cookie65
We tried a new restaurant yesterday. One dessert in particular looked so tempting we ordered it and shared - Bread Pudding with dark chocolate chunks and salted caramel ice cream with a caramel drizzle! Had to stop my husband from picking up the empty bowl and licking it! I will have to try this recipe. 🙂 Just one question, should you temper the egg yolks with some of the hot milk mixture before adding them in? No issues with them cooking as they are whisked in directly?
Thanks!
hannahhossack
Ooo that sounds lush! Yes, whisk in a little of the hot milk to temper then gradually whisk in the rest, the cornflour helps to stabilise the mixture so it is less likely to curdle. 🙂
Loni
LOVED this. I made it last weekend for my husband's birthday. When I added the milk, I threw in about a half dozen coffee beans, which were strained out at the end. I had originally planned on using it to make ice cream sandwiches, but this custard base stayed soft-serve even after 48 hours in the freezer, so the cookies would have just squished it. It was perfect on its own!
hannahhossack
OMG! I love the idea of adding coffee! I'm going to have to give that a go 🙂 I'm very glad that you liked it!