How to Make an Easy Caramel Sauce

Homemade caramel sauce beats store bought versions hands down – and since it’s made only from a few staple ingredients, making this long lasting sauce is very inexpensive.

Although you may have heard that working with sugar and caramels is difficult, this recipe certainly isn’t – from famous chef Thomas Keller of the French Laundry, this caramel requires very little attention from you and quite frankly, is pretty hard to mess up!

Adapted from a Thomas Keller Recipe from Ad Hoc at Home

Easy Homemade Caramel Sauce

• 3/8 of a cup plus 1 Tbls of plain white granulated sugar
• 1/8 of a cup plus 1 Tbls of light corn syrup
• 1/8 of a cup of water
• ¾ cup of warmed whipping cream (heavy cream)
• 1 Tbls of softened butter

1. Combine the corn syrup, the sugar and the water in a small heavy bottomed sauce pan.
2. Bring this mixture to a simmer over medium heat, and then adjust the heat so it will simmer unattended on its own, without you needing to stir or otherwise bother it!
3. Let it simmer away for half an hour
4. Take it off the heat and slowly whisk in the cream. You have to be a little attentive here (and make sure no kids are around) as the hot caramel can bubble and sputter a bit, but don’t be too worried, it’s not that dramatic! Once the cream is in, whisk in the butter.
5. If it hardens up as you are adding the cream, just return it to the heat and give it a quick stir, stirring until the caramel again melts.

That’s it – you’ve got yourself a great tasting caramel sauce that will keep for a month in the fridge and which tastes fantastic served warmed and then simply over good vanilla ice cream – or in any other way you can imagine it!