Salted caramel and toasted pecan ice-cream sundaes
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Recipe type: Dessert
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 10+
 
Never made salted caramel sauce? It's far easier than you think and these little salted caramel and toasted pecan sundaes give you the perfect excuse to take the salted caramel plunge!
Ingredients
  • 1 cup pecans, some roughly chopped and some whole
  • 200g white granulated sugar
  • 90g salted butter, cut up into cubes
  • 120ml double cream
  • 1 tsp fleur de sel flakes
  • Good quality vanilla ice-cream
Instructions
  1. In a non-stick frying pan, toast the nuts over medium heat for 5-10 minutes, tossing a few times so that they brown all over. Watch them carefully though as they catch easily. Set aside to cool
  2. Heat the sugar over medium heat in a heavy-bottomed saucepan that is at least 15cm deep (when you add the cream later, the caramel will foam and you need to give it space to do so). Resist the urge to stir! Tilt the pan if there seem to be hot spots where the sugar is melting faster than in other places. Although the melting sugar will seem to form lumps, it will eventually melt into a syrup that will darken in colour as you continue to heat it. Be careful not to burn it though!
  3. As soon as all the sugar has melted and you have a completely smooth syrup, add the butter at once - watch out for splattering and bubbling as the sugar is really hot! Stir the butter into the sugar until it has melted completely (this should take around 3 minutes).
  4. Very slowly carefully, add the cream to the sugar in a thin drizzle, while stirring continuously. Once again, watch out as the mixture will splatter and and bubble up in the pan.
  5. Bring the mixture to the boil and allow to boil for a further minute, then remove from the heat and stir in the salt.
  6. Place as many scoops of ice-cream as desired in as many bowls as you have guests. Top each bowl with a generous helping of the hot caramel sauce and sprinkle with toasted pecans. Serve immediately.
Notes
The sauce can be made in advance and kept in a sealed container in the fridge for about 2 weeks. It also freezes well if you want to keep it for longer or if you have leftover sauce.
Before serving, reheat in the microwave until a pourable consistency is reached.
Recipe by Cooksister | Food, Travel, Photography at https://www.cooksister.com/2015/10/salted-caramel-and-toasted-pecan-ice-cream-sundaes.html