Strawberry Caramel Sauce for Sundaes and More

By sallycohen

Ingredients

• 1 pound fresh strawberries, hulled and rinsed
• Pinch of salt
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup water

Details

Servings 2
Adapted from gilttaste.com

Preparation

Step 1

Blend the berries: Toss them all in a blender with the pinch of salt and buzz away until it’s super smooth. If you want to get fancy and strain the puree through a sieve to remove the seeds, go for it, but it’s not necessary.  Measure out about 1 cup of puree. Save the rest for a smoothie.

Get the sugar going: Neatly combine the sugar and water in a 3-quart, clean, heavy saucepan. You don’t want sugar water to splash on the sides of the pot, because it can burn or crystallize. No fear: use a pastry brush, dipped in fresh water, to clean the sides of the pot as it cooks if need be. Turn the heat on high and when the mixture begins to bubble, turn it to medium-low.

Cook and watch: Cook the sugar until the bubbles slow to a gurgle. It’ll take a little time (about 10 minutes), but this is when you want to start paying attention. You’ll notice the mixture getting thick and syrupy and it will start to turn golden yellow around the sides of the pot. When you start to see color, daintily swirl the pot to distribute the color and continue cooking.


Hot...


Getting hotter...


Go!

Watch closer, then add puree: When it gets to a dark amber color, pull it from the heat and immediately but carefully pour in the strawberry puree (it’ll sizzle!). Using a good rubber spatula, stir well while it bubbles up like a witch’s cauldron. If you end up with some small chunks of caramel, no biggie. Put the entire mixture over low heat and stir until the caramel chunks melt into the sauce.   



Serve hot or cold.  If the sauce is a little too sweet for you, feel free to add a hit of lemon juice, champagne vinegar or heavy cream to cut the sweet.