Sometimes a dessert, or in this case a dessert sauce, feels so confident of its awesomeness that I have to let it speak for itself. This one thinks very highly of itself indeed. Take it away, blood orange caramel sauce.
Allow me to introduce myself to you. I am the best caramel sauce ever. People say I have an Extremely High Opinion of myself, but they say it as if it were not the compliment that I know that it is. Of course I have an Extremely High Opinion of myself.
I am the warmth of caramel. I am the mellowness of butter. I am the brightness of orange. I am the floral depth of vanilla.
I am, in a word, Perfect.
Some caramel sauces are so plebeian and viscid that they end up congealing into a thick sludge that overpowers the palate and sticks to the dental work once poured over ice cream. Commoners.
Not I. I am of The Elite.
I pool seductively around my ice cream leaving just a sheer silken caress as I cascade, content to enhance, not overpower.
In my consent—and it is by my consent—to play a supporting role, I shine.
I glory in my Perfection of Viscosity, certain that I am invited—nay, charged—to raise a slice of pound cake, a saucer of ice cream or a glistening compote of sliced fruit out of the realm of the mundane and into the Extraordinary.
I am the sunshine of Italy. I am the trade winds of Jamaica. I am the rainforest of Mexico.
I am Perfect.
I want to share myself with you so that you may share me with others so that all may adore me.
Um, gee, thanks for that, blood orange caramel sauce. After all of that…hyperbole…let me jump in and just say that it is Really Stupidly Tasty and you should probably make some for yourself.
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup water
- 2 oz freshly squeezed blood orange juice, strained (use more if you have it for a total of 6 oz of juice)
- 4 oz orange juice, strained (freshly squeezed if you have the oranges, if not, try to use a not-from-concentrate juice)
- 2 oz heavy cream
- at least ¼ teaspoon and up to ½ teaspoon of fine sea salt, to taste
- 1 oz (2 Tablespoons) butter
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla
- In a heavy bottomed sauce pan much larger than you think you need, cook the sugar and water together until it comes to a boil.
- Brush down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush to wash away any errant sugar crystals and then cook without stirring, until the sugar begins to take on some color.
- Gently swirl the pan while heating and continue to cook until the sugar is a lovely deep amber.
- Pour in the juices and the cream. Be careful, the whole thing will bubble up alarmingly.
- Turn the heat down and stir to melt any sugar that may have seized up.
- Add the salt and the butter.
- Bring up to a very light boil/high simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8-10 minutes.
- Strain into a bowl and stir in the vanilla.
- The caramel will be fairly thin but will thicken some upon cooling.
- Reheat to serve, or serve at cold. Do make sure you stir it well first though as the butter has a tendency to rise to the top in the fridge.
If you’ve never made caramel sauce or just need a quick refresher, here’s my Google+ Hangout on Air showing you how to make it.
And there you have it. I do hope you give “Mr. Perfect” Blood Orange Caramel Sauce a Try. I think you’ll be very happy you did.
Thanks for reading, and have a lovely day.
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