Apple Cider Caramel Sauce
A simple dessert to warm you up on these chillier nights, there is no better way to celebrate the comforting flavors of fall than with this bread pudding. Sweet caramelized apples and toasted bread cubes sing in a warm cinnamon-laced custard. The cider caramel itself is divine, but particularly so when generously poured over the voluptuous pudding.
Ingredients
240 grams apple cider
150 grams sugar
70 grams maple, honey, light corn syrup, or glucose
1/4 cups water
1/2 tsps lemon juice
180 grams heavy cream, warmed
56 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
3 grams salt
3 grams vanilla extract
Preparation
1. Place the apple cider in a small saucepan. Bring to a low boil over a medium flame and simmer until the liquid has reached a dense syrup-like consistency and has reduced to approximately 1/4 cup. Set aside to cool slightly.
2. Combine the sugar, maple, water, and lemon juice in a tall non-reactive metal saucepan, making sure there are no stray granules of sugar on the sides of the pan. Do not stir. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Cook, without stirring but swirling the pan occasionally, until a golden caramel color is reached.
3. In a separate pan or in the microwave, heat the cream.
4. Remove the caramelized sugar from the heat and carefully whisk in the warmed cream. It will spatter and boil up, so it is best to stand back when adding the cream. Place back on the heat and whisk to remove any remaining lumps of sugar. Whisk in the butter, salt and reduced apple cider. Transfer to a heat proof container and let cool to room temperature.
[Chef’s Note: We use the “wet method”, which when just enough water is added to sugar to make it a sandy texture, to make caramel in this recipe. During the boiling process, any excess liquid evaporates, causing the syrup to thicken, the sugar concentration to increase, and eventually the color to change from opaque to a rich, golden brown. This method takes longer than the “dry method”, cooking sugar without the addition of water, but is easier to control and does not burn as easily.
When making caramel, there is always a danger of crystallization, which can give the finished caramel a grainy texture and cause it to cook unevenly. If the pan or spoon is not completely clean, if the syrup is stirred once it boils, or if the sugar is not properly dissolved, you are bound to get lumps of sugar that will agitate and crystallize in the caramel. However, this is easy to avoid by using a clean pot, adding a pinch of an acidic ingredient such as cream of tartar or lemon juice, and taking caution not to stir the sugar once it boils. Swirling the pan during cooking also helps to evenly distribute heat and color to the sugar without stirring.]
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