Salted caramel ice cream

Salted caramel ice cream topped with caramel sauce, chopped hazel nuts, some chocolate chips and mini caramel waffles

The summer has been hot here in the UK! I decided ice cream was the answer, not least because it was also an upcoming theme in the Sunday Afternoon Baking Club (an Instagram baking group I join in with it).

Makes: 1 litre 

Ingredients

• 1 cup / 250g sugar

• ½ cup water

• 2 ¼ cup / 530ml double cream

• ¾ tsp salt

• ½ tsp vanilla extract

• 1 cup / 250ml whole milk

• 3 large egg yolks

Toppings of choice: chocolate chips, waffles, wafers, sauce, mini marshmallows, fruit, cream, nuts, whatever you like!

Equipment: an ice cream maker

Method

Heat the sugar and ½ cup of water in pan and bring to the boil giving it an occasional stir. Keep it bubbling away until the sugar caramelises and goes a dark brown caramel colour. Be patient it will take several minutes for the sugar mixture to colour.

Warm the cream in the microwave, for about 1 minute.

Take the caramel off the heat and pour in about half the cream and stir. It will bubble up ferociously, be prepared for this as it an be a bit disconcerting! Once well mixed, set the caramel mixture aside to cool.

Heat the milk and the rest of the cream in a saucepan so it is almost at boiling point. 

Whisk the eggs in a bowl then add to the the milk and cream mixture and stir continuously whilst on a low to medium heat. The mixture should thicken and coat the back of a spoon.

Stir in the cooling caramel mixture.

Chill for at least 3 hours, but overnight works fine too.

Once ready to make the ice cream, take the mix out the fridge and give it a stir. Add to your ice cream maker and churn per your ice cream maker’s instructions.

Transfer to a suitable container and freeze to firm up.

This ice cream is good enough to serve on its own for sure, but I like serving it with some chopped toasted nuts, chocolate chips, mini caramel waffles and a drizzle of caramel sauce. Delicious!