Caramel au beurre salé

I made torrijas this evening, with an eye to putting them on my neglected blog. They are what Americans call French toast, even though in France they are called pain perdu (lost bread); stale bread soaked in milk and egg and then fried. In this Spanish version they are fried in olive oil and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar.

To go with them, I made some salted caramel sauce, aka butterscotch. After all, if you are going to be indulgent, you might as well go the whole hog. It's very easy to make:

85 g butter
225 g sugar, preferably cubes, otherwise granulated
100 ml cream
1/2 tbs fleur de sel (flaked sea salt)

Use a larger pan than you think you need, because it will splatter. And measure out all the ingredients before you start. Melt the sugar to make caramel. If using cubes it's easy -- as they warm over a moderate heat, use a wooden spoon or spatula to crush them, and they will easily melt into a golden caramel. If using granulated, heat slowly in a dry pan. Don't stir until it has melted, but shake occasionally. Then raise the heat to caramelise it. You need to watch it like a hawk -- it can burn in seconds.

When the caramel is the shade you want (not too pale -- I like mine a light mahogany colour), remove from the heat instantly and add the butter all at once. Keep your hand well out of the way, as the caramel will bubble up fiercely. Stir briskly till the butter has melted, then add the cream in the same way and stir. Stir in sea salt flakes. Leave for 5-10 minutes to cool before pouring into a glass jar -- this fills one 350 g jam jar. It will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks at least; warm it before using, as it stiffens once cold. It's good on ice cream too ...