This winter, the salted caramel is hot. Starbucks added salted caramel hot chocolate to its drink menu in the fall, and Trader Joe’s began offering salted caramels in stores just before Christmas. Ina Garten even makes them on the new season of “Barefoot Contessa.”
Taking the salted caramel to a gooey new level, Haagen Dazs added a decadent Fleur de Sel Caramel flavor to its Reserve line of premium ice creams. Fleur de Sel caramels are covered in chocolate, then mixed with caramel ice cream with caramel ribbons and French sea salt.
On its Web site, the company recommends an unorthodox way of enjoying this ice cream flavor: “After a bucketful of fresh salty oysters, take the empty shells and scoop on dollops of Fleur de Sel Caramel ice cream.” Haagen Dazs also suggests pairing the ice cream with a syrupy dessert wine, such as a French Muscat.
The combination of sugary and salty is pleasing to many who find traditional candy too sweet. Sea salt works especially well with caramel because the slight burning sensation of the salt crystals on the tongue brings out the burnt sugar taste in the caramel.
Baltimore pastry chef Jason Gehring, who creates desserts for Cinghiale, has long favored using sea salt in baking. He salutes the pairing of salt and caramel with a confection currently available at the restaurant. It’s a chocolate cake with layers of hazelnut sable, salted caramel ganache, chocolate mousse and hazelnut sponge.
“The hazelnut sable has quite a large amount of salt, as well as the caramel ganache,” Gehring said. “I plate it up with bitter chocolate and caramel sauces, a pulled caramelized hazelnut, and my house-made version of cocoa puff (miniature creme puffs made with cocoa powder).”
Joy Ludwig, pastry chef at Charleston, said sweet and salt have always worked well together. “Salt helps to enhance sweetness and add depth and balance to a dish,” she said.” For Charleston diners she prepares a layered dark chocolate dessert with a salted caramel layer, served with an espresso mousse. She also makes a soft caramel petit four that she dips in dark chocolate and sprinkles with fleur de sel.
Salted caramels are made locally by Mouth Party ( www.mouthpartycaramel.com) and sold at Eddie’s, Graul’s and coffee shops around town. Several candy companies sell them online, usually covered in chocolate. Try Fran’s Chocolates ( www.franschocolates.com www.franschocolates.com) — President-elect Barack Obama’s favorite — and Woodhouse Chocolate (www.woodhousechocolate.com www.woodhousechocolate.com).
Follow Christine Stutz’s culinary adventures at www.twitter.com/foodiechris
