It’s no secret that many kids have a sweet tooth. This can be a great way to get kids involved in cooking – for example by making caramel butter.
Does caramel grow on trees? Of course not – but what might seem obvious to grown-ups, children need to learn for themselves. After all, kids’ favourite flavours, such as vanilla and chocolate, do in fact come from plants.
So I take advantage of my son’s fondness for sweet spreads to show him how caramel is actually made. I bring 200 g of sugar to a simmer with 80 ml of water and stir continuously until the sugar has dissolved. I then add 100 g of butter and 1 tsp of salt. The salt is optional, but I like the classic French combination of salt and caramel. If you’re not a fan, you can simply omit the salt or use a little less. Keep stirring until the butter has melted, then turn down the heat and continue to simmer. Ideally, the caramel should continue to bubble gently. There’s no need to stir at this stage, just remove the crystals from the edge of the pan from time to time with a spoon.
After about two hours, you should have a nicely gooey caramel. Now add 150 ml of single cream, stir, simmer for a few minutes more (longer if you like a thicker caramel) and pour into a jar. The caramel butter will keep for several weeks in the refrigerator.