Welcome to my favorite caramel for the past decade: Quick Homemade Brown Sugar Caramel for the win! I love this recipe so much for its rich flavor *and* its simplicity in throwing together. It doesn’t get less fussy than this (no candy thermometers needed!).
Something magical happens when you mix sugar, cream and butter together and nothing demonstrates this better than really delicious caramel sauce. We’ll first heat sugar and butter until the butter is melted and the sugar dissolves.
Then we’ll whisk in heavy whipping cream (don’t use heavy cream; I like the consistency better with the former). Finally, add in the salt and vanilla and you’re done!
The hot caramel will be quite thin and thicken as it cools to the perfect texture and consistency (it pours like a dream!).
And The Cake Book has a delicious the Caramel Apple Cake!!. All this is to say, most occasions can benefit from adding caramel to the mix (secret life motto)! Serve this
Sugar Note: Most chefs say that only granulated sugar can be successfully caramelized; other sugars — such as brown sugar and unrefined sugar such as cane sugar — contain impurities that can inhibit caramelization. It’s those impurities that can burn before the sugar has time to caramelize.
Real Vanilla Extract or Vanilla Bean or Vanilla Paste
So many options! I break down all three vanilla options here (including how to make your own extract). For this recipe, it calls for real vanilla extract because it’s easy and what most bakers have available.
If you want to really kick things up a notch, add half of a scraped vanilla bean into the caramel (details on how to do this here)…you’ll get fantastic flavor and see those gorgeous pretty vanilla flecks.
Lastly, if you have some vanilla paste lying around you can use it 1:1 in place of the vanilla extract and BONUS you’ll get those pretty vanilla flecks in your caramel as well.
Sea salt really draws out the caramel flavors whilst simultaneously tempering some (SOME!) of the sweetness. This recipe calls for fine sea salt, no flakes. Use the salted caramel in these
Brown Sugar Caramel Ingredients
The recipe asks for dark brown sugar because I wanted this brown sugar caramel loaded with as much flavor as possible from the start. In a pinch, feel free to use light brown sugar and it will still be fabulous.
Grab heavy whipping cream, don’t go for half and half. This will make a nice, rich, creamy and thick caramel sauce.
The recipe calls for unsalted butter but again, feel free to use salted. Love love love salted butter. If you do use salted butter, I would only use half of the added sea salt. Taste and adjust as needed.
Caramel Popcorn – 2 versions(white sugar & brown sugar)
FAQ
What happens if I use all brown sugar instead of white sugar?
Which sugar is better for caramel?
Why is my brown sugar caramel grainy?
Can We still make caramel out of brown sugar?
So for sure, we can still make caramel out of it. By this time, I’ve already made successful caramel batches a few times. And with that, it means I’ve made it in many, many times – with refined sugar, with butter, without butter, with cream, with milk, with vanilla, without vanilla. BUT, I’ve never made it with brown sugar before.
Can one substitute brown sugar for white sugar in a brownie recipe?
In most baking recipes, you can substitute brown sugar for white sugar in the same proportion. So, if your recipe includes one cup white sugar, you may substitute it for one cup brown sugar. Others ingredients to replace one cup of white or brown sugar can be: 3/4 cup of honey, or 3/4 cups of maple syrup, 2/3 cup of agave or one teaspoon stevia.
Can I use brown sugar instead of butter in caramel sauce?
BUTTER: Use unsalted butter so you can control the amount of salt in your caramel sauce. Do NOT use any substitutes! BROWN SUGAR: When a recipe doesn’t specify a type of brown sugar to use, it means to use light brown sugar. For this Caramel Sauce recipe, I use light brown sugar, but it comes down to personal preference.
How do you make caramel with brown sugar?
Making Caramel with Brown Sugar is a total snap! You’ll find a detailed recipe card below, but here’s an overview of the steps: Melt butter. Begin by melting the butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add brown sugar and cream. Whisk in the brown sugar and cream until smooth. Simmer.