Back in May we helped out with the food for my sister’s wedding. One of the things we made was a caramel syrup as part of an ice cream bar (pics coming later). We had a lot of people who have since asked for the recipe so I thought that I’d post it here. It is derived from a recipe that I got from OurBestBites, another food blog. The main difference is that we add a lot of kosher salt to our syrup, making it into a salted caramel syrup. If you are not familiar with Salted Caramel, don’t be too skeptical until you try it. It’s wonderful and adds a whole new dimension to caramel.

Buttermilk Salted Caramel Syrup

3/4 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup real butter (1 stick)
2 Tbsp. corn syrup
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. real vanilla extract

kosher salt to taste (about 2 tsp.)

Combine the buttermilk, granulated sugar, butter, corn syrup, and baking soda in a large sauce pan. This recipe tends to boil very large so use a larger pot than you’d think necessary.

Heat over medium heat until the butter melts and the mixture comes to a boil, stirring frequently. Continue to simmer for 8-9 minutes, stirring frequently. Below the foam you will see the color of the sauce gradually start to become golden brown. Continue to cook, while stirring and watching closely. Let it reach a dark amber color (if you’ve done candy before you might get worried and think its done a few seconds before it is). Once it reaches a dark, rich amber color, instantly remove it from the heat. Add the vanilla and salt.

You can optionally skim the foam from the top if you care about it looking perfect, otherwise just stir the foam in. I store mine in a squeeze bottle, like the ones that you can find in most kitchen and cooking stores.

It’s wonderful on ice cream, brownies, cheesecake, waffles, french toast, etc.

This year’s Mother’s Day dinner had a rough time getting started but sure turned out to be a wonderful evening. First off, we were out of town on Mother’s day so we had to move our annual dinner back. Then after we had set a new date and sent out the invitations, we had a conflict come up and had to change again. Then to top it all off, on the evening of the event as our guests started to arrive, our sink backed up and we started an hour behind (thanks to all of our guests for patiently waiting!). Once all of that was out of the way, everything else went swimmingly. We did twelve courses this year. As usual, most of the courses have a heavy French influence and this year many also had local foraged ingredients. I want to make a special call out to Brian, who took these wonderful pictures, Val, for lending us some great camera gear, Yossi, on sous chef, and all those who helped to pull it off. Now, on to the courses!

Wow, we had a big enough group this year that it took two tables!

1st Course

We started out with a cheese course. This included 5 different cheeses (ack! I don’t have all of the types of cheese written down so I’ll omit the types here, sniff). In the center was a pate au noix that a friend had brought be back from Normandy.  I also included fresh wild honey, candied pecans, and a selection of homemade sourdough breads.

2nd Course

The 2nd course was a pickled Kobe beef short rib served with a charred strawberry and a cinnamon vanilla ‘essence’. The essence came in a small dish with some dry ice.  The dish was covered by a small bowl. As each guest lifted their bowl, a waft of the cinnamon vanilla scent would rush out, adding to the experience of the dish. The dish was served warm.

3rd Course

The 3rd course consisted of a single ravioli or raviolo (see the recipe here in a previous post). It was filled with homemade ricotta, mustard greens, truffle oil, and a soft egg yolk that each guest would break as they cut into the raviolo. It was tossed in homemade truffle butter and sautéed sage.

4th Course

The 4th course was a shitake mushroom topped with grilled peppers and gorgonzola cheese.  It was a a simple vegetarian course but delicious in its simplicity.

5th Course

The 5th course was halibut poached in truffle butter and wrapped in a coconut crepe. It was served with a light curry sauce and seared locally foraged fiddleheads. (You can find the recipe here)

6th Course

The sixth course was risotto with locally foraged ramps, prosciutto, and fresh parmesan. It was rich and silky…a guest favorite.

7th Course

The 7th course was French onion soup with fresh thyme and gruyere cheese. The onions used were local sweet Vidalia and the broth was made with beef shanks.

8th Course

The 8th course was roast pork belly (a la David Chang) served with celeriac root puree, a peach raspberry chutney, and topped with a chicharron (he he, pork rind from the pork belly).

9th Course

The 9th course was a palate cleanser between the heavy 8th and 10th courses. It was a shot of pear ginger juice (with some citrus as well) and served with a bit of candied ginger. The shot was strong, peppery, sweet, and refreshing.

10th Course

The 10th course was a grilled rib eye steak, blackened with Godiva chocolate, toasted malt barley, and oregano. The steak was served with grilled mustard greens, locally foraged morel mushrooms, and cured Guanciale from Salumi. It was served with a crispy cheese cracker, oregano infused oil, and chocolate oil.

11 Course

The 11th course was dessert. It included a slice of ‘crack’ pie as made famous by the Momofuku Milk Bar. It was served with milk ice cream on a vanilla tuile, and a chocolate hazelnut joconde.

12th Course

The 12th and final course was a petite four. It was a French canele served with a toasted malt barley and hazelnut ‘latte’.

 

With that the meal was finished. It was a wonderful night with good friends. I recommend trying something similar if you are up to it. It takes time and work but the time spent with good friends eating good food is something to be cherished.