One lazy afternoon a few weeks back, I had an epiphany about 2 things! First, I've learned that brown butter is really good not just for cookies but for other desserts as well. Second, I've been eating too much ice cream and wondered why I've never made them before! So in the ensuing weeks, I made it a mission to create an excellent brown butter ice cream recipe. I've seen a few recipes on Pinterest of either a brown butter ice cream or brown butter pecan ice cream. Since it's still summer time, I wanted to create a different version! I've made 3 different batches of this ice cream recipe tweaking it in each batch. Since salted caramel is the main ingredient for this ice cream, I thought why not use salted butter. I'm sad to say that my first batch was too salty, I had to throw it all away! It was disgusting! Then, I made a custard-based recipe that didn't harden enough to my liking. This last one, I've decided to go with my favorite non-custard ice cream base recipe and it turned out perfect!

Here are some tips before making this ice cream:

• You need an ice cream machine! I bought mine for $31 at Target!

• You need a lot of ice! Well, duh! But our fridge ice maker is small so I had to buy a bag of ice from the grocery store to fill up my machine.

• Make the caramel sauce ahead if you can. Having this ready on ice-cream-making-day makes everything go faster!

• Ice cream machines have different churning instructions! Follow your manufacturer's instructions in churning.

• Be patient. My churning time varied in all 3 test batches I've made. This last one lasted a little over an hour.

• The ice cream will feel firmer than soft-serve ice cream and if you want it even firmer, you may need to freeze it for a few hours before serving!

• To achieve a smooth flat surface when the ice cream is transferred to a container, I use an offset spatula dipped in warm water.

There are 3 main steps in making this ice cream!

1. Make the base brown butter caramel sauce.

2. Make the caramel bits and mix with chopped chocolates.

3. Churning.

Brown Butter Caramel Sauce

Anything brown butter is awesome and this one might just be the best! This caramel sauce recipe can be the best secret ingredient on your next baked goods! 

• 1/3 cup butter

• 1 cup sugar

• 1 1/4 cup heavy cream

• 1/4 tsp salt

1. To make the brown butter, place butter in a small saucepan and cook at medium-high. As it is cooking, the butter will bubble. Continue to cook until you see the milk solids separate and turn to golden brown. Keep an eye on your butter to make sure it's not overcooked.

2. Once browned, immediately take out of the heat and pour into a bowl. Cool butter for about 15 minutes before making the caramel.

3. To make the caramel, in a separate saucepan, place 1 cup of sugar evenly in the pan and set over medium heat. Cook without stirring for a minute or two to allow the sugar to slightly melt.

4. With a wooden spatula, stir the sugar consistently. Initially, it will make hard lumps, just keep stirring until it's all melted.

5. Once the lumps have melted and the caramel has reached the desired amber color, turn off the heat and add the heavy cream in 1/3 increment.

6. Whisk briskly in every addition of the cream.

7. Stir in brown butter and salt.

8. Pour caramel to a separate bowl to cool. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to up to 2 weeks.

Brown Butter Caramel Ice Cream

I am all about brown butter and this ice cream recipe is an absolute favorite! I used a brown butter caramel base recipe then added bits of salted caramel and chocolate chunks! 

• 1 cup milk

• 1 batch brown butter caramel

• milk solids from brown butter (brown 1/3 cup butter, strain with a paper towel and save the solids)

• 1 cup sugar

• 1/4 tsp sea salt or fleur de sel

• 2 tsp vanilla

• 2 cups cream

• 1/2 cup milk chocolate (roughly chopped)

• 1/2 cup dark chocolate (roughly chopped)

• caramel crumble bits (see recipe in the bottom)

1. Freeze your ice cream machine bowl the night before making the ice cream.

2. Place 1/3 cup butter in a saucepan and cook until the milk solids are golden brown. Immediately take out of the heat and strain with a paper towel into a bowl. Save the milk solids to use for this ice cream while the butter can be used later for other recipes.

3. For the ice cream base, heat up milk, brown butter caramel sauce and sugar in a saucepan and stir until fully incorporated, then turn off the heat. Once thoroughly mixed, add in vanilla, salt and milk solids. Then, add the heavy cream into the mixture.

4. Transfer to a bowl and cover with the plastic wrap touching the top of the mixture.

5. Refrigerate for 45 minutes. Make sure the mixture is cold before churning.

6. While waiting for the ice cream base mixture to cool, make the caramel bits. See instructions below.

7. Pour into the cold ice cream machine bowl. Add the caramel bits and chunks of chocolate.

8. Follow your ice cream machine's manufacturer instructions.

9. Once your ice cream machine stops, you can serve the brown butter caramel ice cream immediately or freeze to harden more!

To make the caramel bits:

1/2 c sugar & 1/4 tsp sea salt, a baking sheet lined with silicone mat or parchment paper. 

1. Place sugar evenly in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook the sugar for about a minute or two without stirring to allow the sugar to melt. Once starting to melt, with a spatula, stir the sugar consistently. There will be hard lumps of sugar in the beginning, however, keep stirring and it will dissolve eventually. 

2. Once all the lumps of sugar are dissolved and become amber in color, turn off the heat and stir in the salt. Then, pour to a prepared sheet pan with a silicone mat or parchment paper. Tilt the pan from side to side to create a thin layer of caramel. 

3. Allow caramel to cool for about 15 minutes or until it hardens. With a pestle or meat tenderizer, crack the caramel in different sizes from powdery to bits and pieces. You can also use a food processor. Make sure the caramel are in small chunks because biting a large piece of hard caramel is just not fun.

I had tons of fun making this recipe and I hope that you and your family get to share and enjoy this too! I would love to see your creation by tagging me at @sweetsavorygrace on Instagram and @sweetsavrygrace on Twitter! Enjoy the rest of your summer! Cheers!