Caramel sauce.  It’s like a little jar of happiness in the fridge.  You can eat it on ice cream or yogurt, pour some in your coffee in the morning, or stand in front of the fridge in your pajamas eating it out of the mason jar with a spoon.

Here’s what you need:

1 cup sugar
1¼ cups heavy cream
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
¼ tsp. coarse salt
½ tsp. vanilla extract

Here’s what you do:
Spread the sugar in an even layer over the bottom of a large saucepan and place on the stove over medium heat. When the sugar begins to liquefy around the edges, use a spatula to gently stir it towards the center.  Continue stirring very gently until all the sugar is melted, being careful not to over-stir.  While this is happening, measure out the heavy cream into a liquid measuring cup and scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the cream.  Set aside.  Once the caramel reaches a deep amber color, immediately remove the saucepan from the heat.  Now, very carefully and SLOWLY, whisk in half of the cream.  The mixture will steam and bubble violently (hence the SLOWLY part).  Stir until the cream is well incorporated, then whisk in the remaining cream.  Stir in the salt and the vanilla.  If any sugar has hardened, place the saucepan over low heat and whisk until smooth.

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  If the caramel becomes harder than you’d like, you can just re-heat it briefly in the microwave or over the stove to achieve a nice consistency once more.

Recipe courtesy of  Annie’s Eats