Cajeta Caramel Sauce with Bourbon

This certainly has to be my new favorite caramel sauce. Cajeta sauce or goat’s milk caramel, originated in Mexico. In the preparation of this sauce, goat milk is slowly simmered with sugar and usually flavored with cinnamon and vanilla. Baking soda is also a key ingredient as it hastens the browning process while helping prevent the milk from coagulating.

Below shows my cajeta 45 minutes into the cooking process. It’s starting to turn a beautiful caramel color, but isn’t quite there yet. You see the cinnamon stick and vanilla bean pod in the pot? That’s where all the flavor is. I like to stir in a splash of bourbon towards the end of the cooking process, for yet even more flavor.

Gooey, rich and irresistible. This caramel sauce not only pairs perfectly with my Pumpkin Waffles, but you’d be missing out if you didn’t try some with my Vanilla Bean Ice Cream or Brownies (minus the ganache topping-or not).

Cajeta Caramel Sauce with Bourbon

Author: Sabrina Russo
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Yield: 1 1/4 cup sauce

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Description

Ingredients

1 quart goat milk
1 cup sugar
1 cinnamon stick
1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped out (or 2 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract)
½ heaping tsp kosher salt or ½ tsp of fine salt
½ tsp baking soda, dissolved in ½ tsp water
1 tbsp bourbon

Instructions

Start sauce: Combine milk, sugar, cinnamon stick, vanilla beans and pod in a large, heavy-bottom sauce pan or dutch oven. Bring to a gentle boil, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and stir in dissolved baking soda. Be cautious as baking soda causes the mixture to rise and bubble. When bubbles subside, return to heat.
Simmer & serve: Simmer mixture over medium-low to medium heat, stirring at least every 10-15 minutes to ensure caramel does not burn. You don’t want the mixture to be boiling; however, it should be at a rapid simmer (otherwise this process may take seemingly forever). Continue to cook for about 1-1 ½ hours or until mixture takes on a deep caramel color and is a syrupy consistency. After about 45 minutes, I tasted the sauce and removed the cinnamon stick as it was cinnamon-flavored enough for me at this point. Stir in the bourbon during the last few minutes of cooking. Before serving, also discard the vanilla bean pods. If using vanilla extract, stir in with the bourbon. Serve with my pumpkin waffles, vanilla ice cream or your sweet treat of choice.

Category: Sauce
Method: Simmer
Cuisine: Mexican