Raspberry Butterscotch Sauce

Makes: About 1 cup/230 ml/280 grams

This rosy tinged, lilting raspberry butterscotch sauce is divine with so many ice creams, from fruity to chocolate. Butterscotch is caramel made with brown sugar. I use Muscovado sugar to give it extra flavor dimension, but brown sugar is also delicious. The sauce would also be lovely laced through the ice cream after spinning.

Plan Ahead The frozen raspberries will take several hours to thaw.

Raspberry Purée

Makes: ½ cup minus 2 teaspoons/108 ml/112 grams

frozen raspberries with no added sugar	228 grams (8 ounces)	2 cups
pure vanilla extract	.	1 teaspoon (5 ml)
fine sea salt	.	a pinch
lemon juice, freshly squeezed and strained	10 grams	2 teaspoons (10 ml)

Make the Raspberry Purée

1) In a strainer suspended over a medium bowl, thaw the raspberries completely. This will take several hours. (To speed thawing, place the strainer and bowl in an oven with a pilot light or viewing light on.) Press and stir the berries to force out all the juice. There should be almost ⅓ cup/79 ml of juice. Cover the berries and set aside.

2) Transfer the juice to a small saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Lower the heat and simmer, stirring constantly, until it becomes very syrupy and is reduced to 4 teaspoons/20 ml. Watch carefully toward the end as it goes really quickly and could scorch. (Alternatively, you can do this in the microwave, in a 4 cup/1 liter glass measure with a spout, lightly coated with nonstick cooking spray, swirling or stirring every 20 to 30 seconds.)

3) Press the berries through a fine-mesh strainer, using the back of a spoon. You should have about ⅓ cup/79 ml of pulp. (This will take about 20 minutes.) Stir in the vanilla and salt.

4) Stir the raspberry syrup and lemon juice into the purée. Into a 1 cup/237 ml glass measure with a spout, pour ⅓ cup/79 ml/72 grams of the raspberry purée. (Reserve any remaining purée to add to the completed raspberry butterscotch to taste.)

Store

Airtight: room temperature, 1 day; refrigerated, 1 week; frozen, 3 months (Bring to room temperature before using.)

Raspberry Butterscotch Sauce

unsalted butter	57 grams	4 tablespoons (½ stick)
light brown Muscovado sugar or dark brown sugar	108 grams	½ cup, firmly packed
corn syrup	21 grams	1 tablespoon (15 ml)
heavy cream	58 grams	¼ cup (59 ml)
Raspberry Purée	72 grams	⅓ cup (79 ml)

* About 30 minutes ahead, cut the butter into a few pieces and set it on the counter at room temperature (65° to 75°F/18° to 24°C).

Make the Butterscotch

1) In a small saucepan, using a silicone spatula, stir together the butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and cream until the sugar has dissolved. Bring it to a boil over medium-low heat, stirring constantly. Simmer for about 8 minutes, stirring gently, until very thickly bubbling. (An instant-read thermometer should read 240° to 244°F/116° to 118°C.)

2) Remove the pan from the heat and pour the butterscotch into the glass measure containing the raspberry purée. Stir until uniform in consistency. Cover tightly with plastic wrap.

3) Allow the raspberry butterscotch to cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. If desired, add more of the reserved raspberry purée to taste.

To Add to Ice Creams

To use as a swirl, while the ice cream is churning, set a 9 by 5 inch loaf pan, preferably Pyrex, in the freezer.

1) Pour about 155 grams/½ cup/118 ml of the sauce into a disposable piping bag or quart-size reclosable freezer bag, and cut a very small semicircle from one corner.

2) Spread about half of the ice cream evenly into the cold pan. Quickly pipe loops of the sauce over the top. With a small metal spatula or spoon, lightly swirl the raspberry butterscotch into the ice cream.

3) Repeat with the remaining ice cream and sauce.

4) Set the pan in the freezer for 30 minutes. Then use a large spoon to scoop the ice cream into a storage container or leave it in the pan. Press a piece of plastic wrap on the surface of the ice cream and allow it to firm for at least 4 hours in the freezer before serving.

Store

Airtight: room temperature, 1 day; refrigerated, 1 week; frozen, 3 months.

If the sauce crystallizes slightly on storage, reheat in the microwave for a few seconds, or in a small saucepan on low heat, stirring often, until melted and smooth.

Scoops

* Do not use the microwave for melting the chocolate and butter. It risks scorching the chocolate because fat in the butter reacts to the microwave more quickly.