Caramel Rum Delirium Ice Cream Cake * Part 1

This is Part 1 of a multi-part caramel rum ice cream cake build. The instructions here focus on two components: a from-scratch caramel flavoring (made by dry-caramelizing sugar and deglazing with hot heavy cream) and the start of the cream cheese cake base that’ll get layered with ice cream later.

Dry caramel is intimidating but straightforward. Stir the sugar with a whisk until it looks like damp sand, then melt over medium-high heat as it moves through three stages: clear syrup, pale gold, and finally a deep amber. The lemon juice keeps it from crystallizing.

When the cream goes in, the pan erupts in steam and hard boil. Stand back, keep stirring, and it’ll settle into a silky sauce.

The finished caramel cools to room temperature before it’s incorporated into the cake batter with softened cream cheese, brown sugar, eggs, and dark rum.

Chef Tips

• Use a light-colored saucepan so you can see the caramel color. Dark steel hides the shift from amber to burnt.
• Don’t leave the stove. Caramel moves fast at the end, going from perfect to burnt in 30 seconds.
• When adding cream, pour slowly and keep your hand away from the steam. Splatters are hot enough to burn.
• Let caramel cool completely before folding into batter. Hot caramel will scramble the eggs.

Variations

• Swap dark rum for bourbon or spiced rum for different flavor notes.
• Add a pinch of flaky sea salt to the caramel for salted-caramel depth.
• Stir in toasted pecans or walnuts to the cake batter for texture.