Salted Butter Caramel Ice Cream - OMG!

I made this the other day, I'm a diabetic and this ice cream is dangerous. It's also one of the tastiest ice creams I have ever eaten. It's creator is David Lebovitz, the dessert genius and one time Chez Panisse pastry chef.

Not only is he a brilliant chef, but he is a very charming writer. He has moved to Paris and his site includes not only recipes, but wonderful commentary on his life in Paris, not to mention the occasional food tour opportunity.

My comments:

1. Make the praline in a cast iron pan. It is much more forgiving, I find, to other kind of metal, cast iron is very even. When ever I make it in stainless steel I have trouble.

2. Praline is not a clear perfect thing, mine had flecks of things I couldn't identify, so I made it again, same experience. My scientist boyfriend explained this, telling me that sea salt has impurities in it and that things crystallize a bit differently around different compounds, in other words: Flecks happen.

3. After the ice cream is made and you've added the praline, make sure you stir it in well.

4. Before you serve it, after it has been sitting in the freezer and has reached the desirable texture, be sure to stir the ice cream again. I realized (as I was scooping spoonfuls into my mouth late one night) that the bottom of the ice cream container was a thick layer of melted and partially melted salty praline that had mysteriously settled to the bottom - so be warned, don't let all the good stuff sink to the bottom!