Salted caramel pudding

Turning caramel into a pudding is a slightly goopier process than I thought it would be. All along the way, I was convinced I was doing it wrong. First the sugar refused to caramel (so I turned the heat up), then it refused to gel with the cream and milk (I stirred faster), then the cornstarch turned it lumpy. When I finally poured it off, it didn't need straining, as there was a layer of unidentifiable lumpy goop at the bottom of the pan. Which I left on the bottom of the pan.

And you know what? These were still delicious. Despite my misgivings, they turned out perfectly, and were in fact even tastier on the next day. Definitely worth the effort.

From Edible Boston:

1½ cups sugar
¼ cup water
3 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
¼ cup cornstarch
2 eggs
3 egg yolks
1½ teaspoons sea salt
4 tablespoons butter

Combine sugar and water in a pot and bring to a medium brown caramel. (Cook the sugar over medium-high heat, until the sugar starts to melt and color.) Be careful that the up sides sides of the pot are clean of any sugar before cooking. Once mixture begins to show signs of caramalization, gently swirl mixture in pot. Do not stir until adding the cream and milk. Slowly pour in the cream and milk, stirring while adding. (Be careful as mixture while will vigorously bubble and is extremely hot.)

In another bowl, combine the cornstarch, eggs, egg yolks, and salt. Slowly add a little of the hot caramel mixture to your egg mixture, whisking it into the eggs to gradually warm them. Once the eggs are warmed, add them to the rest of the caramel and cook until the mixture thickens. Strain the mixture over your butter, allowing the butter to start to melt. (Again, any type of fine strainer will work.) Use an immersion blender or whisk to smooth everything together. Pour into desired vessels and chill to set.