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Caramel + Salt = Hot Flavor for 2009
Looks like one of the big flavors of 2009 will be sweet caramel seasoned with fancy salt, thanks in part to President-elect Barack Obama.
The combination of salt and caramel has been around for a while. It’s been a favorite of French and American chefs, but it looks like this could be the year it will become a mainstream hit in the USA.
Häagen-Dazs has introduced a reserve brand of salted caramel ice cream. “Starbucks”:http://www.starbucks.com/retail/nutrition_beverage_detail.asp?selProducts=%7B1A655452-1822-4FA2-83AA-118FBD6DA6FF%7D now offers a salted caramel hot chocolate as a seasonal wintertime beverage, and just last month the flavor was one of the selections in a box of store-brand truffles sold at Wal-Mart.
But perhaps the biggest boost for the salted caramel flavor came from its endorsement by Mr. Obama. As reported by Kim Severson in the New York Times, the president-elect favors a version created by Seattle candy-maker Fran’s Chocolates, a truffle that is coated in dark chocolate and sprinkled with smoked sea salt. A plentiful supply of the sweets was kept on hand for the presidential during the 2008 campaign, and will likely become a White House staple. Fran’s salted caramels are now the company’s top seller.
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