Cajeta is a simple caramel sauce based on goat milk. The cinnamon stick is a classic addition and adds flavor and depth to the caramel sauce recipe. It can be spread on toast or incorporated into desserts such as flan, spooned over pound cake, drizzled over ice cream or even stirred into coffee instead of sugar and cream.
Cajeta (Goat’s Milk Caramel Sauce)
Author: Bakepedia
Makes: Makes 1 cup
Ingredients
- 1 quart goat's milk
- 1 cup sugar
- 1, 2- to 3-inch cinnamon stick, preferably Mexican canela
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
Instructions
- Whisk together the milk, sugar and cinnamon stick in a heavy, deep 4- or 5- quart pot and cook over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and whisk to make sure all the sugar has dissolved. Remove the pot from the heat and whisk in the baking soda. Adjust the heat so that the mixture simmers consistently. Too high a heat and you will get a boil over, so take care. Cook, whisking often, until the mixture turns golden, which could take up to an hour. The texture should be similar to a medium thick caramel sauce. You can test the cajeta by dropping a small spoonful on a plate and allowing it to cool, at which point you should be able to draw your finger through the cajeta and still see the plate.
- Pour the cajeta through a fine meshed strainer into a clean jar and allow to cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate until needed, up to 1 month. If it firms up too much upon refrigeration, it may be gently warmed.
Bakepedia Tips
- We bought our goat’s milk at Whole Foods. Check their stores or look locally for farmers who raise milking goats.
- The recipe can be doubled, but make sure you also double the size of your pot. The depth of the pot is important, or you will get very messy boil-overs.
I am getting very grainy Cajeta. It is hard once it cools too. Can you help me?
When chilled it is very firm. You cannot really scoop it out very well like you would peanut butter. How hard is yours? As far as texture, it won’t be as clear and smooth as a classic sugar/water/cream caramel. It will be opaque once chilled and firmed and there can be a bit of texture on the tongue but it melts away into a smooth experience on the palate. Did you use pasteurized or raw milk? We tested with pasteurized. Also, perhaps your heat might have been too high at one point or the cajeta cooked for too long. These would be the first trouble-spotting areas we would think about. Let us know if this helps!