Taste duplication cooking attempts

After my previous ice cream success I was feeling confident enough to try and re-create Salt & Straw's "Sea Salt with Caramel Ribbon" flavor. I think I was close, but Salt & Straw's version is still better, every bite of their version has a nice salty kick without being too overpowering.

The salt flavor in mine was uneven (only shows up on certain bites where I have a caramel praline piece), and if I just try adding some flaky fancy salt after it's scooped into a bowl, it's too strong. (I relied on David Lebovitz's Sea Salt Caramel ice cream recipe on his web site--though I purposefully made less caramel for the base custard because I didn't want a dark brown colored ice cream.)


I am bit happier with my lightweight version of a manakish. I made a quick flatbread using the approximate recipe below. I would add more Zatar spice next time, but overall found this extremely satisfactory of replicating manakish but not as heavy on the dough and oil as one you'd get in a restaurant.

1 c. almond meal
1/4-1/2 c. cake flour (not sure how much, just threw this in because I had a bit left that I wanted to use up)
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. egg whites (I would have used one egg, but I have a bunch of whites leftover from the ice cream)
1 Tbsp. olive oil
(Mix all ingredients, then place between two pieces of parchment paper and roll out thinly. Bake at 350 degrees--maybe 10 min?, brushed with olive oil and Zatar spice).