To prepare the salted caramel sauce, add heavy cream to a small saucepan and set the heat to low. The goal is to slightly warm the cream because you don’t want to add a cold dairy product to hot liquid. 

Over medium-high heat, add the sugar and water to a heavy-bottomed saucepan and stir to combine. Stop stirring and bring to a boil. 

Continue boiling until the mixture turns a deep amber color, then slowly whisk in the warmed cream until thoroughly incorporated. Remove from heat and add salt and butter. Stir until butter is totally incorporated into the mixture. Transfer to a serving dish or storage container and allow to cool while you prepare the ice cream. 

For the ice cream, pour the sweetened condensed milk into a bowl and add the vanilla extract, if desired. 

Whip the heavy cream in a large bowl with a hand mixer or immersion blender until still peaks form. 

Add one scoop of the whipped cream to the bowl of condensed milk and mix it in. Then gently fold the rest of the whipped cream into the now lightened condensed milk. Thoroughly incorporate the whipped cream into the mixture, but do not overwork it to the point it loses its airiness. 

Pour half of the whipped cream/condensed milk mixture into an 8” loaf pan. Drizzle the cooled salted caramel sauce over the milk mixture and spread the chopped pecans evenly over the entire surface. Top with remaining whipped cream/condensed milk. 

Use a butter knife to incorporate the caramel sauce and pecans throughout the ice cream by pressing it down into the mixture and making sweeping “cuts” back and forth across the entire length of the pan. 

Cover with wax paper and press down to remove any air pockets. Place in freezer for a minimum of 6 hours, but preferably overnight. Will last up to 2 weeks in the freezer. Store any remaining salted caramel sauce in an airtight container for up to one week.