Name: Healthy Date Caramel Sauce
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 9
Ingredients: 2 cups pitted dates; 3/4 cups unsweetened almond milk; 1/2 cup sugar free maple syrup; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

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This healthy, 4 ingredient Date Caramel Sauce is refined sugar free and delicious. It's easy to make, naturally gluten free and vegan. Use it in various recipes or as the perfect fruit dip!

Dates are an amazing ingredient to have on hand, due to their natural sweetness and versatility. If you're trying to cut back on refined sugars, then dates are the perfect substitute.

One of my favorite ways to use dates, is by far in this Healthy Date Caramel Sauce. Not only is it delicious eaten alone, it's also a great, naturally sweet addition to many different recipes!

Ingredients

This recipe uses only 4 ingredients that can be easily found at any local grocery store.

Pitted Dates - You can actually use either Medjool or Deglet Noor dates for this recipe. Medjool dates will typically give you a more caramel-like consistency, due to their juiciness and softer texture. Opt for the freshest dates that you can find, because the drier dates will be harder to blend to a caramel-like consistency. If using Deglet Noor dates, be sure to soak them in warm water for 30 minutes to an hour and drain prior to blending.

Sugar Free Maple Syrup - this aids in providing that creamy, caramel-like texture. If you are trying to cut calories back to a minimum, try a calorie-free syrup, like Lakanto or Walden Farms.

Unsweetened Almond Milk - This is essential to thin out the texture of the caramel, since the dates can provide a very thick texture

Vanilla Extract

How to Make Healthy Date Caramel Sauce

Begin with a bowl of fresh, soft dates. Add to a food processor along with vanilla and maple syrup.
Begin with a few pulses to break up the dates. Gradually add almond milk and blend the dates on high in 30 second intervals until a smooth, creamy consistency is achieved.

Optional: turn this into a healthy salted caramel sauce by adding ½ teaspoon sea salt!

Milk Substitutions: Some people may be intolerant to almonds. If that is the case, feel free to sub the almond milk with coconut milk or oat milk.

Food Processor vs. Blender

For this recipe, I highly recommend using a good food processor. This will allow you to achieve a thicker, creamy like consistency. However, you may use a blender if that is all that you have on hand. You will need to increase the almond milk slightly to allow everything to blend smoothly. This will result in a looser consistency for your caramel sauce, however still delicious! If you're on the hunt for a great, versatile blender; I highly recommend investing in a Vitamix.

How to Use Date Caramel Sauce

This caramel sauce makes the perfect dip to go alongside slices apples, pears or even celery sticks! There are many different ways to use this caramel in recipes too. Try using in:

Healthy British Flapjacks

Oatmeal Salted Caramel Bars

Energy Bites

Smoothies

Oatmeal

Yield: 9 Servings