4-Ingredient Date Caramel Sauce
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Published Oct 12, 2017, Updated Oct 19, 2021
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A quick and easy recipe for 4-ingredient date caramel sauce made from Medjool dates. Perfect as a dip or topping for healthy treats.
We all know I love Medjool dates. You can eat them plain or stuffed with nut butter as a snack but I also love to use them in both sweet and savory recipes.
The Perfect Healthy Dip for Apples
This date caramel is sweet and delicious. It definitely still has sugar, but I love that the dates are able to provide the rich sweet caramel flavor along with fiber and a host of other vitamins and minerals. Medjool dates are a great source of potassium, copper, magnesium, vitamin B6, niacin, calcium, iron and vitamin K.
4 Ingredient Real Food Caramel
It’s too good to resist. And I love that it’s made with real food, simple ingredients. Added bonus, there’s no heavy cream or butter involved so this caramel is dairy-free and vegan. Boom!
- medjool dates – make sure you get Medjool dates, which are a fresh fruit, not dried! You’ll find them in the produce section of your grocery store. Your dates should be soft, not hard. If they are dry or hard, you can soak them in water for about 30 minutes, drain and then use them in the recipe.
- sea salt – just a touch, to bring the flavors together!
- vanilla extract – a flavor enhancer.
- unsweetened almond milk – you can use store-bought or make your own almond milk.
Ways to Use This Date Caramel
- Apple Nachos
- Salted Caramel Oatmeal
- Chocolate Caramel Ice Cream Bars
- Apple Samoas with Date Caramel
- Samoa Baked Oatmeal
- Baked Apples
4-Ingredient Date Caramel
Ingredients
- 16 medjool dates, pitted*
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ -1 cup unsweetened almond milk, store-bought or homemade
Instructions
- Add all ingredients (starting with ¾ cup almond milk) into a high powered blender or food processor and blend until mixture is smooth and there are no date chunks detectable.
- Add more almond milk, 1-2 Tablespoons at a time, if needed to help the blending process or to thin the caramel.
- Use immediately or store in the fridge for later.
Notes
- Recipe works best fresh, soft medjool dates. If dates are dry or hard, you can soak them in water for about 30 minutes, drain and then use them in the recipe.
- If you’re using the smaller deglet noor dates, you’ll need to use more! This is something you can play around with to get the caramel sauce thickness you’re looking for.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Can this be done with cow’s milk?
I haven’t tried it, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work! Let me know if you try it. 🙂
YUM! I am obsessed with dates and had no idea that had so many health benefits too. More reasons to eat them!
Ok…I’m putting this on everything!! Can’t wait to see what you make with this!
Brittany, do you think coconut milk would work, as well? We have an almond allergy in the fam!
Hi Linda. Yes, I think coconut milk (or any other milk) will work great!
Yum, I had been meaning to try making date caramel, thanks for the recipe!
This is amazing! Only problem I had was having enough volume of mixture in my Vitamix so I had to keep scraping it down. I was never really able to blend all the date pieces up, but that did not affect the taste. Dunked my fresh Honeycrisp apples in the “caramel.” WOW!!!
I live in Kuwait, and we love our dates! So I’m looking forward to making this… but it says “1/2 unsweetened almond milk”. Is that 1/2 cup, 1/2 TBSP, or what?
Oops. I should be 1/2 cup. So sorry about that.
Is that 1/2 cup Almond Milk? It just says 1/2 Almond Milk.
Delicious!!! Tastes like real caramel only that it is super healthy. According to TCM dates are great for skin and tissues and rebuilding blood… great for women – all in moderation but now I have a way to integrate them in the most delectable way ever. Many THANKS!
Can the date caramel be frozen?
My guess is YES, it can be frozen. I’ll certainly try it.
Hi! I haven’t tried freezing it, but I don’t see why you couldn’t. Let me know how it turns out, enjoy!
Omg this caramel is so delicious! Thanks for sharing, I’m eating some with apple slices now and plan to put the rest into a vegan snickers cream pie later 😀
How long will this last in the fridge? I’m thinking of using it as an addition to ice coffee too.
Hi Jenn! It should last at least a week in the fridge and omg, I bet it will be delicious in iced coffee. Can you report back? 🙂
This is so good and so easy!
I did find that 1tsp of salt could be too much, so I only added a bit over 1/2tsp and still find that I can taste the salt a lottle too much. I mean, I love salted caramel but the salty aftertaste on this was a bit much. I think 1/2 tsp, or even 1/4tsp, would be just perfect!
Thanks for the recipe!!
Can I use water instead of milk? I’m all out lol!
It might be less creamy but it should still work! Let me know if you try it!
Amazing!!! I have to go dairy free while nursing and miss the sweets. This recipe was incredibly easy and tasty. I used some and added chopped pecans and shredded coconut…. tasted like the frosting for a German chocolate cake. Put it on a rice cake -so yummy!!!
Oh my goodness this is so so yummy! My 18 month old wants to eat spoonfuls of it! I had to cut him off haha! Thank you for this delicious recipe.
This makes a terrific caramel latte.
Delicious! Might just be licking the lid of the food processor…just sayin’. Thanks, Brittany, for another scrumptious and healthier version recipe.
Forgot to mention, used unsweetened cartoned coconut milk. Superb!
Which non nut milk would you suggest in place of almond?
Cashew would be my next choice. 🙂
Wow. This actually states like salted caramel 😳 I was not expecting that. It’s so good! I have a MAJOR sweet tooth but trying to eat healthier. Dipped apples in it yesterday and strawberries today. Strawberries are even better than apples 🤤 tastes like a rich caramel candy with strawberry flavor. Thanks so much!
Woo-hoo!! I am so glad you are loving this sauce, Olya. It’s my favorite. 🙂 Thank you so much for leaving a comment and star rating. The reviews are super helpful so I appreciate it!
I never thought it would be this good! I thought my dates were soft enough, so it is a bit chunky but IT WAS FANTASTIC!
Ahh yay!! I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed this sauce, Melissa! Thank you for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. It means the world to me. <3
I made this for my Bunko group and they loved it. They couldn’t believe it was made without sugar. Thank you for a simple delicious treat.
Oh yay!! That makes me so happy to hear, Susan. 🙂 Thank you so much for coming back to leave a comment and star rating, I so appreciate it!
Simply amazing. I used skim cow’s milk, and the colour isn’t as rich, but WOW! This is my new favourite thing to help reduce refined sugar in my life–thank you!
Yay!! So glad you tried and enjoyed this recipe, Jennifer. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment and star rating. I so appreciate it. <3
Way too much salt. Also I would recommend putting the milk in the blender and adding the dates one at a time so that at least some of them get very smooth.
Hey Diana! Thanks for your feedback. You can definitely limit the amount of salt you add based on your taste preferences. 🙂
Love this caramel sauce. Thank you so much! You hadn’t mentioned how long it lasts in the fridge and freezer. Just curious
Hi Kyla! I’m so glad you enjoy this caramel sauce. It should last at least a week in the fridge!
What adjustments would you make using deflect dates? I know it may not be as sweet, with which I’m fine. I have them on hand & really want to make this!
You might just need to use more than 8 dates since they are smaller than medjool dates! I’d just play around with the taste and ratio of liquid, but it should still turn out the same! Let me know if you end up trying it!
My absolute favourite recipe! So simple and utterly delicious.
Yay!! I’m so glad you’re a fan of this caramel sauce, Cherelle. Thanks for coming back to leave a comment and star rating. I so appreciate it. <3
Yummmy! I soaked dried dates in water for a couple hours. Came out perfect! Thank you
Yummy! I used Soy milk instead and added just a tablespoon of coconut sugar.
Yay!! So glad you enjoyed this sauce. Thanks for trying it and for coming back to leave a comment and star rating, Katie. I so appreciate it!
This turned out really bad! Far too much salt in this recipe which destroyed and sweetness. So mad that I bought a whole packet of expensive dates to be all thrown out
Oh no!! I’m so sorry you didn’t enjoy this sauce, Matina. Did you just add the 1 teaspoon or more salt? You can always certainly adjust the spices in my recipes to fit your taste.
Your salted caramel using dates was soooo great!
The best I’ve tasted!
Ahh that makes me so happy to hear, Margaret!! I’m so glad you’re enjoying this sauce. Thanks for trying it and for coming back to leave a comment and star rating. I so appreciate it!
So easy and delicious! I was eating an apple and had a sudden desire for caramel sauce so this was a perfect fix that only took a few minutes. Thank you for the recipe!
Really yummy! Gonna have on ice cream. Can I freeze it?
Hey Maria – I haven’t tried freezing it, but I don’t see why not!
this is so delicious!! I used dried dates and left them in the fridge in water for a week (oops- but it was fine!) and also vanilla paste. cannot wait to try it on everything, especially the samoa oatmeal!
So glad this recipe turned out for you, Emily! It’s delicious on everything. 🙂
Just made this recipe and it was delicious!!! Finally a healthy way to eat something I’ve been missing for years. Thank you!
Ahh yay! That makes me so happy to hear, Jessica. I’m so pumped you like this. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment + star rating. I so appreciate it. 🙂
Yummy, yummy ,yummy!!! THANK YOU FOR SHARING!!
You’re so welcome, Jole! So glad you love this recipe. 🙂 Thanks for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I appreciate it!
I have just made this, tastes great, thanks 🙂
How long will it last in the fridge
So glad you’re loving it so far! 🙂 It should last about one week in the fridge.
My daughter dipped apples in it for Rosh Hashana tonight and loved it! I’m thinking of drizzling on oatmeal or French toast. What suggestions do you have for incorporating it to other dishes?
So glad this sauce was a hit! There are many ways of incorporating this sauce into recipes. I love it in my samoa baked oatmeal or in this salted caramel oatmeal. It would also be delish with French toast or pancakes. 🙂
I love it! Takes like Carmel and is great with cut up apples
So glad you’re loving this caramel sauce, Tess! Thanks for making it and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I appreciate it!
GENIUS! This is pure genius. Cannot wait to share it during Rosh Hashanah this year. Plain old honey has met its nutritional match!
This is outrageous! For so long I have read you can make caramel with dates and I never listened because I love caramel and I just didn’t think it would meet my standards. ; ) Was I wrong! We picked some apples from our local orchard and my husband wanted me to melt some of the caramel squares we had at home. Instead of doing that, I somehow convinced myself to try a date “caramel” recipe. I found this beauty and my life has been changed. This is sooo good and so simple. Thank you thank you!
Ahh yay, that makes me so happy to hear!! I’m so glad you finally tried the date caramel sauce and loved it!! Thanks for trying my recipe + for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I so appreciate it, Lacey. <3
So easy, fast, and yummy. I made it to swirl into a dark chocolate cake glaze. Amazing!
Ohhh, I love that idea!! Sounds delicious. 🙂
This date caramel sauce was mind blowing. I never expected it to taste so much like caramel so easily. I will be enjoying it all week as a dip for apples and a drizzle on my oatmeal! Highly recommend.
Yay!! So glad this caramel sauce was a hit, Kelsey! I appreciate you making it and coming back to leave a comment + star rating. It means the world to me. <3
Hi! This was fantastic and I now have a most delicious sweetener for my coffees that is all natural! Thank you! One question—grateful you have the 2tbsp nutritional information, but how many servings total does the recipe make?? I’m tracking all my input for health reasons and was wondering where your calculations came from! Thank you.
Hey Terry, I use My Fitness Pal to calculate the nutrition info. The date caramel yields 8 servings so it should be about 16 T for the entire recipe.
So easy to make and so delicious. My girls thought they were getting sweets!
Yay!! So glad this caramel sauce was a hit, Beth. Thanks for trying my recipe and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating!
The caramel tastes great. With the leftover caramel in the nutribullet I added frozen banana, coconut water and cacao and had a delicious choc caramel smoothie!
Ohh I love that idea!! Way to use up every last drop of the caramel sauce in the blender. 🙂
Delicious! Made a half recipe this morning so I could put some on my oatmeal. SO good. Super easy to make too. I wasn’t sure if my blender would be strong enough to get the chunks out but after some extra blending and scraping down the sides, it came out so creamy. Highly recommend.
Woo!! I’m so glad you’re loving this sauce, Becca. Thanks for giving it a try and for coming back to leave a comment + star rating. I appreciate it!
Recipe came out pretty good, despite it being out of my standard-powered blender’s league. Until I can get a food processor, I think I’ll try this agai with a tablespoon or two extra almond milk to compensate.
Yeah, depending on what blender you have, it can take a bit longer to get everything blended together. Adding some more liquid would definitely help!
This only took minutes to make and so good. Can’t wait to use it on the Apple nachos and replace maple syrup on waffles/pancakes
Oh. My. Deliciousness.
Absolutely delicious!! I make this all the time now, thank you!
Ahh, this makes me so happy to hear! Thanks for the review, Jocelyn.
Just made this its amazing can’t wait to put some on my porridge tomorrow am 🙂 I made the whole batch looks a lot so will make those chocolate caramel ice cream bars. You are making my extreme medical health diet that im on at the moment (not for weight management or sugars but for gut healing) much more interesting. Keeps me able to train too 🙂 with all these gorgeous health snacks of yours
Oh yay!! So glad you’re loving this sauce. It should last 1-2 weeks in the fridge and it’s also delicious just with cold apple slices. I have this recipe for apple nachos and samoa baked oatmeal that use this date sauce. 🙂
I’m going to try these fresh dates caramel sauce as sweetener and toppings. I just bought my dates from https://coachellasbestdates.com/.
Love, love this recipe. Wanted to know two answer to two questions: can you freeze a jar of this, and wondered if this could be canned for longer shelf life and possibly for gift giving? Thank you in advance for your help!
So glad you loved this sauce, Beverly!! I’m not sure about canning as I’ve never tried it, but I would imagine it would freeze just fine!
I was so so skeptical about this recipe since I love caramel. But I’m really glad I tried it. It’s actually pretty good. I put a little too much salt so it was more like a salted caramel sauce for me. For sure, you can taste the difference between real caramel sauce and date caramel sauce but the date sauce has a cleaner taste to it. This one will definitely be on the repeat recipe files!
Yay! So pumped you tried and loved this recipe, Sarah. I really appreciate you coming back to leave a review. It means the world to me. 🙂
This recipe is amazing! I never leave reviews, but this recipe definitely deserves it! It was easy to make and my kids loved it. Thanks for sharing!
Yay! I’m so glad everyone enjoyed this caramel sauce, Marie! Thanks for the review 🙂
This sauce is excellent. I made mine a bit thicker than yours looks and I didn’t put salt in it but it’s delicious all the same.
Tomorrow I will try it in oatmeal like you recommended.
Thanks for the recipe!
Yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed this caramel sauce, Pauline! Thanks for the review 🙂
Hi Brittany,
I am so excited to try this! I see dates in stores all the time. Is is ok to use any brand? Sunsweet is one brand I see at Wal-marts, also Dole. I prefer when I can to buy mine when I can from the our wholefood store the organic medjool dates, but glad to know they don’t have to be purchased organic
Yes, any brand will work!
I made this today to go over the baked apples I made yesterday- wow!! So delicious!! It filled up a lot of my mason jar also. I used Oatmilk and it turned out great! I wonder if I can use this in my coffee for some caramel flavor?! Might try that tomorrow! Thank you!!
Totally! I bet that’d be delicious. So glad you loved this recipe. Thanks for making it and for the review. I so appreciate it!
Wow this stuff is delicious!! I didn’t think it would be that great but I can’t stop eating it with everything I can think of. 😂
So happy to hear it was a hit, Rebecca. I’m so glad you tried it out. Thanks for the review!
I made this tonight and it’s going to be a new staple in our house!! It was absolutely delicious!! My fiancé and I dipped apples in it and I think I am going to swirl it into some paleo brownies this weekend. Thanks so much for this amazing recipe!!
Ah yay! So pumped you all enjoyed this date caramel sauce! Thanks so much for the review, Rose. I really appreciate it!
How long will this last in the refrigerator? Thank you
It should last about a week in the fridge!
It was absolutely amazing. I wold defintly make this again. Thank you!
Yay!! So glad you enjoyed this caramel sauce. Thanks for the review, Mark!
I would love to try this but don’t have almond milk. Would regular cow milk work?
Hey Kelly- yes, regular milk will work.
This is amazing! I made oatmeal with spiced roasted apples, pepitas and walnuts, and oh my gosh…. It was a next level bowl of oats!
Yay!! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this caramel sauce, Jaimee. Thanks so much for trying it out and coming back to leave a review. I really appreciate it!
Very yummy! I’ll see if my non DF GF guests like it tonight. Will serve on Guittard dark chocolate sorbetto. Recipe notes: I found an immersion blender to be easiest and most successful blending option (no high speed blender here). Also do not tolerate nuts, so subbed 1/2 cup oat milk and 1/2 cup coconut milk for almond milk.
So glad you loved this recipe, Frances. Thanks for making it and for coming back to share your notes. I so appreciate it!!
Perfection! Used as a raw vegan cheesecake topping.
YUM! That sounds delicious, Sarah! Thank you so much for sharing your review & star rating, I really appreciate it.
This turned out amazing. I used halawy dates instead of medjool. They have a caramel-esque flavor already and they’re super soft. Since they are smaller I had to use 30 of them. I switched out the almond milk (I’m allergic) for walnut milk. Put it in the Nutri Bullet which worked great. We dipped apples in it and my mom just started smearing it on graham crackers. We’re going to try it in coffee tomorrow.
WOO! This sounds delicious, I am so happy you are loving this recipe, Becky. Thank you so much for sharing your review + star rating, I really appreciate it!
Everything is perfect about the colour, how did you get such a dark caramel colour ???
I added normal milk and it is very light caramel colour not like yours.. and definetly not so glossy.
Hi Daniel – Did you change anything about the recipe other than the milk?
This is so delicious. Where has this been been my whole life. I can’t wait to put this in my coffee tomorrow!
YUM! Loving the idea to add this to your coffee, sounds delicious. I am glad that you are loving this recipe. Thank you so much for your review + star rating, I so appreciate it!
Hi! I am making your 4-ingredient date caramel sauce for Christmas as a gift. How long is it good for in the fridge? Does it freeze well also?
Thanks!
Hi Olivia – This will last about a week in the fridge. I have never tried freezing this recipe, but I imagine it would freeze just fine. Enjoy!
I could not believe how delicious this was! I never expected it to taste like actual caramel. I used canned coconut milk instead of the almond milk because it’s what I had a d I had the smaller dried dates so I soaked them first, it is absolutely delicious!
Aw yay! I am so glad you loved this recipe and it turned out great for you, Jenni. Thank you for your review & star rating, I really appreciate it!
Amazing!
WOO! I am so glad you are enjoying this recipe, Nichelle. Thank you for coming back and sharing your review & star rating, I appreciate it!
So good! How long will it keep in the fridge?
I am so glad you are loving this recipe, Stephanie! It should last 1-2 weeks in the fridge.
How long does this recipe keep in the fridge?
Hi Andrea – It should last 1-2 weeks in the fridge. Hope you enjoy!
How long will this last in the fridge?
Hi Ann – It should last 1-2 weeks in the fridge.Enjoy!
Absolutely delicious!
WOO! I am so glad you’re loving this recipe and it is a hit for you, Ashley. Thank you for your review & star rating, I really appreciate it!
I can’t believe how simple this was to make! I just polished off 2 tablespoons with half an apple and WOW…game changer. I love dates and this will definitely be in my regular rotation. I briefly soaked my dates in warm water and they blended up like a breeze. Thanks for the recipe!
WOO! I am so glad you have this a try and are loving this recipe, Audrey. Thank you for coming back and sharing your review + star rating, I truly appreciate it!
I subbed some of the milk for maple syrup to make a maple caramel and it was fantastic! I was surprised at how smooth the dates were after soaking them. 10/10 will be adding it to my regular kitchen restock!
YAY! I am so excited to hear that you are loving this recipe, Jennifer. Thank you for sharing your review + star rating, I really appreciate it!
Cannot thank you enough! I swear this is better than real caramel because it doesn’t stick to your teeth. I make it once a week now in my Vitamix mini cups – 6 dates : 1/4 almond milk. It’s my apple dip for the week. Love love!!
YUM! I am so glad you gave this recipe a try and are loving it. Thank you for sharing your review + star rating, I truly appreciate it!
So delicious! Just wondering, can I bake with the caramel? Like for like a thumbprint cookie? Thanks 🙂
I bet you could. I haven’t tried baking with this recipe so I am not sure how it would turn out, so let me know if you give it a try!