Somedays, I’m just not in the mood for chocolate.
Crazy, I know, but that’s when this amazing raw caramel sauce comes into its own.
It takes just 5 minutes to make, and before you know it, you have a rich, creamy, sweet and decadent topping for just about anything you want.
I’ve put it with fresh raspberries and vanilla cashew cream, which is pretty amazing.
And then I tried it with a berry and banana fruit salad.
So quick to make. Just chop the fruit, mix it all together and smother it with raw caramel sauce.
Boy, this stuff really works!
And then I was inspired to do a cinnamon apple caramel thingy.
Just sliced bananas, chopped apples, and a sprinkling of cinnamon, tossed together.
And then topped with my raw caramel sauce, and a generous handful of walnuts.
Wow, what a flavour combination.
And frankly, “apple chips” (slices of fresh apple) smeared with raw caramel sauce is an amazing, super quick, super delicious snack too.
Or this.
I call it “Smashed Berries with Mud”.
In truth, it’s triple berry salad (blueberries, raspberries and strawberries), mixed with a generous helping of raw caramel sauce.
But I reckon calling it “mud” might just help you to sell it to a reluctant child (especially a boy).
You could also put this amazing raw caramel sauce on top of my vegan coconut ice-cream, or even on a slice of raw walnut and macadamia cake.
Mmmmmm. So many possibilities.
And then of course, there’s always the “spoon” option.
Spoon + raw caramel sauce = bliss.
Doesn’t get much easier than that.
Or yummier.
Raw Caramel Sauce
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup cashews (35g)
- 1/4 cup macadamias (38g)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla bean powder or 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp mesquite powder
- 1 pinch salt
- 1/2 cup water , scant (115g)
- 2/3 cup ice (110g)
- 1 cup medjool dates , pitted (240g)
Method
- Put everything except the dates in your blender and blend until you have a smooth nut "milk".
- Add the dates and process until smooth and creamy. Use your tamper to help it to blend fully.
- Serve.
Preparation
- Before: -
- During: 5 mins
- After: -
- Need: Blender
Nutrition Information
Tips
- I use really raw cashews from Loving Earth in all of my recipes. Not all cashews are shelled using low-temperature methods, and these babies taste truly amazing, so it’s worth finding a local supplier of truly raw cashews if you can.
- I also use raw, unsalted macadamias in my recipes. They do add a reasonable fat content to this caramel sauce, so if you wanted to reduce the fact content, you could replace the macadamias with another 1/4 cup of cashews. The sauce won’t be quite as rich, but that might be a good thing.
- Vanilla bean powder is just fresh vanilla beans air-dried and ground into a powder using a spice blender or coffee grinder. You can make your own or you can buy it from your local health food shop. If you can’t get your hands on any of this, you can just scrape out a fresh vanilla bean or two into the mix, or add another 1-2 tsp of vanilla essence.
- Mesquite powder (or mesquite flour) is made by grinding the pods of the mesquite plant, and adds a an extra caramel hit to this recipe. If you don’t have any, you could leave it out and your raw caramel sauce would still be sweet, caramelly and decadent, but it really does ramp up the flavour, so add it if you can.
- I use pink Himalayan crystal salt in my dishes because it contains lots of trace minerals that are good for you, and apparently it tastes better too. So if you’re going to use salt at all, the pink stuff is the best!
- The mix of water and ice is important because it helps to keep the sauce cool as you blend it. Whether you have a high speed blender or not, you’ll need to blend this one for long enough to make it really smooth, and it can overheat while you’re doing that if you’re not careful. So use ice if you can.
- If you can’t stand the sound of ice blending, refrigerate your ingredients, especially the water and the dates, before making your raw caramel sauce.
- You can play with reducing the water if you want an even thicker sauce. It may not blend quite as easily, but it will make a thicker sauce that you could use as frosting or between cake layers
- Medjool dates are sweet, soft and sticky dates that you usually find in the fresh produce section, or at your local health food store. They’re softer than regular dates, and have more of a caramelly taste. Apparently Barhi dates taste even more like caramel, so if you have access to those, they’d definitely be worth a try.
- I make the “milk” first to make sure they everything is properly blended before I add the dates. This makes sure that there are no chunks of nuts in the sauce.
- If you’re looking for a low-fat raw caramel sauce, you might be interested in the low-fat raw caramel sauce I whipped up recently after being inspired by FullyRaw Kristina’s Raw Apple Pie.
My inspiration
Sometimes when I want to create something new, I go nuts looking up recipes on the internet.
Ok, most of the time.
And usually I end up finding all kinds of recipes that give me bits and pieces, that tell me what works and what doesn’t, and give me sense of the possibilities.
And then I add my experience, and what kind of recipe I’m trying to make, mix it all together, and then something amazing emerges. (Usually.)
It also means that I can’t tell exactly who inspired me, or who gave me which bits of the recipe I end up making.
So I’d just like to say a big thank you to all the people who posted the following recipes for their input into my creative process:
- https://wholeheartedlylaura.com/2013/11/recipe-raw-salted-caramel-sauce.html
- https://www.wellandawake.com/raw-vegan-caramel-sauce/
- https://nouveauraw.com/raw-recipes/frosting/caramel-sauce-frosting/
- http://www.naturalsweetrecipes.com/raw-caramel-sauce/
- https://nutritionstripped.com/raw-caramel-with-apples/
- http://goodnessgreen.com/ultimate-raw-vegan-butterscotch-caramel-sauce/
- http://karmickulinary.blogspot.com/2012/03/raw-chocolate-caramel-and-coconut.html
- http://thedeliciousrevolution.com/dessert/recipe-for-raw-vegan-caramel/
Have an awesome raw caramel-filled day!
4 comments
Fatemah
Hi Nikki..
I’ve been looking for a date caramel sauce and I stumbled upon your recipe. Looks and sounds great and easy to make. My question : what exactly is mesquite powder and can I substitute it for something else. I understand that it is a type of sweetener. Maybe I can use honey or maple syrup?
Thanks
Nikki
Hi Fatemah,
Mesquite powder is made from the pods of the mesquite plant. It’s kind of a cross between a sweetener and a flour, and it also adds caramel flavour to things. If you don’t have any, you could just leave it out, and it would still taste pretty nice.
Or you could replace it with another raw sweetener, like coconut sugar or coconut nectar, honey (which isn’t vegan) or even maple syrup (which isn’t raw) – anything with a bit of extra flavour to add some depth to the sauce. (Note: If you use a liquid sweetener, you may need to reduce the amount of water you add.)
I hope that helps.
Sarojini
omg I have t try this! Looks like my kind of sauce, thanks :)
Nikki
You’re welcome ♥ It is kind of more-ish.