Easy Salted Date Caramel

This easy salted date caramel is super smooth and rich and is a must-have pantry staple throughout fall and winter! Soft medjool dates are blended with sea salt, vanilla bean paste, soy milk, and tahini until very smooth. The resulting vegan date caramel has a well-rounded caramel flavor that can be used in desserts, snacks, and even breakfast.

After plenty of testing over the years, I’ve finally settled on the perfect salted date caramel recipe! It has a balanced caramel flavor without being cloyingly sweet and can be left on the thicker side for dipping, or on the thinner side for drizzling. The best part is that unlike traditional caramel, there’s absolutely no cooking involved and you can have it ready in less than ten minutes. Plus, dates are packed with fiber which we can all use a little more of these days. Let’s blend up a batch!

Notes on Ingredients and Substitutions

I highly recommend using Medjool dates here over smaller Deglet Noor dates. They blend up much easier and have the caramel flavor notes we need for this recipe. If you can’t find pitted ones, you can easily pit them at home yourself! I like unsweetened soy milk here for a tiny bit of added protein but you can use any unsweetened milk that you prefer. Vanilla bean paste will lend a more intense vanilla flavor and I personally prefer using it in recipes that aren’t baked. You can use vanilla extract for very similar results if you don’t have any. Lastly, tahini is my secret ingredient for adding depth of flavor, richness, and a hint of nuttiness that helps yield a well-rounded caramel flavor. You can use unsweetened cashew butter instead for similar results.

Salted Date Caramel in 4 Easy Steps

Pairings and Serving Suggestions

• Is there anything more quintessential than apples and caramel?! If you’re craving a caramel apple or want a simple snack to satisfy your sweet tooth, try dipping apple slices in your date caramel.
• Make date caramel pecan turtles — spoon dollops of date caramel onto a parchment lined plate or baking sheet then press a pecan into the center. Freeze 20 minute until firm, then dip in melted chocolate and return to the freezer until set.
• Drizzle over any dessert recipes that call for caramel like apple pie or apple crumble. Or, you can spoon it over your favorite ice cream or try it on my dairy free honey sage ice cream.
• Breakfast time! Stir date caramel into yogurt or oatmeal, or drizzle it over pancakes and waffles intstead of using maple syrup.

Easy Salted Date Caramel

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5 from 6 reviews

• Author: Courtney West
• Total Time: 8-28 minutes
• Yield: 1 1/2 cups 1x
• Diet: Vegan

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Description

This easy salted date caramel is super smooth and rich and is a must-have pantry staple throughout fall and winter! Soft medjool dates are blended with sea salt, vanilla bean paste, soy milk, and tahini until very smooth. The resulting vegan date caramel has a well-rounded caramel flavor that can be used in desserts, snacks, and even breakfast.

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 12 Medjool dates, pitted
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste, or pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon tahini
• 1/2 – 3/4 cup unsweetened soy milk

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Instructions

If your dates have been refrigerated or feel firm to the touch, place them in a bowl and cover them with hot water. Let them sit for 15-20 minutes to soften. If your dates are fresh and soft, you can skip this step! 

If you’ve soaked your dates, drain them before adding them to a blender along with the sea salt, vanilla bean paste, tahini, and ½ cup of soy milk. Begin blending on a lower speed then gradually increase to high as the dates start to break down into smaller pieces. Blend on high until very smooth, stopping and scraping down the sides of the blender as needed. If you prefer a thinner consistency for drizzzling, add up to ¼ cup more milk to reach your desired consistency. 

Transfer the date caramel to a jar or container. Store leftovers in the fridge and make sure to enjoy within two weeks. 

Notes

• If you can only find dates with pits, use a knife to cut down the center lengthwise, then remove and discard the pits.
• The skin of the dates likes to stick to the sides of the blender so I highly recommend stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides. This will help ensure a super smooth texture. 
• If you are allergic to or do not have tahini, you can use an equal amount of unsweetened cashew butter. I do not recommend using peanut butter as it will give it a peanuty flavor. 
• The date caramel will firm up in the fridge. It can be softened by stirring in additional soy milk or by placing the jar in a bowl filled with a couple of inches of hot (not boiling) water for a few minutes and stirring until softened. 

• Prep Time: 8 minutes
• Optional Soaking Time: 15-20 minutes