Thick, silky Coconut Milk Caramel. This is good, better than good. It's hard to believe this is made from just TWO ingredients (3 if you want to add some vanilla). This goes with everything, ice cream, apple pie, you name it, this is good on it. And if you want to re-create the squeezy bottle caramel sauce from the supermarket, grab yourself one of these bottles from Amazon and let the kids help themselves. Mmmmmm.
Coconut Milk Caramel
I used to buy caramel sauce form the supermarket and we'd usually have a bottle in the fridge. I really didn't have a clue what was in it, other than that it was high in sugar. Which didn't phase me as much as it should have.
I know now that like so many things, there are the really bad ones and the slightly less bad ones. But one things the same with them all: The sugar content is insane. I'm not against having a little sugar now and again but it's a one off now, instead of the norm. But that's all good and well, but the fact remained, my kids (and me too if I'm honest!) absolutely love caramel sauce. So...what to do?
Also see: Salted Caramel Pudding
The first thing I'll say is that when you start Clean eating and the kids start having a lot less sugar in everyday foods they become accustomed very quickly to less sweet foods. What I'm trying to say is that when they do have a processed sugary 'thing', it can be so over sweet as to be a bit off putting. The sort of sweetness that makes your teeth ache. So while this Coconut Milk Caramel is definitely not as sweet as store bought, it's a treat to a Clean eating kid!
Of course, I call this caramel because it tastes like caramel, but traditional caramel is made from boiling and reducing sugar. When you break down the sugar molecules with heat, they become golden brown and have a super rich flavor. Adding water or cream will give you a suace, and it's that sauce I've re-created here.
Just Two Ingredients
You can make this with two ingredients. Just two, and it's easy and simple and magical! I use coconut milk and dates and that's it. I buy unsweetened coconut milk as it's already sweet and obviously I don't want anything else added to it. I get this in tins in the supermarket and it's fairly cheap and readily available.
To get the caramel flavor, I use dates. The more dates you use the sweeter and more 'caramely' this becomes, so use them liberally! I happen to have a date loving household and usually have some in my kitchen, ready pitted waiting to be nibbled. If you really want to push the boat out and make this a bit special, grab some Medjool dates when you're shopping. Their flavor is more intense than the regular ones and they're bigger and sweeter. But they also cost more. They're for special occasions in my house!
I use a NutriBullet for this recipe, there's only two steps and one of them is blending the coconut milk and dates together. Feel free to use whatever blender you have, but if you've got a NutriBullet, I find it way more powerful for this and the dates are almost completely blended into the coconut milk. I have a fussy eater who doesn't like 'bits' (working on it!) and this leaves no trace :)
How To Eat Coconut Milk Caramel
Eat this hot, warm, cold, on pancakes, on pudding or straight from a spoon. Anything you'd usually eat caramel with, you can eat this with. Of course dates and coconut milk still contain sugars even if it's not refined sugar, so it's not a total free for all. But if you're looking to gradually move the kids away from processed and onto Real food, this is a great sweet sauce to have on hand.
If you want to you can add a little Sea Salt for a salted Coconut Milk Caramel. I make this Salted Caramel Pudding using this recipe, and if you want to you can also add 1 tea spoon of Vanilla extract, which can help bring out the flavor and make it taste a bit more like the supermarket version. Whichever one you make, they're all good!
Need some suggestion to pour this over?
How Long Does This Last?
I keep this in a squeezy bottle or a glass jar in the fridge for up to 3 days. Because it uses Coconut milk and no refined sugar (which acts as a preservative in store bought stuff) there's nothing in it that preserves it so you'll need to get used to using it within 3 days which really shouldn't be an issue!
More Clean Eating Sauces
How To Make Coconut Milk Caramel
Ingredients
- 1 Can Cococnut Milk Full fat
- ½ Cup Dates Pitted
- 1 tbsp Vanilla Extract (optional)
Instructions
- In a blender or food processor, blend ingredients until totally smooth. You may need to process this several times to get a very smooth caramel
- Pour the blended caramel into a non stick pan and gently bring to the boil. Let the caramel boil for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally
- Once the caramel has darkened and thickened, pour it into a clean jar and let it cool down before eating!
Coconut Milk Caramel Recipe
Coconut Milk Caramel
Ingredients
- 1 Can Cococnut Milk Full fat
- ½ Cup Dates Pitted
- 1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract (optional)
Instructions
- In a blender or food processor, blend ingredients until totally smooth. You may need to process this several times to get a very smooth caramel
- Pour the blended caramel into a non stick pan and gently bring to the boil. Let the caramel boil for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally
- Once the caramel has darkened and thickened, pour it into a clean jar and let it cool down before eating!
