Low Carb Caramel Sauce

This low carb caramel sauce is rich, buttery and ready in about 10 minutes with just five ingredients. It's sugar free, keto friendly and perfect for drizzling over ice cream, pancakes, cheesecake or anything else that needs a little caramel love.

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We've been playing around with sugar free caramel for years now. First came the perfect-for-fall low carb caramel apple sauce, then the caramelized pecans and the low carb donuts with caramel glaze. But we wanted a simple, pourable sauce for a bowl of vanilla ice cream, and this is it. It's quick, it's easy, and the ingredient list is nothing weird or wacky. You probably have most of it in the kitchen already!

Key Ingredients & Substitutions

• Granular sweetener (the one that doesn't crystallize). This is the ingredient that makes or breaks a sugar free caramel. Sweeteners made mostly from erythritol, like classic monk fruit blends, taste great warm but tend to go gritty and re-crystallize once the sauce cools in the fridge. Allulose doesn't do that: it stays smooth, and it browns more like real sugar, so you get a deeper caramel color. Our pick is Lakanto Monk Fruit Sweetener with Allulose. If you only have classic Lakanto, it still works; just serve the sauce warm and expect a slightly grainier texture after chilling.
• Unsalted butter. Butter is the base of the whole sauce, and it's what gives it that toasty, nutty flavor as it browns. Unsalted lets you control the salt. If salted butter is all you have, skip the pinch of salt.
• Heavy cream. Cream turns the browned butter into a silky sauce and thickens as it simmers. Use full-fat heavy cream or heavy whipping cream. For a dairy-free version, use a vegan butter and full-fat coconut cream, which gives a slightly coconutty caramel.
• Salt. Just a pinch balances the sweetness and makes the caramel taste like caramel. Add more if you're heading into salted caramel territory (see the variations below).
• Vanilla extract. Stirred in off the heat for a warm, rounded finish. We use a pure vanilla like McCormick Pure Vanilla Extract; imitation vanilla works in a pinch but tastes flatter.

Helpful Tips

Use a small, heavy saucepan. With this small batch, a big pan spreads the butter too thin and it burns before it browns. A 1-quart pan like this Cuisinart 1-Quart Saucepan keeps everything deep enough to cook evenly.

Keep the heat at low-medium and stay close. Sugar free sweeteners can go from golden to scorched quickly. Stir or whisk the butter and sweetener often, and pull the pan off the heat the moment it turns a light golden brown and smells nutty.

Add the cream carefully. The hot butter will bubble up when the cream goes in. Pour it slowly and whisk as you go so it comes together smoothly without spattering.

Judge the thickness warm, not hot. The sauce will look fairly thin while it simmers, but it thickens a lot as it cools. After about 5 minutes of simmering it should coat the back of a spoon. Don't keep reducing it or it will set too firm once cooled.

Double it easily. This recipe makes a small batch, about half a cup, which is just right for a couple of desserts. Double or triple everything if you want a jar in the fridge; the cooking time stays about the same, it just takes a minute or two longer to brown.

Variations

• Salted caramel. Increase the salt to about ¼ teaspoon, then sprinkle a few flakes of Maldon sea salt flakes over the sauce right before serving. It's amazing on our low carb salted caramel ice cream.
• Bourbon caramel. Stir in 1 to 2 teaspoons of bourbon or dark rum along with the vanilla for a grown-up version.
• Brown butter "butterscotch". Use a golden (brown sugar style) allulose sweetener and let the butter brown a little further for a deeper, butterscotch-like flavor.
• Cinnamon caramel. Add a pinch of cinnamon with the cream. It's lovely over apples, pancakes or a fall dessert.
• Coffee caramel. Dissolve ½ teaspoon of instant espresso powder in the cream before adding it to the pan.

Ways to Use It

Our favorite way to enjoy this sauce is still warm over a scoop of ice cream. Try it on sugar free no carb ice cream, our Keto Pumpkin Ice Cream (with Candied Bacon) or the low carb salted caramel ice cream for double the caramel. Browse all of our low carb ice cream recipes for more ideas, and check out our top picks for low carb ice cream toppings.

It also makes a fantastic dip. Serve a small bowl of warm caramel with a batch of crunchy Low Carb Cinnamon Chips for an easy dessert or movie-night snack. And if you're making cocktails, drizzle it inside the glass for our Low Carb Caramel Apple Cocktail.

Beyond that, spoon it over low carb fluffy pancakes, drizzle it on a slice of no bake keto cheesecake, or stir a spoonful into your morning coffee.

Storing & Freezing

Let the sauce cool, then store it in a sealed jar or airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. It firms up quite a bit as it chills. To make it pourable again, warm it in the microwave on half power for 10 to 15 seconds at a time, stirring in between, or gently rewarm it in a small pan over low heat.

You can also freeze it for up to 3 months. Spoon it into a freezer-safe container or an ice cube tray for handy single portions, then thaw overnight in the fridge and rewarm gently as above. If it separates slightly after thawing, a quick whisk with a splash of warm cream brings it right back together.

More Low Carb Caramel Recipes

If you loved this recipe, here are a few more caramel treats you might enjoy:

• Low Carb Caramel Apple Sauce
• Low Carb Caramel Chocolate Mousse
• Low Carb Pecan Caramel Bites
• Low Carb Sticky Toffee Pudding

📖 Recipe

StepAwayFromTheCarbs.com

Low Carb Caramel Sauce

4.67 from 12 votes

A rich, buttery sugar free caramel sauce made with just five ingredients in about 10 minutes. Keto friendly and perfect over ice cream, pancakes or cheesecake.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 2 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 12 minutes mins

Makes: 4 servings (2 tablespoon each)

Net Carbs: 0

Calories: 152

Ingredients Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

• 4 tablespoon unsalted butter (2 oz)
• 2 tablespoon monk fruit allulose sweetener granular, such as Lakanto Monk Fruit with Allulose (see note)
• ¼ cup heavy cream heavy whipping cream
• 1 pinch salt
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract pure

Step-by-Step Instructions

 

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1. Place the butter and sweetener in a small saucepan over low-medium heat. Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring often, until the butter melts and the mixture turns light golden brown and smells nutty.
2. Slowly pour in the heavy cream (it will bubble up), whisking constantly. Add the salt and simmer gently, stirring often, until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 5 minutes.
3. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Serve the sauce warm, or let it cool and transfer to a jar. It thickens as it cools.

Nutrition

Serving: 2tablespoonsCalories: 152kcalCarbohydrates: 0gProtein: 1gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 11gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gCholesterol: 47mgSodium: 15mgPotassium: 18mgFiber: 0gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 569IUVitamin C: 0mgCalcium: 13mgIron: 0mgNet Carbs: 0g

Notes

Sweetener: an allulose-based sweetener keeps the sauce smooth after chilling. A classic erythritol monk fruit blend works too, but the sauce may turn slightly grainy once cold, so serve it warm.

The sauce firms up as it cools. To make it pourable again, microwave on half power for 10-15 seconds at a time, stirring in between.

Salted caramel: increase the salt to ¼ teaspoon and finish with a few flakes of sea salt.

Store in the fridge for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 3 months. The recipe doubles easily.

Nutrition: the sweetener is left out of the calculation (zero net carbs).

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Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is my best approximation. Net carbs are calculated as the total grams carbs minus the total grams of fiber.