I am super lucky that my husband and I live on the same page, but every now and again we disagree about something. One of those rare things is Maple. My Husband is “meh” about maple, whereas my blood is probably 20% maple syrup.
I love maple. All things maple. If I could live in Vermont next to a maple tree, I’d be a happy woman. So you can imagine that I turn to mush around this Salted Maple Caramel Sauce.
I could eat it by the bucket-full. With a spoon.
It’s all the things I love about salted caramel but made with maple syrup and 400x easier. It’s creamy, smooth and silky. It has a rich, concentrated maple flavor with a buttery finish.
While we’re chatting, I’ll tell you another thing my husband and I disagree about.
His new beard. As in when is he going to shave it off? Yesterday would have been great for me, but apparently my vote doesn’t carry the weight it should. I’ll have to remind him that, as a woman, I get two votes automatically.
Back to things I understand, like Salted Maple Caramel Sauce!
You can use this sauce just like you would caramel sauce: on ice cream, on fruit, on crumbles, as a filling for cupcakes, or, my personal favorite, in these Maple Caramel Pecan Bars!
This particular batch was a thinner sauce, but you can easily make it thicker by cooking the maple syrup longer.
Salted Maple Caramel Sauce
- Total Time: 20 minutes
Description
This Salted Maple Caramel Sauce is creamy, smooth and silky. It has a rich, concentrated maple flavor with a buttery finish. And it is so easy!
Ingredients
- 2 cups grade B maple syrup
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup sweet cream, unsalted butter
- 2 large pinches sea salt (I use fleur de sel)
Instructions
- Pour maple syrup in a deep pot with a thick bottom. Being to a boil over medium heat and let boil softly for ~15 minutes. Stir every few minutes with a heat proof spatula or spoon to reduce the bubbles. You will notice that the syrup will start to coat the outside of the spatula or spoon and will cool quickly into a caramel-like consistency. It will resemble candy at the softball stage.
- Stir in the butter until it is completely melted and then add the cream, stirring constantly. It will not bubble up dangerously like caramel but it will still be very hot. Add the salt and then stir to mix.
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
You May Like These Caramel Goodies:
Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Blondies
Double Salted Caramel Cupcakes
Bailey’s Irish Coffee Caramel Brownies
59 Comments
Phillip
September 19, 2014 at 9:08 amLooks wonderful!
Lindsey
September 19, 2014 at 9:17 amThanks, Phillip!
Shashi @ runninsrilankan
September 19, 2014 at 12:00 pmOooh – this mapley caramel is just taunting me! My daughter would love this!
Btw, if you accidentally dripped this on your hubs beard – maybe he will shave? 😉
Lindsey
September 19, 2014 at 2:24 pmlol now we’re thinkin’!! I’ll report back 😉
Arpita@ The Gastronomic Bong
September 19, 2014 at 12:29 pmThis sauce looks incredible.. It is totally calling my name.. all i need is a large spoon and that amazing jar of caramel sauce… Big Yummmmmm!!!
Lindsey
September 20, 2014 at 10:10 amSame here, Arpita! Same here!
marcie
September 19, 2014 at 3:22 pmI’m with you on the maple, so you can imagine my excitement over this salted caramel sauce! I can’t wait to try this. Pinning. 🙂
Lindsey
September 20, 2014 at 10:07 amI hope you do!! Thanks for the pin!
Josephine
September 19, 2014 at 6:59 pmOh how I wish I had time to make this!! Too busy now until the holidays, but I will serve it to my family then. Thank you!
Lindsey
September 20, 2014 at 10:05 amI totally understand! Just thinking about the time between no and Christmas stresses me out.
Thalia @ butter and brioche
September 20, 2014 at 2:19 amThis caramel sauce looks so incredibly delicious.. and perfect to be complimented by fresh green apples! Great recipe and idea, thanks for sharing it!
Lindsey
September 20, 2014 at 10:03 amThe green apples were definitely a great call! I couldn’t stop dipping!
Ella-HomeCookingAdventure
September 20, 2014 at 8:29 amThat’s a great sauce.. Just made yesterday a caramel sauce.. I will finish it and then make this maple one and see which one I will love more. Sounds good to me.
Lindsey
September 20, 2014 at 9:57 amOh how to choose?!?! They are both so wonderful!
David @ Spiced
September 20, 2014 at 8:57 amSo would now be the time to tell you about all of the maple farms around here? We went over to one last Spring (when the sap runs) and had pancakes with fresh maple syrup. Then we got to taste each of the different grades…insane difference! Maple trees really are nature’s candy. Oh, and speaking of maple, have you tried maple cream? If not, you need to. Like yesterday. The same day that you husband shaved.
Lindsey
September 20, 2014 at 9:50 amNow would be a great time to tell me about that! The North gets more and more enticing by the day! I bet I would just pass out if I got to try fresh maple syrup. You are so right about Nature’s candy. And I have not tried maple cream…must find immediately! Actually I need to Google it first because I have no idea what it is. And, thankfully, my husband shaved! All is right again with the world!
David @ Spiced
September 20, 2014 at 1:39 pmYou’ve probably already found it on Google, but maple cream is the bomb. It’s spreadable like peanut butter…but it’s maple syrup! I bet you can get it somewhere in Atlanta…maybe Dekalb Farmers Market?
Lindsey
September 21, 2014 at 9:51 amWhat doesn’t the Dekalb FM have?! I could live in there. Seriously make a bed and live. If I can’t find it there, because clearly I NEED it now, I’ll see if I can order it online from one of the lovely Northern States!
Kayle (The Cooking Actress)
September 20, 2014 at 10:06 amI usually could take or leave maple but I don’t know….something about this caramel sauce tells me I would TAKE ALL OF IT!
Lindsey
September 20, 2014 at 10:27 amHaha! It still tastes like maple! You and my husband seem to be on the same page! He didn’t see what all the fuss was about!
Linz @ Itz Linz
September 20, 2014 at 4:45 pmseriously drooling over here!
Lindsey
September 21, 2014 at 9:47 amThanks, Linz!
JanetFCTC
September 20, 2014 at 6:34 pmMy husband is the same way about maple and I can NOT understand it. Yet I keep him around anyway; go figure. But with this recipe, I wouldn’t mind at all. It would just mean more for me hehehe. I am more than willing to have a hidden agenda for this.
Lindsey
September 21, 2014 at 9:45 amI know – sometimes love makes us do funny things! 😉 I have no problem hoarding the maple caramel!
Vanessa @ Vanessa Baked
September 20, 2014 at 8:51 pmNow, that’s a great way to use maple! Looks extremely tasty! I wouldn’t want to share any…
Lindsey
September 21, 2014 at 9:41 amHaha thankfully I don’t have to share!
Julianne @ Beyond Frosting
September 21, 2014 at 12:29 amWow, I am freaking drooling over here!!! I too am at least 20% maple! My boyfriend likes the fake stuff and it drives me crazy!
Lindsey
September 21, 2014 at 9:36 am{gasp} NOT THE FAKE STUFF!!! It hurts my heart. But that means more maple syrup for you!
Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust
September 21, 2014 at 8:53 pmHa ha yes – 2 votes. My husband is not allowed facial hair. When he goes too long without shaving I just remind him of when we were dating and after a date my mom asked me if I’d been drinking grape juice because my lip was all purple (it was raw – so mortifying).
Maple syrup blood, yes that. Pinned!
Lindsey
September 21, 2014 at 9:13 pmLOl! beard rash is the worst! Praise be – he shaved!
Becca from It's Yummi!
September 22, 2014 at 9:18 amOh my gosh… I found your blog through a comment on another blog and I just HAD to come look at this recipe. I’m completely addicted to salted caramel and I now have about 15 different recipes in my head of what I want to pour your caramel sauce onto! 🙂
Lindsey
September 22, 2014 at 9:48 amHhaha! Salted maple caramel can do that to a girl! I’m so glad you found me, Becca! I’m going to run over and check out your blog without further delay!
Kelly - Life Made Sweeter
September 23, 2014 at 7:36 amOh my word girl, I totally feel the same about maple! So you can imagine how much I LOVE this! Pinning and can’t wait to make this so I could eat it by the spoonful 🙂
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September 23, 2014 at 9:29 am[…] Aaaannnd then there is obviously the Maple Caramel Icing to completely separate this bread from Healthy. A silky, decadent maple cream cheese frosting made with my Maple Caramel Sauce. […]
Christin@SpicySouthernKitchen
September 23, 2014 at 7:25 pmThis sauce looks amazing Lindsey! The pictures are gorgeous. I can only imagine how good it must taste with those apples. Yum!
Lindsey
September 23, 2014 at 10:37 pmTastes like maple syrup only creamier and butterier and better! 🙂
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Jessica
October 4, 2014 at 5:31 pmSo yummy!! Thanks for sharing.
Lindsey
October 4, 2014 at 9:07 pmThanks, Jessica!
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Janet
January 6, 2015 at 10:16 amHi! I’m a novice at making sauce, just wondered if you stir in the butter and cream after the 15 minutes of boiling time & if you remove pan from heat or is the heat still on medium while stirring in the butter & cream? Also, by Grade B maple syrup do you mean pure maple syrup? Thanks !! Can’t wait to try this!
Lindsey
January 6, 2015 at 12:51 pmHi Janet! I do stir the butter and cream into the maple syrup after the 15 minutes cooking time. Maple syrup isn’t going to burn like sugar, so the cooking time is just to reduce the maple syrup down until it is thick. It will taste good no matter when you stop cooking it, but it will just vary in viscosity (or runniness). I also removed the pot from the heat before adding the butter and cream. Butter first, then cream.
And I do use pure maple syrup. There are different grades of pure maple syrup. Grade A is typically what you see – it is your standard maple syrup, but Grade B is darker and has a more intense flavor. Maple syrup is odd in the sense that Grade B is better than Grade A! You can typically find Grade B in your standard grocery store. I don’t know what you have there but I have seen it at Kroger, Publix and Whole Foods.
The good news is that this maple caramel sauce is very beginner friendly. You’ll love it! Enjoy! And happy baking!
Erica Jehling
October 31, 2016 at 12:04 amHey!!
Long time since JBS. So happy you are so passionate about baking!
A few questions – how long will this keep? Can you freeze it for future use?
Also on the banana pumpkin bread it goes with if I halve the sugar – could you add more applesauce, honey, agave nectar or sour cream? Would it destroy the texture? Would you need to alter cook time?
Thanks!
Erica
Lindsey
November 15, 2016 at 1:15 pmHey Erica!!! It has been forever since JBS! I’m so glad you found my blog!
You can keep the maple caramel for months in the fridge just like regular caramel, but at some point it will probably crystallize. The longest I’ve kept it has been a month. I wouldn’t freeze it because of the cream.
I haven’t tried replacing the sugar with any of those options, but I think you can safely halve the sugar without completely destroying the texture or replacing it with anything. The applesauce is really a substitution for the oil in the original recipe and is only secondarily a sweetener. Adding more applesauce will definitely change the texture. Honey and agave will also change the texture of the final product but you could certainly try! If you want to sub the brown sugar with something I would use coconut palm sugar. But at the end of the day, sugar is sugar no matter the form 🙂
let me know how it goes!!!! xox L
Erica Jehling
November 15, 2016 at 1:29 pmThanks 🙂
I made this over the weekend. I took half a cup of sugar from both the brown and white sugar. I made my own applesauce by blending roasted apples with water (leftover baby food prep haha).
It was excellent! Shared it with some of my friends.
Keep up the posts <3 them!
Lindsey
November 15, 2016 at 1:32 pmNice! I’m so glad you like it. Props for making your own applesauce! I bet roasted applesauce tastes amazing!
Cheryl Brosnikoff
November 12, 2017 at 8:24 amHi
I have a question – not a comment.
I am looking to make the Maple Caramel Sauce: I am confused by the ingredient “1/4 cup sweet cream, unsalted butter”. If you read the instructions, it says to add the butter until melted and then add the cream. So its a little confusing.
I’m thinking the ingredients should be 1/2 cup heavy cream and 1/4 cup unsalted butter.
many thanks
Lindsey
December 26, 2017 at 11:24 pmHi Cheryl, I can see how that would be confusing the way it is written. “sweet cream unsalted butter” is the type of butter. Most people just say “unsalted butter”. I apologize for the confusion!
Carrie
January 3, 2019 at 8:08 amShould this be refrigerated?
Lindsey
January 6, 2019 at 9:53 amIt doesn’t need to be but you can if you feel more comfortable!
Marinda
March 28, 2019 at 11:08 amCan I jar the maple caramel sauce and store in the cupboard? WIll it kee as long as it is sealed?
Marinda
March 28, 2019 at 11:28 amCan I jar the maple caramel sauce and store in the pantry? Will it last as long as it is sealed?
Lindsey
March 30, 2019 at 10:02 amIt might separate because maple syrup doesn’t behave like granulated sugar. You can bring it back together by heating it but it will eventually crystalize.
Jeanell
September 15, 2019 at 5:00 pmIs there a way to thicken it once everything has been added? I think mine is too runny. 🙁
Lindsey
September 16, 2019 at 9:03 amJust keep boiling it in the pot! It is thinner than it’s caramel sauce cousin because maple syrup has water in it. Happy baking
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Aria
January 21, 2021 at 11:51 amThis salted maple caramel recipe looks amazing and I have big plans for using it as a chocolate truffle filling with some chopped roasted walnuts. 😀 I may have to boil it longer to get a thicker viscosity though.
I do have a question. In the instructions it says to stir during the boiling stage. Do you not have to worry about maple syrup crystalizing when you stir it as you would when you make typical caramel with refined sugar? I suppose it would make sense because maple syrup has been cooked down already when it was manufactured?
Thanks!
Lindsey
January 23, 2021 at 11:08 amYou don’t have to worry about it crystallizing but this might be a bit thin as a truffle filling depending on how you are making them. Just saying! Good luck! Sounds delicious!