Caramel is up there in my holy grail of foods; right next to ice cream. Sadly, they’re both rich in heavy cream when traditionally prepared. Caramel = sugar + heavy whipping cream + butter. That right there is the magic equation. And then there’s dulce de leche! Contrary to popular belief; dulce de leche and caramel are not one of the same. That’s like saying apple and blueberry pie are the same because they’re both pies. Don’t you dare… However, I use this easy recipe to substitute for both. Think of dulce de leche as caramel’s sidekick & the object of my affection all throughout childhood. Dulce de leche = condensed milk + sugar. Sidenote: both of the above equations are responsible for my jeans not zipping up as I entered my 20’s.

I will eventually come up with a more traditional caramel recipe using organic, full-fat grass-fed dairy & unrefined sugar. Because I believe cream is not nearly as bad as refined sugar. But this caramel recipe is for everyone who’s got a dairy intolerance or like me; who are fighting an autoimmune condition with diet. Or like you; if you’re just looking for an easy & delicious way to make a healthier caramel sauce that will make your world go round.

I used to buy a pre-packaged caramel sauce (which I would squeeze onto ice cream) that was rich in sugar, dairy, corn syrup & a ton of 10-syllable ingredients that I could never pronounce. I would buy light, or low-fat thinking it was slightly more benign. But benign it was not. I have fully stopped counting calories these days. It is so liberating. The enemies are not calories, but rather chemicals. It’s about preparing or buying food with ingredients that you know & trust. I have never felt happier with the way I looked or felt and it’s all thanks to giving up white sugar & white flour. On a cautionary note; that does not mean you can eat 3 jars a week of this caramel & not gain weight. This is a much healthier, unrefined, wholesome version of caramel. But coconut sugar & coconut fat are not to be over-indulged in, either. Thankfully- your body will absorb & process them way differently than it would absorb white sugar or heavy cream.

This 3-ingredient homemade caramel (2 ingredients if you don’t count water) will change your world the way it changed mine. It’s awesome. I must of course be fully honest with you & bring up two things: 1) It’s thick & sticky, but certainly not as thick as traditional caramel. 2) You can adjust the taste by selecting from either coconut sugar or raw cane brown sugar. Pst.. They’re both unrefined & much better for you than the white stuff.

I tried it with both types of sugar, (twice) just to be sure. Coconut sugar gives it a nutty-like taste. It’s sweet, but already comes with a slight hint of caramel. It’s been used for thousands of years in South East Asia & it’s such a great natural sweetener. I encourage you to read up about it; and how it’s lower on the glycemic index than sugar. Brown raw cane sugar on the other hand is darker, stickier, also has a hint of caramel- but it tastes like molasses. Which one do I prefer? I like the coconut sugar caramel. It just yields a darker, nuttier, richer caramel.

This caramel goes well with:

1. apple slices
2. banana slices
3. on top of granola & yogurt
4. as a cheesecake topping
5. If you freeze it on a non-stick pan and then cut it into squares, you may add it to brownies & cookies for an instant dose of yum!