Easy Homemade Caramel Sauce

Apr 21
2 min read

This homemade caramel sauce is rich, buttery, and perfectly sweet with a hint of salt and vanilla. It comes together in just a few minutes and turns simple desserts into something special, ice cream, brownies, apple slices, coffee… honestly, it goes on everything.

JUMP TO RECIPE

A spoon drizzles caramel sauce into a jar on a wooden countertop. A sugar container and eggs in a tray are in the background.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Comes together in just minutes
Uses simple pantry ingredients
Rich, buttery caramel flavor
Perfect for drizzling on almost anything
Stores well in the fridge for later use

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Woman in a floral dress holds a mason jar filled with brown liquid and a spoon in a kitchen; wooden countertop in the foreground.

Homemade Caramel Sauce

Ingredients You’ll Need

1 cup granulated sugar
6 tbsp butter (salted or unsalted)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Start by adding the sugar to a medium saucepan over medium heat.
Stir constantly as it begins to melt. It will clump at first,
that’s completely normal. Keep stirring and it will eventually melt into a smooth golden liquid.
Once fully melted and turning an amber color, carefully whisk in the butter. It will bubble up quite a bit, so keep stirring until it’s fully combined.
Slowly pour in the heavy cream while whisking. It will bubble again, so go slow and keep whisking until the sauce is smooth.
Remove from heat and stir in the salt and vanilla.
Let it sit for 10–15 minutes to cool and thicken before using.

Notes

Watch the sugar closely once it starts browning, it can go from perfect to burnt quickly
Use a heavy-bottomed pan for best results
Be careful when adding cream and butter, the mixture will bubble up
Sauce will thicken as it cools
Store in a jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks
Warm slightly before serving if it becomes too thick

Vanilla ice cream in a white bowl drizzled with caramel sauce. Nearby, a jar of sauce, tub of ice cream, white jug, and basket of eggs.

The Recipe:

Did you try making this Homemade Caramel Sauce? We’d love to see your creations! Tag us on Instagram at Thesproutinghomestead or leave a comment below to let us know how they turned out. Happy snacking!