It’s that time of year where tea is always in hand, earthy spices grace every recipe, and warm dishes are go-to. Fall is also the season of one of my favorite desserts, caramel apples! How often do you take the time to make a caramel apple — if you’re like me, then not often since it’s laborious. I deconstructed this fall classic and made Raw Caramel, which is a no-cooking-required caramel sauce, with fresh sliced apples topped with almonds and more goodies.
For those of you who’ve missed this fact about me, I was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, and we’re big fans of caramel apples — specifically those from Kings Island (anyone!?). If you’ve ever attempted to make caramel at home, you’ll know that it can be time-consuming; you can get it wrong and burn the caramel. And most of all, it’s hard to find a delicious tasting dairy-free version. That was until I shared my Raw Caramel sauce from 2015 that had a viral moment and people went crazy for it!
The Raw Caramel itself is really easy to make; all you need is a handful of ingredients in the pantry and a blender. The star ingredient in this recipe is fresh apples. Getting seasonal produce makes all the difference in the world in general, and if you can get your hands on local, fresh apples then you’ll really elevate this recipe. I love using Fuji apples, pink lady, and Honeycrisp, but the beauty is that you can use whatever apple you enjoy most and have in season. Another point to mention here if you’re allergic to apples, or just don’t enjoy the taste and texture of them, you can use a fresh pear, persimmon, or plum. But I highly recommend apples, since that has a nice crunch and texture to them! This recipe is:
Easy to make
Encourages the use of seasonal fruit
A healthier way to satisfy a candy craving
Kid-friendly since it’s so tasty, but a great way to get kiddos to eat fiber-rich fruit
(nutrition) stripped and how this might become your new favorite fall snack to share:
- Healthy fats and nutrients from the caramel recipe include small amounts of protein, fiber, MCT oils (from the coconut oil), vitamins E, B2, B3, folate, and minerals manganese, magnesium, zinc, copper, and phosphorus.
- Fiber: Apples have been studied and associated with improving cognitive function, reducing the risk of heart disease, diabetes, reducing cholesterol, managing weight, bone health, and digestive health. Apple polyphenol content also contributes to their amazing health and nutrition profile.
- Optimizer Option: the flexibility with this recipe is what makes it fun to make, from the toppings, garnishes, to the way you slice the apples. Some garnishes I recommend are fresh blueberries, fresh blackberries, dried mulberries, unsweetened coconut shreds, shaved dark chocolate, toasted pecans (or almonds, hazelnuts, pistachios), and fresh lemon juice.
I love making this recipe on a Sunday night when we’re hanging with family and in full relax-mode. I suggest making the raw caramel on the weekend so you can have it in the fridge anytime you want to use it on apples or anything else during the week — but since the raw caramel is made with coconut oil which is solid when cold, you’ll need to thaw it out and let it warm to room temperature if you want to drizzle it on the apples.
I hesitate to call this a recipe, because it’s more about the assembly of apples and the garnishes, drizzling the raw caramel to taste, and going by the picture! If you try this recipe, I wanna hear about it, so let’s chat! Leave a comment it, rate it (this helps me improve future recipes), and don’t forget to tag a picture #nutritionstripped to show how you live and try these recipes on Instagram! I’d love to see what you come up with. Now off to make a batch of these…
Raw Caramel Apple Nachos
Recipe Type: dessert
A simple dessert with raw caramel, fresh apple slices, and garnishes to make fall inspired “nachos”.
Ingredients
- For the Raw Caramel recipe, click here.
- 1-3 apples (depending on how many you’re serving)
- Garnish and topping options: fresh blueberries, fresh blackberries, dried mulberries, unsweetened coconut shreds, shaved dark chocolate, toasted pecans (or almonds, hazelnuts), and fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Thinly slice the apples of your choice in rounds or long ways. Evenly spread them on a large platter, followed by drizzling the raw caramel sauce, then top with desired garnishes. Enjoy immediately or store leftover raw caramel based on the [url href=”https://nutritionstripped.com/raw-caramel-with-apples/”]recipe[/url].
Things I used from the pantry, and appliances I used to make this recipe: coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla extract, pitted dates, high-quality honey, high-speed blender like a Vitamix
