Vegan Caramel Slices

Published: 25 June 2023 by Simon Deane

These vegan caramel slices are a healthier version of the regular coffee shop version. They are made without refined table sugar and are simply divine. No baking is required.

Often caramel squares are made with plenty of butter or oil, refined flour and sugar. This version is a healthier spin on the more traditional recipes, using less refined ingredients.

So more nutrients, and more fibre. And they taste awesome, better than the store version, in my opinion.

Ingredients:

These vegan caramel slices are relatively simple to make and don’t require a lot of ingredients considering they are made up of three different layers. To make them you will need the following:

Peanut butter
Almonds (whole or ground)
Dates (ideally pitted so you don’t have to remove the stones)
Desiccated coconut
Maple syrup
Dark chocolate
Oat milk (other plant-based milks will also work)
Salt

How to make these Vegan Caramel Slices

You will need a tray to make the caramel slices in and I like to use silicon. I find silicon very handy as its not stick. For this recipe I used an 8 inch x 8 inch (or 20cm x 20cm) silicon baking tray.

You will also need a suitable blender to blend all of the ingredients together.

Base Layer

To make the base layer you start by blitzing the almonds in a blender into a flour like consistency, although its fine to have some bigger pieces here and there. If you are using ground almonds then you can skip this step.

You then pour the almonds into a bowl and add the coconut and maple syrup and mix everything together.

Once everything is mixed together, you pour the base layer into the silicon tray and spread it out so it forms a smooth base layer that is an even level of thickness.

Caramal-squares-base-layer-1024x683 — Caramel Slices Base Layer

Caramel Layer

For the caramel layer you take take the pitted dates (you need to pt them first if they are not already pitted), peanut butter, oat milk and salt and place into a blender. You then blend everything to a smooth consistency. I find I need to stop the blender and scrape down the sides a few times before starting it again, but it depends on the blender you use.

Once the caramel layer is a consistent and smooth consistency, you spread it over the base layer and spread it out so its nice and even.

Caramel-squares-caramel-layer-1024x683 — Caramel Slices Caramel Layer

Chocolate Layer

For the chocolate layer you break the chocolate into pieces and place into a bowl along with the oat milk. You then heat some water in a pot on the hob and place the bowl on top of the water. This is the method used to melt the chocolate.

Ideally the bowl should be big enough to sit into the bowl just touching the water, with the sides of the bowl sitting on the edge of the pot.

Once the chocolate is melted, you scoop it out over the caramel layer, spread it out evenly with a spatula and leave it to set.

Leave to Set

After all the layers have been added, you then put the tray into the fridge to set for around 3 hours. Once set you then cut into slices, according to your own tastes. I usually cut a recipe of this size into 8 generous sized vegan caramel slices, 4 wide X 2 Long.

The Bottom Line

These vegan caramel slices don’t take too long to make once you have all of the ingredients. You do need to let them set so its best to pan ahead and make them a few hours in advance of when you want to eat them.

They are a lovely recipe to make if you are having friends over for coffee.

For other healthier sweet treats, I also recommend trying my oat banana bites and my peanut butter oat cookies.