Brown Sugar Butter Sauce

Name: Brown Sugar Butter Sauce
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar; 1/2 cup Plugra European-Style Salted Butter; 1 cup heavy cream; 1 tablespoon vanilla extract or paste; Pinch of salt

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This 4-ingredient Brown Sugar Sauce is the most delicious dessert condiment for ice cream, cakes, brownies, and more! It’s so much richer in flavor than a store-bought sauce and also stores well in the refrigerator. In just minutes, you’ll have a sweet almost caramel-like topping to enjoy right at home.

Brown sugar butter sauce being poured over cake.

Do you ever wonder why the rich sauces always taste better at the ice cream store? Well I wanted to figure out my own sauce to make at home that was easy and had the same taste (or maybe better!) and this Brown Sugar Caramel Sauce was born.

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Plugrà Premium European-Style Butter takes this desserts to the next level. It has 82% butterfat content (versus 80% that most American butters have), which makes baked goods richer, flakier, and a texture that’s impossible to resist. Plugra makes this sauce extra smooth and rich! It’s the little upgrade that makes a big difference!

With just a saucepan on the stovetop and about 10 minutes, you’ll have a decadent dessert sauce ready to serve. Try it over Chocolate Gooey Butter Cake or your favorite flavor of ice cream.

Table of Contents

Why you’ll love this recipe

4 ingredient sauce. I bet you probably already have the ingredients in your pantry. It’s so easy, I know you’ll be impressed when you give it a try.
Easy to serve on so many desserts. Try it on ice cream, pound cake, brownies, or even a trifle.
Better than store-bought. This is an ice cream store caramel-like sauce, it’s insanely delicious, you may want to eat it with a spoon!

Brown sugar butter sauce being poured over waffles.

Ingredients

Scroll Down for Ingredient Amounts Listed in the Full Printable Recipe Card Below

Dark brown sugar: The base to any caramel sauce, it adds richness in every bite.
Plugra European-Style Salted Butter: The butter with the best flavor and creaminess for this sauce recipe. I prefer salted, but if you use unsalted just be sure to add an extra pinch of salt.
Heavy cream: Adds creaminess to the brown sugar sauce.
Vanilla extract or paste: Gives both caramel and floral notes.
Pinch of salt: Helps to enhance all of the flavors.

The ingredients to make Brown sugar butter sauce.

How to Make brown sugar sauce

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter.
Add dark brown sugar and heavy cream. Whisk until combined well.

Whisking together the ingredients of brown sugar butter sauce in a pan.

Whisk gently until the mixture becomes smooth. Once the mixture begins to bubble, cook, stirring frequently, for 7 minutes or until slightly thickened. If the sauce isn’t as thick as you’d like, continue cooking for a few more minutes until it reaches your desired consistency. It’ll also thick more as it cools.

Remove from the heat and stir in vanilla extra and salt.
Serve as desired as a topping or sauce either hot or cold. If refrigerating, let it come to room temperature first.

Expert tips

You are looking for the sugar to dissolve and the sauce to thicken before stirring in both the vanilla. That is key to making sure your sauce is the perfect consistency.
Add the vanilla at the end of cooking, or it will cook out of the sauce and leave none of it’s delicious flavor!
Always know it will continue to thicken as it cools. So if it looks a touch thin on the stovetop, it’s probably the perfect consistency!
You can serve this sauce hot or cold. Just be sure to let it come to room temperature after storing in the fridge to bring it back to that luscious consistency.

what to serve with brown sugar Caramel sauce

There are so many options! Here are some my family loves:

Brown sugar butter sauce being poured over oatmeal.

storage

Store the brown sugar butter sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature before spooning overtop of ice cream or a sweet treat.

You can easily heat the sauce too in 15-second intervals in the microwave or gently on the stovetop over low heat.

I don’t recommend freezing this brown sugar sauce since the texture can often change once it thaws.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I swap the heavy cream for something lighter?

You could also use half and half, but we highly recommend cream for it’s texture and flavor.

What’s the best way to melt brown sugar and butter?

In a saucepan over low heat until they are combined and smooth. Don’t heat too high or at a rolling boil or else it could break the sauce.

How long does it take for brown sugar to dissolve in butter?

About 5 to 7 minutes in total, you are looking for the two ingredients to combine smoothly into a sauce.

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This post was created in partnership with Plugrà. All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.

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