Caramel Apple Dip with Cream Cheese

Caramel Apple Dip with Cream Cheese is an easy recipe that you can whip up in 5 minutes. It is perfect for parties and is a crowd-pleaser. Pair it with your favorite apples, biscuits, or crackers for a fun charcuterie board. It will be a hit among both adults and kids at the Holiday parties. Grab your whisk and get on with it!

I recently hosted a Thanksgiving potluck and wanted to try a dessert charcuterie board. The gathering consisted of adults and young kids, and I wanted to make something that can be enjoyed by both parties. I thought a Caramel Apple Dip will be perfect, as apples were in season, and it screams Thanksgiving!

You can use homemade caramel sauce or any store-bought ones. I personally feel it tastes better with homemade caramel. You can make the Caramel sauce up to a month in advance and make this dip the night before the party. It sits well in the refrigerator overnight. Leave it out an hour or two before your party, and it will soften to the perfect consistency.

The addition of cream cheese will cut through the sweetness of caramel and give this Caramel Apple Dip a tangy balance. You need that balance, especially if you’re eating it with sweet biscuits or cookies. It can get very addictive! Don’t tell me I didn’t warn you!

Why you would enjoy this Caramel Apple Dip

• It can be prepared in 5 minutes
• It is a crowd pleaser
• It can be paired with a variety of treats and fruits
• Everyone will have something to enjoy the dip with

Ingredients for Caramel Apple Dip

Caramel Sauce

You can use my Homemade Salted Caramel sauce (by reducing the salt to ½ teaspoon) or use a store-bought caramel sauce.

Cream Cheese

Use good quality cream cheese and make sure it’s at room temperature when you whip it.

Vanilla extract

Use pure vanilla extract for maximum flavor.

Sugar

You need some sugar to sweeten the cream cheese. Just a tad bit though as the caramel is already very sweet.

Toffee bits

Toffee gives a crunchy texture to the smooth dip. You can replace it with roasted and crushed nuts of your choice. I used Heath toffee bits.

What can I add to my Charcuterie board to pair with Caramel Apple Dip?

Here are some of the options you can add to your Holiday Charcuterie board

• Green apple wedges
• Red apple wedges
• Lotus Biscoff cookies
• Graham crackers
• Ginger snaps
• Vanilla wafers

Can I make my Caramel Apple dip ahead of time?

Yes, you can make this dip up to 2 days in advance. Let it sit on the counter for 1-2 hours before serving. The caramel needs to soften a bit.

Caramel Apple Dip: Step-by-step Method

Make sure your cream cheese and caramel are at room temperature before you begin.

Take room-temperature cream cheese in the bowl of your stand mixer. It is easier to beat cream cheese if it’s soft.

Beat it for about 2 minutes until it’s creamy. Scrape the sides of the bowl.

Add sugar and beat it for 4-5 minutes, until the sugar dissolves completely. If you take the cream cheese sugar mixture in between your fingers, it shouldn’t feel gritty. Keep beating it till then.

Once it’s mixed well, add a splash of vanilla extract to it. Vanilla just elevates the flavor to the next level, every single time!

Your cream cheese mix is ready. Time to layer it.

Take a wide serving bowl with 3 cup capacity. It can be any shape though. I prefer wide serving bowls. It helps me get equal servings of both cream cheese and caramel when I dip into it.

Spread the cream cheese mix in it and flatten it using a spatula. Refrigerate it for at least 1-2 hours. The cream cheese needs to firm up before you spread the caramel on top. Else, the layers won’t be distinct.

Once the cream cheese mixture has firmed up, top it with room-temperature caramel. It’s very therapeutic to watch caramel flow! Well, at least for me, it sure is!

Spread it evenly using a spatula.

Top it with toffee bits or crushed roasted nuts of choice. You need that texture to complement the smooth dip.

Enjoy it with apples, crackers, or biscuits. I used mine on a Holiday Charcuterie Board.