Gooey and delicious keto salted caramel butter bars, with a tender, buttery crust and a rich layer of sugar free caramel. So rich and delicious, you won’t believe it’s low carb. This post is sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill.
You’re going to hate me when I tell you that I’ve been holding onto this recipe for salted caramel butter bars since last August. I really have no excuses. I’m sorry. Please still be my friend?
I have a long list of keto recipes waiting to be published, and as I am always creating new ones, I am constantly adding to this list. Some recipes, no matter how amazing they are, get put aside in favor of other ones. I am always trying to strike a good balance of sweet and savory, and of nourishing meals vs. decadent keto treats.
One cannot live on keto desserts alone. As much as one might want to.
So in any particular week, I might pair something like my Keto Crab Cakes with the well loved Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake, and the Keto Chocolate Cereal. Just so I am not giving you desserts all day every day.
Why I put this particular keto caramel bar recipe on hold escapes me now. All I can say is Oh. Em. Gee. It is so insanely good. It is perfect gooey, crumbly, deliciousness and it makes me swoon just thinking about it.
The Inspiration for Keto Salted Caramel Bars
I adore my sugar-free caramel sauce and I know so many of you do as well. It may very well be the most popular keto caramel sauce out there. I basically want to put it in, on, and over everything.
So when I saw a recipe for Salted Caramel Butter Bars on Cookies and Cups, I knew I had to find a way to ketofy them.
Yes, that’s a real word. Ketofy: (verb) To take a high carb recipe and magically make it low carb and grain-free.
That is what I do best. Just call me the Ketofier!
Obviously, this was more than just switching out the caramel. I needed to make a crumbly buttery crust with a melt in your mouth texture. So of course I turned to my trusty keto baking side kick, Bob’s Red Mill. I simply cannot do without their fantastic keto friendly almond and coconut flours.
How To Make Salted Caramel Butter Bars
Make the sugar-free caramel: You want to do this first, because it should be cooled to room temperature before pouring over the crust. And if you really want THE BEST keto caramel, you do need a mix of the two sweeteners.
All Swerve will cause your caramel to re-crystallize. All Bocha Sweet or allulose, and it will be too soft and gooey, and will ooze right out of the bars. Plus too much allulose could cause some serious tummy upset (trust me, I know this from experience).
Make the crumb crust: For this, I highly recommend a combination of both almond and coconut flour. It helps achieve that perfect crumbly consistency. Coconut flour alone won’t work in this, it’s too dry and absorbs far too much moisture.
But adding just a few tablespoons helps offset the moisture in the almond flour. So you end up with a crust that’s both tender and crumbly at the same time.
Press in the bottom crust: You want to take about half, maybe a little more than half, of the crumb mixture and press it firmly into the bottom of an 8×8 inch pan. It should cover the entire bottom of the pan. It’s okay to use a little more if you have to, the rest is just for a scattered topping.
Then par-bake the bottom crust for 10 minutes. This helps the crust be firm enough to not soak right into the caramel sauce.
Let the bottom crust cool a bit: Patience, my hungry friends! I know it’s hard but this also makes the difference between a soggy crust and crisp one. Keto baked goods can be very soft when they first come out of the oven but they firm up as they cool.
Pour on the caramel: Now for the fun part! Pour your gorgeous keto caramel sauce over top of the crust. Try not to just pour it straight into your mouth. That would defeat the purpose of making salted caramel butter bars.
Add salt: This is salted caramel, after all. How much salt you add is up to you. I recommend at least ¼ teaspoon but if you love salt and caramel together, go for ½ teaspoon.
Sprinkle on the remaining crust: It should be enough to cover most of the caramel, with some peeking through. Press lightly to adhere and bake another 20 minutes or so. The filling should be bubbly and thick and the topping should be light golden brown.
Let it cool! Trust me, I know just how hard this is. It’s going to be torture to let the bars cool enough for cutting. But if you don’t, they will be far too soft to cut properly and to lift out of the pan. And you might burn your mouth on the hot caramel sauce! So don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Cut into bars and enjoy. These bars are so gooey and good, you may find you don’t want to share. I don’t blame you one little bit.
Ready to make some oh-so-fabulous keto salted caramel bars? What are you still doing here. Go on, have at it. You can thank me later.
What else can you do with my keto caramel sauce?
Salted Caramel Cheesecake Bars
Salted Caramel Butter Bars
Ingredients
- 2 cups almond flour
- ½ cup Swerve Sweetener
- 2 tablespoon coconut flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoon butter melted
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 recipe sugar-free caramel sauce
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt (more if desired)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F and grease an 8x8 inch baking pan well.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, coconut flour, and salt. Stir in the melted butter and vanilla until the dough begins to clump together.
- Press a little over half of the dough into the prepared baking pan and bake 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool 10 minutes.
- Pour the caramel sauce over the crust and spread to the edges. Sprinkle with the salt (add more if you like). Then take the remaining crust and crumble it over the filling, pressing lightly to adhere.
- Bake another 20 to 25 minutes, until the filling is bubbly and the topping is golden brown. Remove and let cool completely in the pan before cutting into bars.
Video
Notes
Nancy Watilo says
I’m thanking you later! These were absolutely AMAZING!!!!
Geannie says
Oh my god. This is the best news I’ve had in ages. AGES. We had these amazing Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel Shortbread bars we used to make before I started having to watch my blood sugar. And these? These are perfectly close. A shake of some Lily’s chips in with the filling and we’re back in business with one of our favorite bars. I’m so EXCITED.
Carolyn, you make low carb life a joy.
Carolyn says
Thank you!
Tyler says
I cannot wait to try these! My mom used to make something similar and I loved them. So glad to have a healthier alternative!
Deniece says
Hi Carolyn, thank you for this most scrumptious recipe to feed my sweet tooth! However, I just purchased a 9 x 9 USA pan. (Love it!) This recipe calls for an 8 x 8 pan. Would the proportions still work in the 9 x 9 pan?
Carolyn says
It will be much thinner and bake through faster. YOu can use it… just keep your eye on things!
Allison says
so, so good! thanks for another great recipe Carolyn.
Christina says
can I use psyllium husk instead of coconut flour? or more almond flour? thank you!
Carolyn says
More almond flour (3x the amount of coconut) works, but I am not sure about the psyllium.
Jana says
I’ve made this 4x and they are perfect every time! I like to freeze the bars and currently making a triple batch for the holidays. Thank you for this recipe!
Carolyn says
Thanks so much!
Vicki says
These are in oven! Can’t wait to try them Was super easy to make !
Arlene says
What can I substitute for coconut flour?
Carolyn says
You would need 3x the amount of almond flour to replace it… but they may be too soft, still.
tonia says
I made these this evening. LOVE LOVE LOVE!
Kari says
I just made these and talk about delicious! This will be a regular in the house. Thanks for sharing.
Meredith says
So so so so good! Followed your instructions exactly for the caramel sauce and then made these delicious caramel bars.
They will not last long in this house!
I am now a follower of all your recipes and tips 🙂
Leanne says
This recipe looks amazing and I cannot wait to try it!!! I see the nutrition information such as calories and total carbs and fiber – I don’t see how many servings this should make? That way I’m measuring out the right serving sizes and therefore my carb count will be accurate. Sorry if I missed that somewhere but thanks for any help!
Carolyn says
Right at the top of the recipe card…
charmaine lobo says
Thank you for such a scrumptious treat! I love caramel and crumble and this was just wonderful. Perfect bars and perfect for the taste buds! I used this as one of my eats on my 1000 calorie fat fast diet (as it is 84% fat) and will of course continue to make it for my normal Keto eating! I love your other recipes too!
Claire says
224 g is not 2 cups.
Carolyn says
Actually, for almond flour, it is. 🙂 Remember, different ingredients have different weights and volume to weight is not consistent across ingredients. If we’re talking something like butter, then it’s a whole different ball game.
try weighing your almond flour when it’s lightly scooped and levelled (NOT packed, you should never ever pack it). Likely you will get anywhere between 95 and 125g per cup. Thus… two cups is indeed 224g.
Lulu says
Oh boy, I’ll make this very soon! But I fell in love with the pecan crust of your blueberry jamboree (best keto dessert of all time IMO) so I’m going to use that. Thanks!
Christine says
I’m so freaking excited about this!
Shelly’s Cookies & Cups recipe was a FAVORITE, and a definite winner every time I made them for parties.
I’m so happy to have something for myself since I’m keto.
Is there a brand of allulose to use?
I’m new to baking in this way.
Carolyn says
I really like the allulose from Good Dee’s: https://amzn.to/2Xh4FW0 I had tried another at one point and it really hurt my stomach. Dee’s did not!