Apple Butter Oat Squares with Salted Caramel Drizzle

Decadent Apple Butter Oat Squares with Salted Caramel Drizzle

When I worked at Nourish Charlotte (“Charlottes’s Only Local, Healthy, Organic, Vegan Delivery Service!”), as a “Vegetable Engineer/Baker”, I loved making and eating their delicious Baked Oats.  So, with a fresh batch of Homemade Apple Butter in hand, I decided to make my own version of this delicious treat.  This is my own special take on baked oats.

Sometimes, things just come together. This is one of those times. These Apple Butter Oat Squares are just great on their own.  They are moist, filled with raisins, flax meal and chia seeds, and nicely studded with cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.  Just perfect for breakfast or brunch.

But….drizzle on the Salted Caramel Sauce and you have something really special!

Rich. Moist. Decadent. Caramel.  

Makes you just want to skip the fork and stick a finger in all of that delicious caramel goodness. I freely admit that several samples were consumed while I was doing the photo shoot for this post…all in the name of research, of course!

True confession time: I.Am.A.Caramel.Snob.

I love really good caramel! You know, the kind that you make by standing over a hot pot, carefully stirring the bubbly liquid. If you do it just right, you will be rewarded with golden, delicious, richly flavored caramel. The kind you just want to sit in the corner and eat all by itself!  Do it wrong, and you will have a big old mess on your hands!  

All of that careful stirring and watching of the bubbling pot, just waiting for caramel nirvana, often leads to painful burns. I have yet to make caramel in the conventional way without getting splattered with hot liquid, at least once. With this super easy caramel recipe, just 5 minutes with your handy dandy immersion blender (or a conventional blender if you prefer) is all it takes for perfect caramel…every time!

This recipe throws convention out of the window! No pots or boiling or watching needed with this recipe. It’s  vegan, gluten-free and has no processed sugar. Only 6 little ingredients! And, it is decadent delicious. Drizzle it on your Apple Butter Oat Squares, dip in an apple slice or just go for broke and eat a big ‘ol spoonful!

Either way, it’s all good! This Salted Caramel Sauce blows other sauces out of the water and makes this self-proclaimed caramel snob,one happy camper!

Enjoy!!!

Apple Butter Oat Squares

• Author: Benita
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Total Time: 50 minutes
• Yield: 6 generous servings

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

• 3 cups Old Fashioned Rolled Oats ((I use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Rolled Oats))
• 3 TB Chia Seeds
• 3 TB Golden Flaxseed Meal ((I use Bob’s Red Mill brand))
• 1 cup Golden Raisins ((or any type of raisin))
• 1 TB Cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp Nutmeg ((freshly ground is best, but you can use powdered if you’re in a pinch))
• 1/8 tsp Ground Cloves
• 1/2 cup Coconut Sugar ((can use less, if desired))
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp Sea Salt

Adding Oil to the Mix

• 3 TB Coconut Oil (Melted)

Wet Ingredients

• 1 Cup Apple Sauce ((Santa Cruz Organic Apple Sauce from Thrive Market is a great, no sugar added option))
• 1 Cup Non-Dairy Milk ((I used Almond Milk, but any non-dairy milk will do))
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 cup Maple Syrup

Topping

• 6 slices Apples (Cored and thinly sliced (on a mandolin if you have one))
• 6 TB Apple Butter ((Homemade Apple Butter is best, but, in a pinch, a good store bought brand, like Eden Foods Organic Apple Butter, will do))

Instructions

Dry Ingredients

1. In a large bowl, thoroughly mix all dry ingredients.

Adding Oil

1. Drizzle dry ingredients with 3 TB of melted Coconut Oil.

Wet Ingredients

1. In a separate bowl, thoroughly mix wet ingredients.
2. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and thoroughly mix.
3. Top oat mixture with 9 evenly spaced apple rings. In the center of each apple ring, make a slight indentation and put 1 TB of Apple Butter in each indentation.
4. Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 30 minutes, or until done. (When done, the oats will pull slightly from the edges of the pan)
5. When cooled, cut into 9 squares. May eat plain or drizzled with Salted Caramel Sauce.

Notes

Apple Butter Oat Squares, with the nutritional goodness of chia and flax seeds, are studded with raisins and warm with spices. Perfect for an on the go breakfast or a quick snack, these will make your mouth happy. (And, if you drizzle on a little Caramel Apple Sauce, the Apple Butter Oat Squares will really make your mouth sing!)

Salted Caramel Sauce

Golden, rich and perfect for drizzling over freshly baked Apple Butter Oat Squares or simply for dipping a crispy apple. Either way, can you say YUM??!!

• Author: Benita
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Total Time: 10 minutes
• Yield: 1 cup

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup Maple Syrup
• 1/4 cup Coconut Butter ((Also known as Coconut Manna. I like using Artisana Organic Raw Vegan Coconut Butter) )
• 3 TB Coconut Oil
• 2 TB Almond Butter
• 1 TB Orange Zest ((Zest of 1/2 Orange))
• 1/2 tsp Sea Salt

Instructions

1. Put all ingredients In deep bowl. With an immersion blender, blend until completely smooth and combined. Store in a sealed container. If stored, in the refrigerator, will need to bring to room temperature before using.

Notes

Decadent and delicious!