Why is my butterscotch sauce not thickening?

Why won't my butterscotch sauce thicken? Once your sauce comes to a bubbling simmer let it cook for 3 full minutes without touching it. If you don't cook the sauce enough it won't thicken . If you cook it for too long, or at a full boil, then it will thicken too much and be more like butterscotch candy.

What's the difference between caramel and butterscotch sauce?

They look and taste similar, but there are subtle differences. What's the difference between caramel and butterscotch sauce? This is a common question since both are cooked sugar concoctions. But the main difference is caramel is made with granulated sugar while butterscotch is made with brown sugar .

What is the combination of butterscotch?

In the kitchen, FOBs (friends of butterscotch) include apples, pecans, cream, nutmeg, cloves, cardamom, chocolate, dessert sherry, rum and Scotch whisky . Here are some simple ways to showcase its flavor: Make butterscotch sundaes. Add a little Scotch or rum to warm butterscotch sauce.

How do you thicken butterscotch sauce?

If the sauce cools down and you still find it to be too thin, then it's undercooked. You can place it back on the heat for a bit to let it thicken up even more . If it's too thick, gradually add a bit more cream until it reaches the desired consistency.

How do you fix sauce that is not thickening?

The most readily available sauce-thickener is flour. For a too-thin sauce, try adding a slurry (equal parts flour and water, whisked together) or beurre manie (equal parts softened butter and flour, kneaded together to form a paste) —both are ideal thickeners for rich and creamy sauces, such as steak sauce recipes.

What is the main ingredient in butterscotch?

Butterscotch is a type of confectionery whose primary ingredients are brown sugar and butter . Some recipes include corn syrup, cream, vanilla, and salt. The earliest known recipes, in mid-19th century Yorkshire, used treacle (molasses) in place of, or in addition to, sugar.

What makes butterscotch taste like butterscotch?

The flavor of butterscotch is characterized by a mixture of browned butter, caramelized sugar + molasses (or dark brown sugar in modern versions) and salt.

Is butterscotch just vanilla and caramel?

Butterscotch and caramel taste very different from each other . Butter scotch is bit harder and as suggested by name is made by brown sugar and butter whereas caramel is softer and made by white granulated sugar with either milk/whipped cream or butter with pinch of vanilla.

Does butterscotch sauce thicken?

The butterscotch will thicken a lot when it cools , so it's important not to cook it too long.

What to do if Caramel sauce doesn t thicken?

For each cup (240 mL) of caramel sauce that you need to thicken, run 1 tbsp (14.7 mL) of cold water into a measuring cup, and slowly stir in 1 tbsp of cornstarch . Pour the cornstarch mixture into your pot caramel sauce, and stir constantly. Keep the sauce on low heat until it begins to thicken.

Why isn t my Caramel sauce thickening?

it's likely due to the water content. When you add your cream to the hot cooked sugar, some of the water cooks off immediately, but not all. If you continue to cook it after that point, more water will cook off and the caramel will get stiffer.

Easy Butterscotch Sauce Recipe (2024)

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Bring your best homemade desserts to a whole new level of delicious with our easy butterscotch sauce recipe! With just 4 ingredients and 4 minutes of cook time, this will be your new favorite easy gourmet dessert topping. Trust me!

Simple homemade butterscotch sauce made with butter, brown sugar, and cream is the best for topping ice cream, pies, galettes, and even pound cake. It’s so easy to make and delicious!

Jump to:

Best Butterscotch Sauce Recipe
What is butterscotch?
Butterscotch vs. Caramel
Butterscotch Ingredients
How to Make Butterscotch Sauce
Do I need to refrigerate butterscotch syrup?
How long will butterscotch sauce keep?
Can this dessert sauce be frozen?
Uses for Butterscotch Sauce
📋 Recipe
💬 Reviews

Best Butterscotch Sauce Recipe

I first fell in love with butterscotch when my grandma introduced me to hard butterscotch candies as a child. Is it a requirement for all grandparents to have butterscotch candies hidden around their home to bribe grandchildren with? I think so.

Over the years, my obsession with butterscotch caught up with my love for cooking… and I found out how EASY it is to make butterscotch sauce from scratch!

It’s a great way to get your sweet tooth fix. Make this easy butterscotch sauce recipe at home, and you’ll want to top every dessert with it. And I mean EVERY dessert. It only takes 4 minutes and 4 ingredients to make, and it tastes unbelievably good, so why not?

I made this tonight and it’s ahhhmazing!! Fast, easy and incredibly delicious! Thanks so much for the recipe, I’ll never buy the stuff in the jars again! (That was a lot of exclamation points…it’s THAT good!)
Jennifer

What is butterscotch?

To put it simply, butterscotch is a confection you make by melting butter with brown sugar.

Any butterscotch recipe sauce can include extra ingredients, like heavy cream, corn syrup, salt, and more, but the base is always butter and brown sugar.

Butterscotch vs. Caramel

The difference between butterscotch and caramel is that caramel sauce uses granulated sugar while butterscotch sauce uses brown sugar.

Using brown sugar allows for a richer, sweeter flavor than caramel. It’s much like if you use brown sugar in place of granulated sugar when you’re making cookies. The result is gooey and decadent.

In some cases, you can use butterscotch and caramel sauce in place of the other. But once you learn how to make butterscotch sauce as easily as this quick butterscotch sauce recipe, there’s no reason to turn to anything else!

Sorry caramel, but butterscotch sauce will always be my favorite!

Butterscotch Ingredients

butter
brown sugar
heavy cream
pinch sea salt

How to Make Butterscotch Sauce

Combine 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, ⅓ cup light brown sugar, and ⅓ cup heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium-high heat.
Stir until the butter melts and the ingredients fully combine.
Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer for 4 minutes.
Remove from the heat and add a pinch of sea salt.

Let your homemade butterscotch sauce cool a few minutes before serving, and enjoy!

I tried it! It came out delicious, so easy it is definitely a keeper!
Karen on Pinterest

Do I need to refrigerate butterscotch syrup?

Because our butterscotch recipe includes heavy cream, it should be refrigerated. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge.

When I tell you this is better than the store bought snickers one! Amazing!
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How to makeHomemade Kettle Corn Recipe Kettle Corn Feijoada (Brazilian Black Bean Stew) Recipe • Curious Cuisiniere 20 Easy Acid Reflux-Friendly Pasta Recipes Pickled Red Beet Eggs Recipe from Mom!
Heidi on Pinterest

How long will butterscotch sauce keep?

Store it properly in the fridge, and butterscotch sauce will last up to a month.

But trust me – it won’t last that long! It’s too delicious! When you’re ready to enjoy it, warm it up in a microwave-safe dish.

Can this dessert sauce be frozen?

Yes. You can freeze butterscotch sauce. Here are some tips:

TIP #1: The heavy cream in the sauce will expand when frozen, so don’t use a glass container to store it in the freezer.
TIP #2: You can’t go from frozen to eating. You’ll need to thaw the sauce first, then reheat it.

Uses for Butterscotch Sauce

This won’t come as any surprise, but I think the best way to use up your butterscotch sauce is in an ice cream sundae.

You can also use it as a topping when decorating cakes or cupcakes. Mix it into a buttercream batter to make butterscotch buttercream, or eat it as is on fresh fruit! Butterscotch sauce is delicious for an apple dump cake, apple crisp, or even caramel apple empanadas, too.

One of my most favorite recipes to make with butterscotch syrup is pumpkin cobbler with spiced butter toffee. It is out-of-this-world delicious, trust me! Or even pumpkin crunch cake. Yum!

I also love it on Banana Bread Waffles and Pumpkin Waffles for brunch!

You can even dip the rim of an apple pie sangria in this butterscotch sauce and boy oh boy, will that sangria taste amazing!

Love making your own sauces at home? We do, too. Try one of our favorite dessert sauces, strawberry sauce, next! It’s amazing in our strawberry swirl cheesecake. And if you love cream cheese, my Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe is a must!

We’d love to know what you think of this butterscotch sauce recipe. Let us know if you try it out in the comments below! You can visit our 📌 on Pinterest too, and leave a comment with a photo of your favorite dessert to eat with this butterscotch sauce.

📋 Recipe

Butterscotch Sauce Recipe

Isabel Laessig

Try homemade butterscotch sauce made with butter, brown sugar, and cream, on your favorite desserts! This butterscotch sauce recipe is simple and delicious.

4.67 from 27 votes

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Ingredients

2 Tbsps.
⅓ cup
⅓ cup
pinch

Cooking Conversions

See our Cooking Conversions Chart for help converting measurements!

Instructions

Combine butter, brown sugar and heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir until the butter has melted and the ingredients are fully combined.
Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer for four minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the salt.
Let cool before serving.

Video

Notes

TIP:You can freeze this butterscotch sauce recipe to use for later! The heavy cream in the sauce will expand when frozen, so don’t use a glass container to store it in the freezer. Keep in mind, you can’t go from frozen to eating. You’ll need to thaw the sauce first, then reheat it. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 756kcalCarbohydrates: 74gProtein: 1gFat: 52gSaturated Fat: 32gCholesterol: 169mgSodium: 53mgPotassium: 157mgSugar: 71gVitamin A: 1875IUCalcium: 113mgIron: 0.5mg

Keyword Butterscotch Sauce, Butterscotch Sauce Recipe, Butterscotch topping, sauce recipe

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