This vegan caramel frosting may be the most delicious frosting ever! Rich and buttery this caramel frosting is made with real salty-sweet vegan caramel!
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I’ve seen a few caramel frosting recipes that call for coconut sugar to give the frosting a caramel flavor. This recipe uses real salted caramel sauce for a true caramel flavor!
Why you will love this vegan caramel frosting…
- It’s vegan, gluten-free, and can be made soy-free too!
- It’s not too sweet but flavored perfectly with the right balance of caramel and salt.
- You will have extra salted caramel sauce to drizzle over the top of your cake or cupcakes!
What you will need to make this frosting:
- Salted Caramel Sauce - follow my recipe for vegan salted caramel sauce and set it aside to cool.
- Vegan Butter - either my vegan butter recipe (stick version) or Miyoko Brand works best. You can also use half Earth Balance and half refined coconut oil.
- Powdered Sugar - for a sweet taste and smooth texture.
- Flour - white flour (GF if necessary) to firm up the frosting without making it overly sweet. (optional)
- Vanilla Extract - for flavor.
- Plant-Based Milk - to achieve the proper frosting consistency. The amount will vary depending on the type of butter you chose to use.
How do I make vegan caramel frosting?
- You need to start by making my vegan salted caramel sauce and allowing it to cool.
- Then cream butter and powdered sugar together into a fluffy buttercream.
- Add the room temperature salted caramel sauce and continue to blend it in with the sugar and butter. (If your caramel sauce has gotten too firm, warm it up just enough to pour it into the frosting).
- Add flour and continue to mix. (You can also use more powdered sugar instead of the flour).
- Add 1-2 tablespoons of plant-based milk if necessary to get the right texture.
- Use a piping bag or this great cupcake decorating tool to make your frosting look perfect!
- Drizzle with some extra vegan salted caramel sauce!
Pro Tips:
- The trick to making this frosting come out well is keeping the ingredients at room temperature. The butter should be just soft enough to whip into the frosting and the caramel sauce cannot be too warm or it will melt your frosting.
- To make an easier version of this vegan caramel frosting, use coconut sugar or Sucanat instead of the homemade caramel sauce to make it quick and easy. These sugars have a natural caramel flavor to them and are delicious in the frosting.
Why add flour to the buttercream?
I like to add some flour in place of some of the powdered sugar to cut the sweetness of the frosting. I think that this frosting is too sweet when made with only sugar. You can use either method to firm up your frosting.
What is this caramel frosting good on?
This caramel frosting is good on just about anything including a spoon! It goes great on my gluten-free vegan chocolate cupcakes. I also love it on my vegan pumpkin muffins! You can also spread it on top of my veggie brownies instead of the fudge frosting to make a perfect vegan caramel brownie!
Make sure to pin this vegan caramel frosting for later!
Vegan Caramel Frosting
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup vegan butter my homemade recipe (stick version) or Miyoko Brand works best
- 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1/4 cup vegan caramel sauce (salted if desired)
- 1/4- 1/2 cup white flour to firm up the frosting (or an all purpose gluten free flour mix)
- 1/2 tsp salt (for salted caramel frosting)
- 1-2 tsp soy milk to make it smooth if necessary
Instructions
- Start by making my vegan salted caramel sauce, and allow it to cool to room temperature.
- Then cream butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla together into a fluffy buttercream.
- Add the room temperature salted caramel sauce and continue to blend it with the sugar and butter. (If your caramel sauce has gotten too firm, warm it up just enough to pour it into the frosting).
- Add flour and continue to mix. (You can also use more powdered sugar instead of the flour).
- Add 1-2 teaspoons of plant-based milk if necessary to get the right texture.
Notes
- Depending on the type of vegan margarine that you use, you may need to add a small amount of plant milk to the frosting to get the right consistency.
- You may need to put the frosting in the fridge for about 10 minutes before piping if the caramel was too warm when you added it to the frosting.
- If your frosting is too thin, add a few more tbsp of powdered sugar.
Nutrition
Soul says
Hello Dear Monica. Wondering if you have ever made this frosting using your butterscotch sauce instead of the salted caramel. Would it work the same way and make butterscotch frosting? Thank you!
Carlyn says
I love caramel of any stripe but am currently looking for a fudgy vegan caramel icing/frosting recipe similar to the nonvegan one my mom used to pair with a very lemony cake for my birthday. I can do a wonderful lemon cake but haven't had success with the frosting. Any ideas?
Monica says
I'm not sure how to make it fudgy. You can try my vegan buttercream recipe and use coconut sugar instead of powdered sugar for a caramel-like flavor. That may give you more of the texture that you are looking for.
Jess says
Can I use coconut butter instead of vegan butter?
Monica says
Yes, it should work okay. You will probably need to add a little more plant-based milk since coconut oil is more firm than butter. Enjoy! 🙂
Mel says
Can vanilla almond milk be used?
Monica says
Yes, it can. Hope that you enjoy it! 🙂
Amanda says
There is no end to the recipes this frosting would make incredible. I'm afraid, I'd be eating it with a spoon!
Monica says
Thanks! I do eat it with a spoon sometimes! 🙂
Vicki says
This looks really good, but you shouldn't eat raw flour. It can contain salmonella or E. coli bacteria.
Monica says
Wow, thanks, I was not aware of that. You can make it with more powdered sugar instead of the flour if you want.
Julie says
Ok. I’m addicted to this frosting! Delicious. Thanks for posting!
Julie says
I cannot get the frosting right i can taste the flour ? I used gluten free blend, then next time tapioca flour, can anyone help please . I love the caramel sauce, its the frosting i cant get right
Monica says
Hi Julie, I'm glad that you love the caramel sauce! Sorry that you could taste the flour in the frosting. Maybe try a different brand? The GF flour from Trader Joe's or the Namaste work well for me. You can also add more powdered sugar instead of the flour, this makes it sweeter, but also very good. Hope that helps! 🙂
Alisa Fleming says
Yum! I made a caramel frosting once, and it can be tricky. Smart to go with a flour version. It looks delicious!
Monica says
Thanks! It's a little tricky, but well worth the effort!
Nicole Dawson says
I can think of so many places I'd use that caramel sauce! It looks and sounds so delicious and perfectly decadent.
Valerie says
Hi, I just tried out the recipe and the cupcakes turn out to be quite chewy. Could you suggest some things I could've done wrong. Thanks!
Monica says
Hi Valerie, if the cupcakes were chewy, you may have over mixed the batter if you used gluten-flour. If you used GF flour, some of the mixes bake up with a chewy texture. I find that any GF mixes with sorghum flour tend to be chewy. Hope that helps. 🙂
Sarah says
This looks so scrumptious! The cupcakes and the frosting and I'm not a frosting person but I want to make these and spread this frosting on everything!
Monica says
This frosting is pretty amazing. I'm not one for overly sweet frosting, but this is just the right amount of buttery, sweet, and salty! 🙂