This post may contain paid links. If you make a purchase through links on our site, we may earn a commission.
Jump to Recipe Jump to Video
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. Itâs 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
- đ Recipe
- đŹ 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!
Itâs a great way to get your sweet tooth fix. Make this easy butterscotch sauce recipe at home, and youâll 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 itâs ahhhmazing!! Fast, easy and incredibly delicious! Thanks so much for the recipe, Iâll never buy the stuff in the jars again! (That was a lot of exclamation pointsâŚitâs 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. Itâs much like if you use brown sugar in place of granulated sugar when youâre 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, thereâs 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, â cup light brown sugar, and â 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!
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 â it wonât last that long! Itâs too delicious! When youâre 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 donât use a glass container to store it in the freezer.
- TIP #2: You canât go from frozen to eating. Youâll need to thaw the sauce first, then reheat it.
Uses for Butterscotch Sauce
This wonât 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! Itâs amazing in our strawberry swirl cheesecake. And if you love cream cheese, my Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe is a must!
Weâd 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 đ on Pinterest too, and leave a comment with a photo of your favorite dessert to eat with this butterscotch sauce.
đ 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
Print Recipe
Prep Time 1 minute min
Cook Time 4 minutes mins
Total Time 5 minutes mins
Course Sauce
Cuisine American
Servings 1 cup
Calories 756 kcal
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsps.
- â cup
- â 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 donât use a glass container to store it in the freezer. Keep in mind, you canât go from frozen to eating. Youâll 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
Did you try this recipe?Tag on social and leave a comment below!