Apple Nachos With Date Caramel Recipe

If you have a sweet tooth, you'll naturally want to test out all the latest dessert recipes and concoctions. While cookies, cakes, and brownies are regular favorites, there is plenty of room for creativity in the world of sweet treats. Tasting Table recipe developer Jessica Morone agrees wholeheartedly, as evidenced by her apple nachos with date caramel recipe. Here, she takes a classically salty dish and turns it into something sweet, albeit with a wholesome touch to make it that much more enticing. 

"I love the date caramel in the recipe," Morone shares. "It's sweet and creamy, but it's also healthier than regular caramel, which is just sugar." And what better to go with date caramel than apples? You won't have any trouble finding excuses to whip this up, but as Morone suggests, "I would serve this as a snack when you are looking for something a bit healthier than maybe chips or candy, but still fun." Both a joy to make and to eat, this recipe is endlessly customizable so your palate never gets bored.

For this recipe, you'll need water, lemon juice, medium-sized apples, pitted dates, coconut milk, vanilla extract, and salt. Then, to garnish the nachos, start with granola. "I used a honey and oat granola for mine, but any flavor you like works," Morone notes. She also adds dried cranberries and either cacao nibs or mini chocolate chips to the sweet nachos.

Mix together the water and lemon juice in a medium container or bowl.

Slice the apples into ½-inch wedges.

Add the cut apples to the container with the lemon juice mixture to prevent browning. Set aside.

Add the dates to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the dates form a paste.

Add the coconut milk, vanilla extract, and salt and process until smooth.

Drain the apples and arrange them on a plate.

Drizzle the date caramel over the apples.

Sprinkle the granola, cranberries, and cacao nibs over the apples before serving right away.

Just like savory nachos, these apple nachos with date caramel are endlessly customizable. "You can really garnish them with anything you like — it's a fun snack no matter what you put on top," Morone says. You could choose to top the apple slices with whatever foods are most appropriate for the particular occasion on which you're serving the dish. Breakfast time? Load up on the granola. Halloween party? Your favorite mini candy might be just the right candidate. 

Morone comments, "I made this version super healthy, but instead of cranberries or cacao nibs, you could top them with things like Reece's pieces or sprinkles." Considering apples offer a refreshing and crunchy bite to the dish, combining them with small bits of assorted textures makes for a fun pairing for your taste buds. Shredded coconut could bring out the coconut notes in the date caramel, while tiny pieces of toffee would add an extra caramel-like touch. 

Although you should serve these apple nachos with date caramel as soon as the dish is assembled, you can make it in parts if you want to get a head start. Morone explains, "Soaking the apples in the lemon juice/water mixture stops them from turning brown for hours. It's more for aesthetics than anything, but it really makes a difference." Go ahead and prep the apples in advance, pop them in the fridge, and no one will know. 

As for the date caramel, Morone notes, "It will actually last for 1-2 weeks in the fridge, and you probably won't use all of it on one plate of these apple nachos. You can save it in the fridge and dip things in it whenever you want." She elaborates, "I made the date caramel thin enough to drizzle over the apple nachos, but if you prefer a stronger date flavor or a thicker consistency, just use less coconut milk in the recipe to get the consistency you want."