Who’s ready for the fall and apple season? I know some people just skip apples and go for pumpkins, but I really do love a good crisp apple. And a good apple crumble but that’s another recipe entirely. I really love apples when they’re paired with some sort of caramel whether it be caramel apple nachos or this homemade caramel apple dip! Or just traditional caramel apples – I mean there are tons of caramel apple toppings options out there! This cream cheese caramel apple dip is my new go-to fall party recipe because it’s so easy to make and pretty much everyone loves it. And it’s definitely one of my favorite apple party ideas! I mean what’s not to love? Caramel, cream cheese, sugar. Plus the toffee bits on the top don’t even taste like toffee, they just taste like more yummy flavor! I don’t like toffee and I love this! Serve this up with a little caramel apple bark for the most amazing apple spread ever! It’d be a huge hit as an after school snack, party dessert dip, or just a yummy dessert for this time of year!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Easy – just combine the simple ingredients, top it with some caramel and toffee bits and you have a delicious dip to pair with fresh apples!Stores well – make this ahead of time or make it right before your party, it doesn’t matter because it tastes just as good a day or two later! There’s a reason this sweet dip is my go-to for fall gatherings! It’s also good at room temperature so that’s always a hit! Toffee topping – when I said the toffee doesn’t taste like toffee, I wasn’t kidding. Toffee bits aren’t hard like a cut up Heath Bar, they’re soft but still with that yummy toffee flavor! And it goes really well with the caramel sauce!
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
Cream cheese – remove the cream cheese from the fridge 30-60 minutes before you’re ready to make the dip so it’s soft enough to mix with the other ingredients!Lemon juice – fresh or bottled lemon juice works fine in this recipe! Apples – any kind of apples work well to dip in this recipe. I typically like to serve a variety of sweet and tart green apples (granny smith apples are my favorite nice tart apples) like Disney uses for their Disneyland Halloween treats! If the fresh apple slices will be out for a while, I like to coat them with a little lemon juice to avoid them browning. Toffee bits – while you could do something like chop up a Heath Bar, this recipe is best made with a bag of these toffee bits that you can get in grocery stores! But it’s also good with Heath bits, whatever you want! Caramel sauce – you can use caramel ice cream topping or your favorite caramel sauce. Just don’t try to use melted caramels – they’ll harden and that’s not what you want for this dip!
How to make this caramel apple dip
Okay so I already mentioned this recipe is super simple. And when I’m saying super simple, I mean simple as 1, 2, 3. You ready? Here we go! Beat the cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and lemon juice in a bowl. You can do this either by hand using a whisk, a hand mixer, or do it in a stand mixer. Use whatever works best for you as long as you can get it all nice and creamed together to make your cream cheese layer! Make sure your cream cheese is soft before you do this. If it’s still cold and too hard, you’ll end up with little chunks of cream cheese in the dip – not the fluffy caramel apple dip we’re going for. Once that’s done, transfer the dip to a shallow bowl or serving dish of some sort. This will make it so the dip is not as deep and give people more surface area for dipping into – kind of the same reason I put this buffalo chicken dip in a 9×13 pan instead of a 9×9 one! Once you’ve moved it over, pour the thick caramel sauce on top of the cream cheese dip to make the caramel layer. Then top the caramel with the toffee bits, making sure to get bits all over the dip. This is a toffee apple dip after all! You really want every bite in the dip to have the cheesecake layer, the caramel, and the toffee bits. And that’s it! Serve with fresh sliced apples, other fresh fruit, or other dippers for the yummiest, creamiest, caramel apple dip ever! Or caramel apple cream cheese dip I guess I should say! There’s a reason this easy caramel apple dip was a crowd pleaser on TikTok – so easy and so delicious! It’s perfect for holiday parties all fall long!
Expert Tips
Make these into individual dips by putting a tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture into little condiment cups like these. Top with caramel and toffee bits then let people take their own individual dips and crisp apple slices on their plates rather than trying to spoon it out or dip out of the main dish! Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to four days. You can either cover or just wrap tightly with a layer of plastic wrap. Slice the apples right before serving to keep them from getting brown. Or toss in a bag with a little bit of lemon juice! Try it with brown sugar instead of powdered sugar. One of my followers on Instagram swears by this alternative, and I have to agree it’s a good option to try! But this creamy caramel dip is good no matter what type of sugar you use!
More Easy Dips
If you like dips, these are some of our favorites – dessert dips and savory ones! Dips are always a crowd favorite at any party I host!
Cream cheese fruit dip – this super simple fruit dip combines cream cheese and citrus in a refreshingly delicious dip!Taco dip with meat – you’ve probably had taco dip but you’ve never had it like this! It’s like eating tacos but in dip form and so much better than the other stuff! Christmas tree cheese ball – let people dip crackers and chips into this super festive holiday cheese ball! Queso fundido recipe – cheese, chorizo, and spices make this one of the best Mexican inspired dip recipes you’ll ever try! Spinach dip in bread bowl – if you’ve never eaten your spinach artichoke dip in a bread bowl, you’re missing out! This is the best way to make and eat spinach dip!
