Creamy Caramel Apple Dip with Cream Cheese & Apple Butter
Aug 18, 2026
This post contains collections of products that I personally recommend (it may contain affiliate links).
Table of Contents
- Creamy Caramel Apple Dip Ingredients
- Best Things to Dip in Caramel Apple Butter Dip
- How to Make Caramel Apple Dip
- Apple Butter and Cream Cheese Dip Step-by-Step Directions
- Tips for the Best Cream Cheese Apple Dip
- How to Prevent Apples From Browning
- Caramel Apple Dip Ingredient Swaps & Recipe Variations
- How to Serve Caramel Apple Dip
- How to Serve Apple Butter Dip on a Board Step-by-Step Instructions
- Storage & Make-Ahead Tips
- Caramel Apple Dip FAQs
- Show Me Your Dips
- Apple Butter and Cream Cheese Dip Recipe
I can’t imagine a better, or sweeter, way to welcome fall than with this creamy caramel apple dip. Most caramel apple dips don’t actually have apple in the dip itself, so I wanted to make a version that did.
This one combines apple butter, cream cheese, caramel sauce, vanilla, and salt for an easy 5-ingredient dip that takes just 5 minutes to make, no mixer required. Win-win!
The apple butter gives it a concentrated, not-too-sweet apple flavor and an extra-creamy texture. You can find apple butter at most grocery stores, local farm stands, and apple orchards this time of year. I first made this dip after a trip to Oak Glen where I picked up some apple butter along with plenty of fresh apples and set out to make the perfect creamy dip for them. Fall in Los Angeles doesn’t exactly have the same feeling that it does in other parts of the country, so I like to bring out themed food that still evokes the season.
Need more convincing? Take it from my daughter, who loves it so much that I literally have to pull it away from her so that she doesn’t eat it by the spoonful. Serve it with crisp apple slices and your favorite dippers (or, okay, a spoon) for an easy fall treat everyone will love.
Craving more fall recipes like this one? Try my Fall Dessert Charcuterie Board (you can even swap in this dip for the pumpkin spice dessert hummus!), a DIY Caramel Apple Bar, my Trader Joe’s Halloween Cheese Board, this Fall Squash & Burrata Appetizer, and my favorite Halloween Candy Charcuterie Board.
Creamy Caramel Apple Dip Ingredients
Check your pantry and grab a shopping cart! Here are the ingredients you need to make this easy apple dip recipe:
- Cream Cheese: Use full-fat plain cream cheese for the best (aka the creamiest!) texture. I love classic Philadelphia cream cheese, but am a sucker for Tillamook too. Be sure to let it soften at room temperature for about 30 minutes so that it’s easy to mix.
- Apple Butter: Choose a jar of plain apple butter that’s made with minimal ingredients (think: apples, water or apple juice concentrate, and maybe cinnamon). You’ll find them out and about when stores start stocking fall ingredients. I like this one from Eden Farms sold at Whole Foods. Trader Joe’s has an “Apple Pie Spread,” but it has more ingredients. You can also use a homemade version!
- Caramel Sauce: Stick to a jar of regular caramel sauce like this organic one, not the salted variety or a squeeze bottle of caramel topping, which is thicker and harder to stir. I find that the pre-made salted caramel sauces can be a little too salty, especially for this recipe.
- Vanilla Extract: Pure vanilla extract helps to round out the flavors and provide more sweetness. I love Nielsen-Massey, but any brand will work. Just be sure that it’s not imitation vanilla, which lacks the depth of flavor of real vanilla.
- Salt: A pinch of kosher salt (I use Diamond Crystal!) helps to cut through all of the rich ingredients.
Best Things to Dip in Caramel Apple Butter Dip
Looking for ideas of what to serve with this apple and cream cheese dip? These are some of my favorite sweet and salty snacks for dipping!
- Fresh and dried fruit: Apple slices, dried apples, banana slices, sliced pears, and whole strawberries
- Cookies: Biscoff cookies, biscotti, gingersnaps, Golden Oreos, and Nilla wafers
- Crunchy snacks: Cinnamon pita chips, cinnamon sugar pretzel crisps, graham crackers, pretzel rods, yogurt-covered pretzels, or these white fudge pretzels
- Something sweet: Pound cake cubes, stroopwafel, and vanilla macarons
How to Make Caramel Apple Dip
Combine the softened cream cheese, apple butter, caramel sauce, vanilla, and salt in a bowl. Stir together with a spatula or whisk until smooth.
Alternatively, you can make this with an electric hand mixer or in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on low to medium speed, scraping halfway through, until the ingredients are smooth and creamy.
Apple Butter and Cream Cheese Dip Step-by-Step Directions
- Place the cream cheese in a large mixing bowl.
- Add the apple butter.
- Pour in the caramel sauce.
- Sprinkle in the salt.
- Add the vanilla extract.
- Use a spatula to gently combine the ingredients.
- Whisk the dip until it’s smooth and creamy.
- Transfer the dip to a serving bowl and serve with dried apple chips, fresh apple slices, pretzels, graham crackers, cookies, and more.
Tips for the Best Cream Cheese Apple Dip
- Using room temperature cream cheese: If there’s one thing that I want you to avoid when making this dip, it’s using a block of cream cheese straight from the refrigerator. It’s so hard to mix up into a smooth and creamy dip, and it’s likely that you’ll end up with a few clumps of cream cheese in your dip. To avoid this problem, let the cream cheese sit out at room temperature for about 30 minutes before making the dip!
- Don’t serve it ice cold: Similarly, it’s a good idea to let the finished dip sit out at room temperature for at least 15 minutes before serving it. When it chills, the cream cheese will harden up a bit, which will make it more difficult to dip. The goal here is a smooth, spreadable, ultra-creamy dip, so letting it rest a bit in a warmer environment will help achieve that!
- Wait to slice the apples: No one wants to eat a brown apple, let alone look at one. Go ahead and prep the dip ahead of time but wait to slice the apples closer to serving time. For more tips on keeping apples from browning, check out my Rosh Hashanah post.
How to Prevent Apples From Browning
- Squeeze half a lemon over the apples.
- Sprinkle salt on top of the apples.
- Stir to combine and let the apples rest.
Caramel Apple Dip Ingredient Swaps & Recipe Variations
Dairy-Free Caramel Apple Dip
Feel free to swap in your favorite plant-based cream cheese. Kite Hill, Miyoko’s, and Philadelphia all make popular ones!
Extra Caramel Apple Dip
Craving the flavor of a caramel apple? Feel free to add another tablespoon of caramel to the dip, then drizzle even more on top!
Cheesecake Apple Dip
Want to mimic the flavor of a caramel apple cheesecake? Add another 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract and the zest of 1/2 small lemon.
Cinnamon Apple Dip
Add 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon to start, but go ahead and add a bit more to taste!
Maple Apple Dip
Ditch the caramel sauce for maple syrup for a sweet breakfast-inspired dip. You can use a 1:1 ratio since maple syrup has a similar texture and sweetness to caramel sauce.
Pecan Apple Dip
Stir 1/4 cup chopped pecans into the apple dip for a nutty flavor and crunch.
Speculoos Apple Dip
Anything with cookie butter is something that I want to eat! Add 3 tablespoons of speculoos butter in place of the caramel sauce to the cream cheese and apple butter mixture.
Toffee Apple Dip
Stir in a few tablespoons of crushed Heath bar bits into the dip for crunch and that rich, buttery flavor.
How to Serve Caramel Apple Dip
Scoop this caramel apple dip in a small serving bowl. Place on a wooden cutting board and serve with sliced apples, dried apple chips, graham crackers, Nilla wafers, and mini pretzels. You can also use my pumpkin hummus board as inspo and swap in this apple butter dip instead.
Pro tip: If you’re planning to serve this board for a party (and I hope you are!), squeeze a small amount of lemon juice over the sliced apples to prevent them from browning.
How to Serve Apple Butter Dip on a Board Step-by-Step Instructions
- Add dip to a bowl and place in the top right corner of the board.
- Style graham crackers and Nilla wafers around the bowl. Arrange more graham crackers on the bottom left side of the board.
- Add your favorite varieties of apple slices, placing them on the corners and center of the board.
- Fill in any remaining space with mini pretzels.
Storage & Make-Ahead Tips
You can absolutely make this dip in advance, which is a great way to get ahead on party prep! Store it in an airtight container (I swear by this glass storage set) for up to two days in the refrigerator, then transfer it to a pretty serving bowl before arranging your board.
I wouldn’t recommend freezing this since the texture of the cream cheese will change and it won’t be as smooth and creamy once thawed.
Caramel Apple Dip FAQs
Caramel sauce is thinner and typically used for drizzling over desserts, while caramel apple dip is thicker and creamier so it clings to apple slices and other dippers. This caramel apple dip gets its creamy texture from cream cheese, with apple butter adding real apple flavor to the dip itself.
Apple butter is a dairy-free spread that essentially consists of cooked and blended apples. It’s cooked down for hours, usually with a bit of sugar, until it resembles the consistency of softened butter. It’s great for spreading on toast, pancakes, or using it in dessert applications like this one!
Go for varieties that are equal parts sweet and tart with a nice crunch like Cosmic Crisp, Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, Gala, and Fuji apples. Granny Smiths are also great! Since this dip is sweet, I like to offset it with a tart apple.
Although they’re both made with cooked apples, apple butter and applesauce are not the same product. The biggest difference is the cook time—apple butter cooks for hours longer than applesauce, which gives it its thicker consistency, darker color, and more concentrated flavor.
While there are delicious varieties of apple butter with flavors like bourbon, caramel, and cinnamon, stick to a plain one for this recipe so that you can control the sweetness and flavor.
There are a couple of things that help make this dip smooth and spreadable. The first is making sure that your cream cheese is softened to room temperature, which will make it a whole lot easier to whip up into a dip. Be sure to whisk vigorously as well to ensure that all of the ingredients are well combined.
Yes! You can swap the caramel for maple syrup or dulce de leche, both of which have a similar texture and sweetness but will offer a different flavor profile.
Whipped cream cheese has a lot of air incorporated into it, so it’ll change the texture of this dip. Rather than being smooth and creamy, it’ll be a lot fluffier. It won’t taste bad, but I wouldn’t recommend using it for this recipe.
Warm spices like ground cinnamon, ground ginger, allspice, cloves, and freshly grated nutmeg taste great with apple butter. Some brands even sell a pre-mixed apple pie spice blend, which would also be delicious. Feel free to add a small amount to this dip to spice things up!
Show Me Your Dips
I hope this post inspires you to make your own Creamy Apple Butter dip for fall entertaining. I absolutely love seeing you recreate my recipes—and then putting your own sweet spin on them. If you make something inspired by this post, please tag me at @ainttooproudtomeg so I can see and share!
And if you liked this recipe idea, please rate and review it below.
Apple Butter and Cream Cheese Dip
Ingredients
- 8 ounces full fat plain cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) apple butter
- 4 tablespoons caramel sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Pinch of kosher salt
Instructions
- Combine the softened cream cheese, apple butter, caramel sauce, vanilla, and salt in a bowl. Stir together with a spoon or spatula until smooth. Alternatively, you can make this with an electric hand mixer or in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on low to medium speed, scraping halfway through, until the ingredients are smooth and creamy.
- Serve immediately or store in an airtight container for up to 6 days.
