Learn how to make the best Vegan Homemade Chocolate Sauce with just 5 ingredients! It’s the perfect topping for any dessert, including ice cream, brownies, muffins and even oatmeal and fruit. Totally oil-free!
VEGAN HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE SAUCE
I’ve been making this Vegan Homemade Chocolate Sauce for years. I use it on many desserts and a few even on this blog. However, it’s never had it’s own dedicated post, therefore, it’s really hard to find for readers. So, I decided to post it for all of you. It is absolutely delicious on so many different things.
I’ve mainly used it on this Vegan Peanut Butter Sweet Potato Ice Cream. Because I don’t think there is a better topping for cold ice cream than a thick, rich vegan dairy-free fudge sauce, right? Imagine the creaminess, most decadent, perfectly sweetened and deeply chocolate sauce ever. This is it.
HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE VEGAN CHOCOLATE SAUCE
You don’t need anything complicated for this vegan chocolate syrup. Gather the following 5 ingredients:
- unsweetened cocoa powder
- pure maple syrup
- plant-based milk of choice
- creamy nut butter of choice (I either make my homemade Roasted Almond Butter or the Kroger brand, Simple Truth)
- vanilla extract
First, in a medium bowl, combine all of the ingredients and whisk really well until fairly smooth. Place in the microwave for 30 seconds. This is just to melt the cocoa powder so it dissolves.
Whisk again really well or add to a food processor to get it really smooth and no bits of cocoa or nut butter remain.
Store in the fridge. It will thicken in the fridge into a luxurious almost ganache fudge texture, so just set out at room temperature for a bit and whisk well before you know you will want to use it.
WAYS TO USE THIS VEGAN CHOCOLATE SAUCE
There are so many ways to use this vegan chocolate syrup.
- Vegan Whole Wheat Chocolate Muffins are pictured here in this post
- Peanut Butter Sweet Potato Ice cream
- Fruit
- Oatmeal
- Gluten-free Chocolate Waffles
- Brownies
- Anything you want!
Vegan Homemade Chocolate Sauce
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (48g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup (160g) pure maple syrup
- 1/4 cup (60g) plant-based milk of choice
- 2 tablespoons (32g) creamy nut butter of choice (I used almond)
- 1 teaspoon (5g) vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon fine salt
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine all of the ingredients and whisk really well until fairly smooth. Place in the microwave for 30 seconds. This is just to melt the cocoa powder so it dissolves.
- Whisk again really well until completely smooth and no bits of cocoa or nut butter remain.
- Heating it will make it a quite runny at first, but set aside for 15 minutes or so and it will thicken up.
- Store in the fridge. It will thicken in the fridge into a luxurious almost ganache fudge texture, so just set out at room temperature for a bit and whisk well before you know you will want to use it. I would be careful about heating it each use or you may burn the chocolate.
- Use over fruit, oatmeal, ice cream, desserts, or my Vegan Whole Wheat Chocolate Muffins.
O. M. G. This is sensational!
Just brought My daughter home from the hospital (head on collision), and asked if I could make a fudgy chocolate sauce for a strawberries and pineapple dessert for dinner. Of course! I just happen to have the Best Fudge Sauce recipe!!!!
This is dangerous to have on hand – so I only make it for very special people!
Thank you, Brandi, you are the best!
Yay, this makes me happy to hear Rosebud!
Delicious!!! Perfectly chocolaty & just the right amount of sweetness & consistency. Love all your recipes Brandy!
Oh my gosh this chocolate sauce is amazing! I used a dark cocoa powder and peanut butter. I want to put this on everything. And the 30 seconds of microwave time really brings it together into a smooth, creamy sauce. Love it!!! I’m glad I only made a half recipe because this seriously dangerous to have around. I am definitely having this on my Cheerios tonight. Just hope it lasts that long.
Oh man, I don’t know how you came up with the recipe for this sauce but oowee i’m so glad you did!! I’d been making my chocolate using cocoa powder and coconut oil…i like coconut oil but it’s nice having an option that doesn’t involve oil. Also recently I began using dark cocoa powder for further health benefits and i like it but was looking for a way to lighten it up a bit when I want…I hadn’t quite figured that out yet but you have done this well, thank you! Made this today and the recipe is simple and easy to follow, makes a nice quantity, and most importantly is lick the spoon worthy 😁! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Great recipe, i replaced the maple syrup with an avocado and 20 drops of pure monk fruit extract, and used homemade soy butter and it awesome. Taste just like the chocolate cake frosting from the store. Thank you for this recipe. Peace
This sauce is fantastic my family all lived will be making again soon
Hi Brandi,
Do you know if this receipe will work with a sugar-free sweetener for those of us who need to watch sugar intake? If so, which one would you recommend?
Thank you so much!
Hi Vivi! I’ve never tried a sugar free sweetener. I would start out with much less though since I believe they are much sweeter than natural sugars and adjust if needed. Add more liquid if needed.
Wondering if honey could be used instead of maple syrup.
It’s sweeter and much thicker, so I’d start out with less.
My husband has had a total gastrectomy. He is limited on sweets, but does tolerate honey. We have not tried maple syrup. Since it is natural, it might work also. Sounds great for him otherwise.
Let me know how it turns out!
This is so yummy!! I made 1/2 recipe first time because I was not sure about nut butter. The second time I made full recipe using the nut butter I have which is Justin’s honey almond butter.
Recipe looks amazing
Could I use tahini instead of almond butter?
Sure, if you don’t mind the butter taste of tahini. It’s much more bitter and not sweet like almond butter, as well as more runny, so I’d keep that in mind.
The last 2 times I’ve made this I’ve used sunflower seed butter and added a little bit of mint extract. Of chocolate sauce, how I LOVE thee…Let me count the ways…on grilled toast with sliced bananas – must clean your face and hands up after, dip raspberries in warm sauce….or just on it’s own..it’s finger licking fantabulous!!!
Haha, so happy you loved it!
Did I misread this? It lasts 2 weeks in the fridge? How is that even possible?! I think you meant it lasts 2 minutes because it’s insanely delish. Yeah, that’s the ticket.
Hi Brandi. I made this sauce with peanut butter because I was too impatient to wait to get Almond butter. I used special dark cocoa (I have a huge sweet tooth and unsweetened is not allowed in my pantry. 😅😆) It’s a little thicker than I like so I added extra almond milk. I’ll definitely make it again with Almond butter so I don’t have that peanut butter taste. I put this on top of vwgan French toast and sliced bananas.
Hi! Yes, peanut butter will make it much much thicker, almond butter is more runny and oily.
Would this syrup work for making chocolate milk (with rice milk)? Or is it too thick?
Also, how long can it be stored in the frig?
Hi Karen! Do you mean mix the recipe above thinned out with rice milk? If so, possibly! You can just add enough rice milk to reach the consistency you like. Since there is nut butter, you made need to shake/whisk it before drinking each use though. This sauce I’ve left in the fridge around 2 weeks and it is still great, it gets really thick like a fudge, which is exceptionally yummy!
Hi, I made this today as we wanted ice cream since it was 100 degrees outside. It’s amazing!!! I love the consistency. I only had dark chocolate cocoa on hand, yumm! I’m so happy I found your website! Thank you
Melinda
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Melinda, thank you so much for making it!
Oh and I bet it was amazing with the dark cocoa too, will try that next time!
Seriously? Like for real seriously, Brandi this is SOOO good. I just whipped some up to put on top of some ice cream (of course one of your recipes) and it was so easy. I’m like there is no way this is going to be super delicious, it’s too easy. Well, guess what? It was delicious AND so much more than I expected! It had a fudgey quality to it that is absolutely amazing. You’ve done it again, you are a vegan goddess among us.
Awww Kim, thank you so much for such lovely words and feedback, it is so appreciated!!
It’s now illegal to eat anything in my house without this sauce drizzled on it. Name a food – any food. Spaghetti? Alfredo? Salad? Yep, all must now include this sauce. It’s just that good.
hahaha, that totally made me laugh Alena! Sounds like the best law ever!!
Brandi, I made this to go with the sweet potato peanut butter ice cream, omg what an awesomely, decadent treat! My only complaint is that I put it in this little cute plastic jar, and when it was gone I couldn’t get anything else out of it. Couldn’t stick my finger in it or lick it ( terrible, isn’t it?) but that’s just how good this stuff is. I am in the process of making it again as we speak. I just made the ice cream again yesterday evening and I am making the sauce now. I sooooo appreciate your work and creative mind! A gazillion thanks to you for having the talent and imagination to make great food.
Wonderful Yvonne! I’m so thrilled you loved this chocolate sauce and the sweet potato peanut butter ice cream so much! Haha, yes, sounds like you had a problem! Thank you so much for your kind words!!
This is ahhhhhh-mazing!! Have you tried freezing it? I think it would be wonderful on frozen bananas & wonder if it would harden up slightly to make a nice coating. Let me know if you’ve tried it😊
And thank you for all the wonderful recipes you’ve invented & shared!💜
Yay! So glad you loved it Lisa! Omg, yes, it would be fantastic out of the freezer! It gets so thick and fairly firm in the fridge, so I imagine it would get even thicker in the freezer, although, not sure if it would technically get super hard though, but certainly firm enough coated in bananas is my guess!
The vegan chocolate suace is incredible! I gave up Nutella years ago and it was my indulgence. This sauce was wonderful on the chocolate cupcakes but even better after setting in the fridge over night and dipping strawberries inti!!
Thank you so much Hope, so happy you loved it! Great idea, too!
I only have an oven. How do I make this work?
I would suggest just trying by adding the milk to an oven safe small dish and heat it on low so the milk gets hot, then add the cocoa and remaining ingredients and whisk until smooth.
I made this the other night and I have so many regrets. I am weak. I wish to eat it all. I have told myself I can’t. The torture is too much to bear. My intentions were to drizzle this over some cookies to bring to my coworkers and maybe put some in my oatmeal (I’m a terrible person if I don’t eat chocolate with breakfast), but I really want to eat the whole damn jar. I wish I had never seen this on my insta feed. (In other words, very delicious.)
This is hilarious, thank you Savannah for this amazing review!!
Looking forward to making this recipe!!! I plan on using raw cashews and throwing everything into my Vitamix😊
Hi Tatiana! Raw cashews?? For which part? That might make the sauce excessively thick. Do you mean make cashew milk?
Oh, yum!! I never thought about adding nut butter to the one I make. That would really take it up a notch in texture and give it a nice thickness. Good thinking! My husband is ALL about chocolate sauce and has even been caught drizzling it on cereal for a snack. I’m with Natalie in the earlier comments – now, I want ice cream with this sauce!
Yes, it gives it a wonderful thick texture! It’s really delicious on ice cream. I have the sweet potato ice cream linked in the post that has the sauce on it there too 🙂
I’m curious, with the nut butter in it, does it taste like a nut butter chocolate, or does it have a pure chocolate taste? Either way, it looks and sounds delicious, but I would like to know if you can taste the nut butter in it.
Not at all, since it’s only 2 tbsp and this makes a full cup of sauce. I don’t taste it at all, just a rich chocolate flavor.
I know I’ve been terrible about keeping up with posts and comments for the past few weeks (SORRY!), but see the words “chocolate sauce” come into my inbox and I’m there! And it is just as dreamy as I was imagining, forget melting chocolate chips every time I need something drizzly for topping an IG jar🍫🍫 I’ve made something similar but usually just with cacao powder, maple syrup, and coconut oil. The nut butter makes it MUCH thicker and richer I bet, and DUH salt is a must😋 Mmm I bet it’s good on everything but this really makes me want a big bowl of vanilla ice cream asap!
Hi!!
I forget how I found you, but girl, am I glad I did 😁😁😁😁‼️‼️‼️‼️♥️♥️ My husband and I endeavor to eat vegan fat free. The only source for healthy whole FOOD (no oil) recipes we’ve had for years have been from Dr. John McDougall. Their recipes have changed our lives. But I was SO happy to see that now I can have a choice of where to look ❣️❣️ Plus the fact that you keep your ingredient list to 8!! I can’t wait to start tasting your recipes 😁😁😁😁 Thanx for your work 🥰🥰🥰
My husband ‘s favorite is chocolate cake with gooey chocolate frosting. He’ll love it for his birthday, hee hee!
This was so very sweet, thank you so much for such a kind comment! You don’t know how much I needed to reach this today!! Haha, so thank you. Glad you found me too and I really hope you love the recipes!!
Girl, do not apologize, you were traveling and having the time of your life!! Totally more important than commenting on blogs, haha! Can you believe I first wrote this recipe in 2013?? But all these years it didn’t get much love since it was added onto another couple of recipes on the blog, so I finally got around to giving it it’s own post, it deserved it, lol! Yes, it makes it thicker, particularly when it cools. When it sits in the fridge overnight, it is like a really thick fudge that you can eat with a spoon, SO GOOD. Thank you Natalie!