Description
CAJETA SAUCE CARAMEL
Cajeta Sauce Caramel is a beige to dark-brown confectionery product made by heating a variety of sugars. It can be used as a flavoring in puddings and desserts, as a filling in bonbons, or as a topping for ice cream and custard.
Are Cajeta and Caramel topping the same?
What is Cajeta made out of?
Cajeta Sauce Caramel
Pronounced Kah-Heh-tah
You could say that cajeta (pronounced Kah-Heh-tah) is Mexican Spanish for what other Latin American countries call dulce de leche. The word means “little box,” which is what the confection was stored back in the 1500s. I’ve heard that cajeta is vulgar slang in some other Latin American countries, which is perhaps why it’s known as dulce de leche elsewhere. But beyond the names, there is another difference between the two.
What sets cajeta apart from its caramelized milk-and-sugar brethren is that it’s usually made from goat’s milk instead of from cow’s milk. I tend to find dulce de leche a bit cloying, but the goat’s milk used to make cajeta adds a certain tang that mitigates the sweetness. And while goat’s milk can be strong in flavor, its presence in cajeta isn’t prevailing but instead offers an occasional high note, like the ring of a triangle in a symphony of flutes and strings.

It’s not difficult to find dulce de leche in New York, but cajeta is a different matter. And while I have seen one commercial brand at a Mexican bodega, its ingredients weren’t exactly pure. I know people that make an easy dulce de leche by boiling a can of sweetened condensed milk, but I’ve never seen a can of sweetened condensed goat’s milk. Have you? This meant if I wanted proper cajeta, I’d have to make it from scratch.
The most difficult thing about making cajeta is that you must stand and stir the pot for about an hour and a half, though this tedium can be minimized by having a good book on hand. Comfortable shoes or a stool to sit on aren’t bad ideas, either. But for this penance, you are rewarded with a thick, luscious treat that bears no resemblance to its previous self. And it’s so addictive you’ll be hard-pressed to do anything but just eat it straight out of the pot with a spoon, though it’s good on ice cream, in crepes and tortillas or on apple slices as well
How do you eat Cajeta?
Obleas con Cajeta. I use to think, as a little girl, these were church sweets.
- Drizzle on ice cream.
- Spread on toast (tastes like french toast).
- Spread on pancakes, waffles, and crepes.
- Stir into coffee, tea, or warm milk.
- Dip fresh fruit into (apples, pears, and bananas are great!)
- Drizzle on freshly baked pies (think apple and pumpkin).
- Stir into hot oatmeal.
What is Cajeta sauce made out of?
Goat meat from goats milked in our farm, in the old style cooked on firewood.
Sweetness: highly balanced by muscovado sugar and maguey honey with what is made.
Flavor: Predominantly lightly burned goat milk
Color: Bright chocolate brown.
Texture: Slightly fluid
Use: Home for its size; spreadable on toast, sweet sandwich bread, to make atole, puddings, perfect complement for ice cream and gelatos
Cajeta Crepes
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