If you are missing decadent candies on your sugar-free diet look no further. I’ve created these delicious Sugar-Free Turtles that will satisfy all your holiday cravings without putting you on sugar overload!

What Are Turtles?

One of my favorite things about specialty candy shops and the holiday candy trays is always the Turtle Candies.

These Turtle candies are such a classic treat and they are delicious. They’ve been around for a long time and they haven’t evolved much past their original recipe calling for pecans, caramel, and chocolate. 

I mean why would they, right? You simply can’t go wrong with those ingredients individually, but put all three together and they are irresistible!

These candies are pretty straightforward since they are only three ingredients, and they get their cute little name because of the natural shape they take on as you build the layers.

With the rounded mounds of caramel, nuts, and chocolate they begin to take on the shape of a turtle shell, thus the reason they were given the title Turtles.

Can Turtles Be Sugar-Free or Keto?

As much as I love traditional Turtles, I can’t eat them anymore without feeling horrible and dealing with the consequences of eating so much sugar.

So for years now I’ve had the idea to try and create a sugar-free version of these little candies that our family can enjoy during the holidays, but for some reason that seemed daunting because of the caramel centers.

I wasn’t sure how I could get that chewy, oh-so-dreamy, caramel portion of the truffle without sugar.

That is until I got the idea that I might try using my “Low Carb Caramel” that I use for a lot of recipes here on the blog.

This caramel is made with a sugar alternative called Allulose. This sweetener has a great flavor without the cooling effect that many find erythritol has.

It also does well in recipes for sauces and desserts like my caramel because it doesn’t recrystallize like other sugar alternatives do once they cool off or get refrigerated.

Turns out I was right! My caramel recipe makes the perfect caramel center for my Sugar-Free Keto Turtles.

It is absolutely perfect when you top the pecans with this caramel and then dip them in some melted sugar-free chocolate chips.

You’ll be just as thrilled as I was friends when you can enjoy these heavenly treats on your next holiday tray or special occasion!

Without all the sugar the originals have! How great is that?

How To Make Keto Sugar-Free Turtles

Just like their sugar-loaded cousins, these candies take some planning ahead and a few steps to create.

In fact, they may take a little more planning ahead than traditional turtles because the caramel needs to be made the day before. So it has time to thicken in the fridge overnight.

I’ll link to that caramel recipe in the recipe card, but if you also want to see me make it in a video you can hop over to my YouTube channel and watch the video HERE.

Once you have your caramel made, you’ll need to let it chill in the fridge overnight. This will allow the caramel to thicken up nicely and will help it stay on the pecans as you build your turtles.

To build your Turtle Candies you will need to prepare them in stages, the first being building the base of your candies.

Begin by laying out three pecan halves into start patterns, you can see in some of my photos how I did mine.

I typically use three halves per turtle because nuts are expensive, and add more carbs the more you use. These turtles as written have about 2 net carbs each!

So when you see 72 pecan halves in the recipe card, don’t freak out, you need that many to make the 25 turtles this recipe makes.

Keep in mind these will need to go into the freezer later to set up, so make sure the tray you use will fit into your freezer before you start building your turtles.

Once you have the pecans laid out in the pattern you like, mine usually look like a star, then take a teaspoon and place a little dollop of the caramel in the center of each of the pecan shapes.

It is important to make sure the caramel is in the center and that it is covering the ends of all three pecan halves because the caramel will be the glue that holds your nuts together later when you dip them into chocolate.

Those silly-looking dollops will become your creamy caramel centers. If you prepared the caramel correctly, then it should be thick enough to hold and not run off of the pecans, but if it runs just a bit, that’s fine it will firm up in the freezer.

After you have topped the pecans with the caramel, place your baking tray into the freezer and let these sit in there until they are solid enough to pick them up without them falling apart.

After the turtles have set up very firm, I left mine overnight, you are ready to melt your sugar-free chocolate for dipping.

Melting your chocolate can be done in a couple of ways. I use a double boiler method because I don’t have a microwave.

I add a little coconut oil with the sugar-free chocolate chips and slowly melt them until they are smooth and completely melted.

If you prefer to do it in a microwave, you can still add the coconut oil and melt the chocolate chips in 30-second intervals until they are melted and smooth.

Watch them very carefully as they will seize and be unusable if you leave them for too long.

Now that the chocolate is melted take your turtles out of the freezer and use a fork to dip each one of them into the melted chocolate. Place each back on the baking tray after dipping.

Make sure you get all the caramel covered so that the chocolate seals it in and keeps it from melting as it comes to room temperature.

At this point, you can put the Sugar-Free Turtles into the refrigerator until they have dried and the chocolate is solid and doesn’t come off on your hand.

Store these turtles in the fridge in an airtight container when you are not eating them.

Tips and Tricks for These Keto Sugar-Free Turtles

Here are a few things I’ve learned while making these candies that will hopefully help you make the perfect turtles for you.

1. Since this recipe is more labor intensive than most of my others be sure to read over the recipe and make plans to make the caramel and do the first step of making the turtles a couple of days before you want to eat or serve them. Planning is key in this recipe, but it is so worth it, trust me!
2. You can purchase the brand of sugar-free chocolate chips you enjoy eating, preferably some that you’ve melted in the past. I’ve learned that not all brands melt as nicely as others. I prefer ChocZero, Thrive Market’s Stevia Sweetened Chocolate Chips, or Lily’s Semi-Sweet or Milk Chocolate.
3. Only add a tablespoon of coconut oil to help the chocolates melt more easily. If you add too much, they will still taste really good, but they will melt faster in your hands and be messier to eat. Again if you need more coconut oil to help your chocolate chips melt smoother you can add up to a couple of tablespoons only if that much is needed for your chocolate and they will still work fine, they’ll just be messy and delicious.
4. Keep your turtles in the freezer while you are melting your chocolate and have your dipping tools (aka a fork or two) nearby before you start to dip because you’ll need to move fast to dip all 25 of these turtles before your chocolate starts to set back up since they are cold.
5. I recommend melting the chocolate over a double boiler and keeping the chocolate over the hot water as you dip. This helps keep the chocolate melted longer and makes it easier to dip all of your turtles.
6. Don’t skip the step of lining your baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat if you can. This makes clean-up easier but also it keeps the turtles from freezing to the pan as they chill in the freezer.
7. Also, keep in mind that your baking tray needs to fit easily into your freezer because these Sugar-Free Turtles will take a couple of trips to the freezer during this process.
8. Store the turtles in an air-tight container in your fridge or freezer until you are ready to enjoy them.
9. These can be made ahead and stored in the freezer for a couple of months if you store them properly.

Yield: 24 Candies

Sugar Free Turtles

These Sugar-Free Turtles are a delicious sweet treat that will be a hit on your next Keto Holiday tray.

Print

Ingredients

• 1 Batch of This Low Carb Caramel
• 72 Pecan Halves
• 9 ounces of Sugar Free Chocolate Chips
• 1 Tablespoon of Coconut Oil

Instructions

1. Prepare the Caramel Recipe the day before you are going to start making your turtles. Let it cool completely and then refrigerator overnight.
2. The next day your caramel should be thick and scoopable with a spoon. So grab a baking sheet, that will fit in your freezer, and line it with parent paper or a baking mat.
3. Lay out the pecans in a triangle shape, see the picture in the bog for an idea. Three pecans per turtle is what I do.
4. Once you have the pecan laid out take a teaspoon of the thick caramel and place it into the center of the pecans, making sure the caramel touches all three pecans.
5. Once you have all of the turtles topped with caramel place these back into the freezer to set for several hours up to overnight to get hard enough to pick up.
6. Add the coconut oil and sugar-free chocolate chips to a bowl and melt until smooth and well combined. You can do this in the microwave in 30-second intervals or a double boiler like I do.
7. When the chocolate is melted use a fork to carefully dip each turtle into the chocolate then place them back onto the tray. You will need to move pretty fast on this step.
8. Return the turtles to the refrigerator until the chocolate is set and firm,
9. Store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to enjoy.

Notes

This recipe has a few steps that you need to plan ahead to do if you make these Keto Sugar Free Turtles. Please read the recipe card carefully and check out the blog post for my favorite tips that will help.

Nutrition Information

Yield

24

Serving Size

1 Turtle
Amount Per ServingCalories 103Total Fat 9gSaturated Fat 3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 5gCholesterol 0mgSodium 6mgCarbohydrates 5gNet Carbohydrates 2gFiber 1gSugar 1gSugar Alcohols 2gProtein 2g

I am not a nutritionist. If you have strict dietary needs I always recommend using an online nutrition calculator to calculate your totals using your exact brands you're using in this recipe as values may vary per brand.

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Keri Bucci

I am a southern girl through and through that loves to laugh, cook, read and spend time with family. My passions outside of home schooling my son are ministering to those in need and creating art in the kitchen! Every day is an adventure in our little house and I wouldn’t trade it or the chance to share here with you for anything!