Light and fluffy with a delicious caramel flavor, this Homemade Caramel Cake is a tasty southern-inspired recipe that is great for any and all occasions.
I’m a cake lover by nature, whatever cake it is – I’m all in. This Homemade Caramel Cake is one of my favorites that we have been making since I was young.
My mom used to make it for special occasions, but we make it around here just because it is super irresistible, and everyone can never get enough.
Caramel and cake really go well together, the pairing of the two flavors complements one another perfectly. And with the caramel inside and outside, you are not left without that flavor.
While it is a sweet cake itself, it is a great balance between the two flavors. But if you love caramel, this cake certainly is the one for you!
Looking for that cake for a party, a birthday, or end of summer cookout? Then this Homemade Caramel Cake is exactly the one that needs to be whipped up.
Some of my other favorite caramel centered recipes we have on our site include: Cinnamon Buttermilk Caramel Sauce, Caramel Apple Dip and Caramel Banana Sweet Cream Rolls.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
- The two flavors pair together perfectly.
- The caramel filling and frosting sets up nicely without becoming hard.
- This is great for any and all occasions.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED (FULL RECIPE BELOW):
All-purpose flour
Baking powder
Baking soda
Fine sea salt
Unsalted butter
Vegetable oil
Granulated sugar
Light brown sugar
Eggs
Vanilla extract
Buttermilk
Dark brown sugar
Evaporated milk
Heavy cream
Powdered sugar
HOW TO MAKE A HOMEMADE CARAMEL CAKE:
Cake:
- Preheat the oven 350°F. Lightly spray 2 9-inch cake pans with baking spray. Place parchment paper in the bottom of the pans. Spray the top of the paper with baking spray. Set aside.
- In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In the body of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment mix the butter with the oil until combined.
- Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar and beat them together on medium speed for 3 minutes.
- Next, add the eggs one at a time until fully mixed in. Stir in the vanilla.
- Add half of the dry ingredients and stir it in until combined.
- Next, add half of the buttermilk, stir until combined. Repeat with the remaining dry ingredients and buttermilk, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Divide the batter between the two cake pans. Take a spatula and smooth out the top, this will ensure the cakes bake evenly.
- Bake for 22-28 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool completely in the pan.
- When the cakes are cool and you are ready to assemble, cut any doming or uneven parts off the cake if there are any, and then make the frosting.
Frosting:
- Place the light brown sugar, dark brown sugar, butter, and salt into a medium-sized saucepot.
- Place the pot over medium heat and whisk constantly until the butter and the sugars are melted. Pour in the evaporated milk then the heavy cream, whisk to combine.
- Bring to a simmer and simmer for 4 minutes, it will start to thicken. Immediately pour into a heatproof bowl.
- Using an electric hand mixer, add the powdered sugar a little at a time until fully mixed in, and then mix in the vanilla.
- When the frosting is done, we need to work fast to frost the cake while it is still spreadable.
Assembly:
- Place one of the cakes top side up onto your serving platter. Add ¾ cup of the frosting and using an off-set spatula or something similar, spread it out over the top of the cake.
- Place the other cake top side down on top. Frost the sides and top of the cake as fast as you can before the frosting hardens.
- Let the cake sit until the frosting completely hardens, about 2 hours before slicing to serve.
CAN I USE A BOXED CAKE MIX?
While making your own homemade cakes are easy, if you do want to save some time, you can use a boxed yellow cake mix for this recipe.
But make sure that you make the homemade caramel frosting, that is the most important part of this recipe.
WHAT IS THE TASTE AND TEXTURE OF THIS CAKE?
The cake itself is light and fluffy with a subtle caramel flavor. But, the icing is what really sets it apart, with a deep and rich caramel flavor in every bite.
As you can assume, this is a VERY sweet cake. There are three different sugars in the icing, so it is to be expected. But everything balances out really well and works together.
CAN I TOP THIS WITH ANYTHING?
While this cake is fun on its own, if you want to jazz it up a little bit, you can absolutely add some toppings. Some ideas include:
- Fresh berries
- Chocolate syrup/sauce
- Caramel popcorn
- Flaked sea salt
- Rolos
- Twix
- Chopped nuts
HOW TO STORE:
This can be stored covered or in a cake saver at room temperature, where it will keep for up to 5 days or for up to a week in the refrigerator.
You can also freeze this cake, place wrap in plastic wrap and then foil, and it will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.
To defrost, place the cake in the refrigerator overnight and then move it to the countertop once thawed to come to room temperature before serving.
TIPS AND TRICKS:
- You can use a yellow cake mix if you’d like.
- This can be frozen, see above on how to do that.
- This is a sweet cake but the flavors balance out nicely.
- If you don’t have dark brown sugar, light brown can be substituted.
- This is best eaten at room temperature.
- Other toppings can be added, see suggestions above.
Love yourself a good cake that is perfect all year long and absolutely tastes amazing? Then this Homemade Caramel Cake is just what you’ve been looking for.
If you like this recipe you might also like:
If you’ve tried this HOMEMADE CARAMEL CAKE let me know in the comments how it turned out! You can follow me over on PINTEREST, INSTAGRAM OR FACEBOOK to find some more of our mouthwatering recipes!
Homemade Caramel Cake
Ingredients
- 2 ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup light brown sugar packed
- 4 large eggs room temp
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cup buttermilk room temp
For the frosting:
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 cup dark brown sugar packed
- 1 cup unsalted butter cut into tablespoons
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ⅓ cup evaporated milk
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- 2 cups powdered sugar sifted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven 350°F. Lightly spray 2 9-inch cake pans with baking spray. Place parchment paper in the bottom of the pans. Spray the top of the paper with baking spray. Set aside.
- In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In the body of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment mix the butter with the oil until combined.
- Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar and beat them together on medium speed for 3 minutes.
- Next, add the eggs one at a time until fully mixed in. Stir in the vanilla.
- Add half of the dry ingredients and stir it in until combined.
- Next, add half of the buttermilk, stir until combined. Repeat with the remaining dry ingredients and buttermilk, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Divide the batter between the two cake pans. Take a spatula and smooth out the top, this will ensure the cakes bake evenly.
- Bake for 22-28 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool completely in the pan.
- When the cakes are cool and you are ready to assemble, cut any doming or uneven parts off the cake if there are any, and then make the frosting.
- Place the light brown sugar, dark brown sugar, butter, and salt into a medium-sized saucepot.
- Place the pot over medium heat and whisk constantly until the butter and the sugars are melted. Pour in the evaporated milk then the heavy cream, whisk to combine.
- Bring to a simmer and simmer for 4 minutes, it will start to thicken. Immediately pour into a heatproof bowl.
- Using an electric hand mixer, add the powdered sugar a little at a time until fully mixed in, and then mix in the vanilla.
- When the frosting is done, we need to work fast to frost the cake while it is still spreadable.
- Place one of the cakes top side up onto your serving platter. Add ¾ cup of the frosting and using an off-set spatula or something similar, spread it out over the top of the cake.
- Place the other cake top side down on top. Frost the sides and top of the cake as fast as you can before the frosting hardens.
- Let the cake sit until the frosting completely hardens, about 2 hours before slicing to serve.
Notes
- You can use a yellow cake mix if you'd like.
- This can be frozen, see above on how to do that.
- This is a sweet cake but the flavors balance out nicely.
- If you don't have dark brown sugar, light brown can be substituted.
- This is best eaten at room temperature.
- Other toppings can be added, see suggestions above.
Nutrition
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