A buttery soft vanilla layer cake blanketed with a simple (no candy thermometer needed) caramel icing! This Caramel Cake is a sweet and simple old-fashioned cake recipe that I think you’re going to love. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Oooh, you are going to love this caramel cake. With its layers of tender, buttery vanilla cake that perfectly complements that rich, decadent caramel frosting…
I’m usually more of a chocolate cake person myself, but this recipe has made a convert out of me. Even Zach wanted a second slice, and he hardly has a sweet tooth at all. It’s sweet, but not overly sweet like you might expect. While the icing is definitely super rich, somehow it doesn’t seem overbearingly so when coupled with the cake, which is exactly the balance I was hoping to achieve when I started developing this recipe.
The actual cake layers that I used for this caramel cake recipe are actually adapted from my favorite vanilla cake, only made with the reverse creaming method. Let’s talk a little bit about that, in case you’ve never used this method before…
What is Reverse Creaming?
Reverse creaming simply means that instead of the traditional method of creaming our butter and sugar and other wet ingredients in one bowl and our dry ingredients and another and then combining the two (carefully, of course, so we don’t over-mix), we do things… a little backwards.
We start by combining all of our dry ingredients and sugar in our bowl, then gradually, one tablespoon at a time, beat in the butter until it is incorporated and you have a mixture that looks sandy (see first image, above). We then add our remaining wet ingredients and stir until everything is completely combined. You don’t really have to worry about over-beating our batter the same way we do with traditionally creamed cakes (like the layers in my coconut cake).This method yields a cake with a fine, plush crumb. It was the perfect choice for my caramel cake.
Reverse creaming is not by any stretch my own invention. It’s been around for years and its popularity is mostly attributed to Rose Levy Beranbaum, author of The Cake Bible. I’ve tried this reverse creaming method on many of my existing cake recipes and it works well. While I don’t prefer it for all cakes, it’s actually the only way I make my vanilla cupcakes anymore!
Caramel Frosting
The cake layers are of course an important part of the caramel cake, but when all is said and done it’s really just vanilla cake. Soft, tender vanilla cake with a moist crumb and brown sugar in the batter for a hint of caramel taste, but still. What really makes this recipe a caramel cake is that glorious crown of caramel frosting.
It’s rich, sweet (much sweeter than my stand-by favorite cream cheese frosting), and has true caramel flavor because we start on the stovetop with a real caramel base (it starts much the same way as my caramel sauce). Melt together brown sugar, butter, salt, milk, and cream. Cook until the sugar is dissolved and then bring it to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Now you have your caramel base (first photo, above).
Transfer this hot caramel to a large bowl, add powdered sugar and vanilla extract and beat until you have a spreadable icing consistency (second photo, above). If it’s too thin and dripping off of your cake, just beat it longer. In the video (below the recipe) I was a bit over-ambitious and tried to spread my frosting while it was still just a tad bit too warm, which caused my layers to start sliding a little bit. A little patience goes a long way!
Enjoy!
More Recipes You Might Like:
Are you more of a visual learner? Check out my YouTube channel where I show you exactly how I make this cake and frosting step-by-step in my own kitchen.
Caramel Cake
Ingredients
CAKE
- 3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour (may substitute 3 ⅓ cups or 375g cake flour)
- 1 ½ cups (300 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar firmly packed
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup (170 g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature cut into Tablespoon-sized pieces
- ¼ cup (60 ml) avocado oil or vegetable oil or canola oil may substitute vegetable oil or other neutral oil
- 1 ¼ cup (295 ml) whole milk room temperature preferred
- 3 large eggs room temperature preferred
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
CARAMEL ICING
- 2 cups (400 g) brown sugar² firmly packed
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter cut into pieces
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup (80 ml) whole milk
- ⅓ cup (80 ml) heavy cream
- 2 cups (250 g) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
CAKE
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and lightly grease and flour the sides and bottoms of two 8” round baking pans¹. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl, using an electric mixer), stir together flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt until well-combined.3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour, 1 ½ cups (300 g) granulated sugar, ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar, 1 Tablespoon baking powder, ¾ teaspoon salt
- With mixer on low speed, add butter, one tablespoon at a time, until mixture resembles sandy coarse crumbs.¾ cup (170 g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- Stir in oil until well-combined.¼ cup (60 ml) avocado oil or vegetable oil or canola oil
- In a separate bowl, whisk together milk, eggs, and vanilla extract.1 ¼ cup (295 ml) whole milk, 3 large eggs, 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- With mixer on low-speed, gradually pour milk mixture into flour mixture. Once combined, pause to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, then gradually increase speed to high and beat for 30 seconds.
- Divide batter evenly into prepared pans and bake on 350F (175C) for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Allow cakes to cool for 15 minutes and then invert onto cooling rack to cool completely.
- Prepare caramel icing:
CARAMEL ICING
- Combine brown sugar, butter, salt, milk, and heavy cream in a medium-sized saucepan over medium-heat. Stir frequently until brown sugar is dissolved and mixture comes to a boil.2 cups (400 g) brown sugar², 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, ¼ teaspoon salt, ⅓ cup (80 ml) whole milk, ⅓ cup (80 ml) heavy cream
- Once boiling, cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Remove from heat and pour into a large heat-proof bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Let sit for 5-10 minutes before proceeding.
- Add powdered sugar and vanilla extract and stir with stand mixer or an electric mixer until combined. Increase speed to high and stir until caramel mixture is almost completely cooled and icing reaches a spreadable consistency.2 cups (250 g) powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Spread over cake. If icing is dripping off of cake (especially when icing the sides), let it cool a bit longer before proceeding.
- Allow icing to solidify completely before slicing cake and serving. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Yuma Taylor
This cake was so fun to make…I watched the video three times prior to baking it was so helpful. Only thing is I forgot to tap my pan to get air pockets out (not mentioned in directions) other than this my cake was delicious and pretty. This was my first time using this website I will continue to use this site love the recipes. I love the way it gives options for example it offered to use cake flour instead of all purpose flour…I definitely would recommend this app with videos to others.
Jama
Love this cake and icing recipe!! It tastes just like my mom’s cake. I used this icing also on an apple spice cake and it was amazing!!
Holly
Excellent! I followed the directions and it turned out GREAT! This is the kind of cake your grandmother would have made. It is not easy to find a truly excellent caramel cake recipe so this is a real find. Stop looking, people! This is THE one. Sam, you’re a magician in the kitchen! Keep doing your thing!
Sam
Thank you so much, Holly! I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Lisa
You mention that you should use a large mixing bowl for the cake mixing. Would a 5 quart bowl be large enough?
Sam
Hi Lisa! That will be sufficient. 🙂
Maria
I LOVE the ease of reverse creaming cakes! So happy to find this recipe and I can’t wait to try it out! I’m wondering if some of the milk can be substituted with sour cream? Or should I just stick with all whole milk? Thanks! So looking forward to making this!
Sam
It’s such a great technique, isn’t it!? I would recommend sticking with whole milk here, as I haven’t tested this recipe with sour cream. I hope you love the cake!
Regina
I made it for Thanksgiving and it turned out great! Thanks for sharing.
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Regina! 🙂
Valerie
Hi Sam,
Thank you for placing the easiest recipe for this cake I’ve seen online, yet! The cake was easy to make and looked marvelous when I finished BUT I did have some problems but ONLY from my own doing, I’m sure. So, the first mistake I made was using salted butter; I can see why you say to use unsalted unless you’re looking for a salted caramel cake. I like a little salt but not too much. So, unsalted butter is best. Question: Unfortunately, my cake came out dry. Not sure why, except the fact, I got a new mixing stand and I lost my glasses and I think I had the mixer on the wrong setting. Do you think that might have been the problem? I also used skim milk and instead of whole and let my cake cool for about an hour and a half before frosting; could that have been the problem? I would love to make this cake again. I’m from the south but haven’t had this cake since I was a kid. I don’t, however, like a dry cake, of course. I’m giving the recipe a five because I’m sure if I had followed it more to the letter, the cake would have come out much better. The frost, by the way, would have been perfect if it wasn’t for the salted butter I used. The consistency and the taste, other than that, was amazing! Can you give me some direction with making the cake itself, moister, please?
P.S. Although, I don’t think this is the issue, I accidentally used a teaspoon of vanilla instead of a tablespoon to the cake batter.
Sam
Hi Valerie! While it’s not impossible to over-mix this cake and make it dry that is unlikely here. Skim milk could definitely dry out the cake a little bit due to the lack of fat in the milk. Another possible issue is over-baking the cake. Even if it’s over-baked by just a minute or two it can dry it out. I hope this helps and it turns out better next time. 🙂
Christina
I made this cake and followed written instructions to a tea….cake turned out dense, like a pound cake. Your instructions say beat at high speed for 30 seconds (at the end of mixing), yet I just watched video and looks like you only did for a few seconds. Could that be what caused my cake to be so dense? New at baking cakes, so need to know if over mixing/beating could be culprit.
Sam
Hi Christina! I’m so sorry this happened. This is a difficult cake to over-mix due to the way it’s mixed. I do recommend doing what I say in the instructions. The video is just cut down so you don’t have to watch me mix it for 30 seconds. 🙂 The cake does have a tighter crumb but it should still be fluffy. If the cake was really dense the most likely culprit is too much flour or over-baking. I hope this helps. 🙂
Kelly
This cake was absolutely delicious! I made it with my six year old and we were so proud of how it turned out. Thank you so much!!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Kelly! 🙂
Chris
Can i use the caramel icing as a crumb coat or would you have a different recommendation?
Sam
Hi Chris! You could do a really thin crumb coat with it, but usually you have to work fairly quickly with this frosting as it starts to firm up a bit. 🙂
Marquette Connor
Hello, I plan to bake this cake for the Christmas holiday. I would prefer three layers and almond milk over whole milk, do you have any recommendations before I make adaptations.
Sam
Hi Marquette! To make this cake 3 layers you will just need to increase the recipe by 50%. I’m not sure how the almond milk will do over the whole milk because I haven’t tried it yet. I hope you love it! 🙂
Dana
I made this for the first time and a had a couple of issues…at 35 minutes the cake was not near done. I had to cook an extra 13 minutes but it came out very dry. Then the icing hardened on the cake?! Maybe I over beat the icing?? I am going to try it again because I think if I can get it right it will be wonderful!! Hopefully I can figure it out. I used exact ingredients.
Cris
Hi ! can I make this cake and the frosting ahead? Will be having it a day after. Will the frosting harden or the cake dry in the fridge?
Sam
Hi Cris! The frosting will solidify a little bit as it cools so it is not ideal to keep for later use. It should really be used right away. You could make the entire cake, frost it and then just store it at room temperature in an air tight container. 🙂
Cris
Thank you for your reply! Will update how it goes🙂
Jana
Can I freeze this cake?
Sam
Hi Jana! It should freeze just fine. 🙂
Sherry
huge disappointment
Sugar Spun Run
Oh no, Sherry! I am so sorry that you did not like it. 🙁
Stephanie
What is the best way to store the cake? Can it be put in the fridge or would that make the frosting too hard since it has a caramel base?
Sam
Hi Stephanie! You can leave it at room temperature in an air tight container. 🙂