This Caramel Cake recipe is perfect for that die hard caramel fan in your life. Homemade caramel sauce is used in the cake layers, frosting, and the drip!
I am obsessed with how pretty this Caramel Cake turned out. Not only the perfectly smooth cake combed sides, but the caramel drip that was just the right consistency to not drip all the way down and create a hot mess. It’s not often things work out smoothly over here, so I need to celebrate it when it happens!
Before we dive into the decorating of this pretty cake, let’s talk about how to make caramel, in case you’ve never done it before. Spoiler: it’s actually really easy! It just requires some attention to detail.
How to make Caramel
There are a number of different ways you can make caramel, but I’m going to tell you about my favourite way to do it. It requires very few ingredients and just a bit of patience. You’ll need the following.
Tools:
- med-large pot
- whisk
- pastry brush
Ingredients:
- granulated sugar
- water
- heavy cream (room temp)
- butter (room temp)
- salt (if making salted caramel)
Once you have your tools and ingredients ready, place the sugar and water into a pot and stir to combine, but do not stir from this point forward. Stirring will cause the sugar to crystallize, and we don’t want that!
Dip a pastry brush into water and brush down the sugar from the sides of the pot (also prevents crystallizing). Place the pot over med-high heat and bring the mixture to a boil. Occasionally brush down the sides of the pot with water to prevent crystals from forming.
Continue cooking the sugar until it starts to change color. This can take anywhere from 5-10mins depending on the amount of sugar, size of pot, temperature, etc. I recommend watching the sugar the entire time, as once it starts to color it can burn very quickly. I never take my eyes off the pot while it’s cooking. Okay maybe I do for the first couple minutes or so, but I watch it like a hawk after that.
When the sugar starts to caramelize and turn a bit yellow, you can swirl the pot a bit to mix it around. Continue cooking until the sugar is a nice amber color. It will start to smell AMAZING.
Immediately remove the pot from the heat and carefully whisk in the heavy cream (pour slowly, whisk quickly). It will bubble up a LOT, so be prepared. Once all the cream is whisked in, add the butter and whisk until incorporated. Return to heat and simmer for 2mins.
At this point I remove the pot from the heat and set it aside to cool. You could transfer the caramel to a heatproof container and let it cool that way instead. I sometimes place plastic wrap directly on top to prevent a skin from forming, but it’s not critical. If you do this, be careful, as the caramel is hot. The caramel will thicken as it cools.
You can leave it at room temperature overnight or place it in the fridge if storing for longer. If you store it in the fridge, you may need to warm it up a bit in the microwave before using.
How do I turn this into a Salted Caramel Cake Recipe?
If you’ve gotten this far, it’s really so simple to turn your caramel sauce into salted caramel instead and make a Salted Caramel Cake. All you have to do is add a bit of salt once you’ve finished cooking it.
Add some salt, dip a spoon into the hot caramel, let it cool, taste, repeat as needed. That’s it! How much you add is completely up to you. I don’t like salted caramel (gasp) so I recommend starting with less (1/4 tsp) and adding as needed. Ideally use a good quality sea salt.
A salted caramel sauce will work perfectly well with this Caramel Cake recipe if that’s what you’d prefer.
Important things to note about making Caramel
- You’ll want to use a larger pot than you think you’ll need. The caramel bubbles a LOT when the cream is added. At least 4-5x the volume.
- Brushing down the sides of the pot is important to prevent your sugar from crystallizing — we don’t want a grainy caramel!
- Don’t take your eyes off the sugar. Once it starts to turn color it can burn very quickly.
- Do not attempt to make the caramel with cold cream or butter — they must be at room temperature (see below).
- The caramel will be HOT so handle with care. If you’re making a salted caramel, be sure to let it cool before tasting it! Dip a spoon into the hot caramel, let it cool, taste, add more salt as needed.
It is critical that your cream and butter are completely at room temperature. I’ve made this caramel many times before but I didn’t really pay attention too much to the temps this time. Read: I was too lazy to wait for them to come to room temperature properly and figured it would be fine (bad baker!). My cream was straight out of the fridge, so I nuked it in the microwave to warm it up, but my butter was still a bit cold.
I went with it anyhow, because I figured it gets heated anyway, right?? Well, the end result was a bit of a mess. The caramel looked like it had come together well, but upon cooling it completely split and separated and kinda curdled.
Caramel also does not react well to drastic changes in temperature, so it’s important that the cream and butter are added slowly and are room temperature. I’m sure it didn’t help things that I way overcooked it after I added everything in. Instead of simmering it, I basically boiled it on high for 2 minutes. It was a hot mess, and truly quite disgusting. I should have taken a picture!! Anyhow, I should have followed my own directions, but overconfidence and laziness got in the way and I ended up having to redo the whole thing.
I hope all that didn’t scare you away from making your own caramel sauce at home. It’s really very easy, it just requires a bit of focus and attention for 15mins or so. And actually following directions.
This caramel sauce is seriously SO good and so versatile. You could use it as a topping for other desserts or ice cream or pancakes… the list goes on! You’ll never look to get store bought caramel again after you try this.
How did you decorate this Caramel Cake?
Okay, let’s talk about the decorating of this cake, because I know people are just dying to know and it’s actually really simple. I used a cake comb on the sides. Specifically, I used the right side of the middle comb from this set.
After crumb coating the cake and chilling it for 20mins, I frosted it like any cake except that I used way more frosting on the sides than I normally would. I knew I’d be scraping some of that frosting off and I wanted to make sure there was enough to fill in the indents in the comb.
Once the cake was frosted and smoothed, I placed the cake comb up against the cake, pressed in a bit, and spun my turntable. I did this like I would if I was just smoothing it with a flat scraper. One long, smooth motion. I had to do this about 10 times or so to get rid of the bubbles and make sure everything looked perfect.
As always though, there is a back side to this cake that is less than pretty — specifically where the cake comb started/stopped. I couldn’t completely smooth out the little dent there. Maybe my frosting was a bit soft. If you have any tips on this I’m all ears, I am far from a cake combing expert!
If I were making this a Salted Caramel Cake, I would sprinkle some sea salt over the top of the decorated cake once the drips have set.
Tips for the Caramel Drip
A caramel drip is notoriously difficult to work with. It’s a different consistency than a ganache drip, and doesn’t set as quickly once it hits the cold cake. As such, you actually want it to be thicker than you think you need for the drip.
It’s important that the cake is super chilled too. I chilled mine overnight, but only because I was spacing out my baking. A good hour in the fridge should do. My caramel was a bit on the thicker side because I had that in the fridge as well, so I microwaved a small portion of it (1/4 cup or so) in very small increments (3-5 seconds), until I got something pourable but still thick — a lava-like consistency.
I did a test drip on the back of the cake to see how it looked. I actually thought it was still too thick at this point, but you need to be patient with caramel — it will keep dripping down. What I thought was too thick actually ended up being perfect.
Really, it just takes some practice to know what the right consistency is. Always use a chilled cake though, and make sure your caramel (or ganache) is not warm in any way.
I use a teaspoon to do my drip cakes, but you could use a squeeze bottle if you prefer. I like that I have more control with a teaspoon and can be a bit more heavy handed in areas. I prefer drips that are chunky and spaced randomly.
If you’re a fan of caramel (and who isn’t??) you are going to love this cake! That perfectly delicious caramel flavour shines throughout, and I love that you can actually taste it in the cake layers — I wasn’t sure this would come through, but it does!
This caramel sauce recipe and caramel Swiss meringue buttercream are some of my faves. You’ll want to be eating both with a spoon!!
Looking for more caramel desserts?
- Caramel Cookie Cups
- Caramel Apple Cake
- Maple Caramel Carrot Cake
- Turtles Layer Cake
- Chocolate Dulce de Leche Cake
Tips for making this Caramel Cake Recipe
- The recipe as-is will also work in two 8″ cake pans. For three 8″ pans, 1.5x the recipe.
- To make cupcakes, all you need to do is reduce the baking time — start checking at 15mins or so. The recipe will make 18-24 depending on size.
- For the caramel, it is critical that your cream and butter be at room temperature. Do not attempt to make it with cold cream or butter — it will separate when cooled.
- If you prefer Dulce de Leche, you can use that instead in the cake and frosting — it won’t drip as well unless you thin it out somehow.
- For the texture on the sides of the cake, I used the right side of the middle cake comb from this set.
- Be sure your cake is well chilled and your caramel on the thicker side before you attempt the drip.
- I used dark brown sugar in my Swiss meringue buttercream because I wanted more of a caramel color to it. Granulated or light brown sugar will work just fine too.
- Be sure to check my Swiss Meringue Buttercream post for tips and troubleshooting.
- To help ensure your cake layers bake up nice and flat, check out my Flat Top Cakes post!
Caramel Cake (Salted Caramel Cake)
Ingredients
Caramel (make in advance):
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup water
- 225 ml heavy cream room temperature
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1/2 tsp sea salt optional, to taste, for salted caramel
Caramel Cake:
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 cup caramel
- 1 cup milk room temperature
Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream:
- 5 large egg whites
- 1 2/3 cups dark brown sugar packed
- 2 cups unsalted butter room temperature, cubed
- 1/2 cup caramel
- salt optional, to taste, for salted caramel
Instructions
Caramel (make in advance):
- Place sugar and water into a medium pot, stir to combine, but to not stir from this point forward. Cook over high heat, washing down the sides of the pot with a pastry brush dipped in water as needed to prevent crystals.
- Cook until desired color of caramel is reached (amber) and immediately remove from heat. Very slowly pour in (room temperature) heavy cream while whisking quickly. The mixture will bubble up (a lot) and boil. Add (room temperature) butter, return to heat, and bring back to a boil. Simmer for 2 minutes whisking constantly.
- If you want to make this a salted caramel, add your salt at this point. Whisk it in (start with less than you think you'll need), dip a spoon into the caramel, let it cool, taste it, add more salt as needed.
- Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature (about 2 hours). Transfer to a container and place in fridge to thicken.*
Caramel Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour three 6" cake rounds, line with parchment.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer combine butter and sugar. Beat on med-high until pale and fluffy (2-3 mins). Add eggs one at a time, fully incorporating after each addition. Add vanilla and caramel and mix until incorporated.
- Alternate adding flour mixture and milk, beginning and ending with flour (3 additions of flour and 2 of milk). Fully incorporating after each addition.
- Spread batter evenly into prepared pans and bake for 35-40 mins or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean.
- Place cakes on wire rack to cool for 10mins then turn out onto wire rack to cool completely.
Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream:
- Place egg whites and sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk until combined.**
- Place bowl over a pot with 1-2" of simmering water and whisk constantly until the mixture is hot and no longer grainy to the touch or reads 160F on a candy thermometer (about 3mins)
- Place bowl on your stand mixer and whip on med-high until the meringue is stiff and cooled (the bowl is no longer warm to the touch (approx. 5-10mins)).
- Switch to paddle attachment. Slowly add cubed butter and mix until smooth.
- Add cooled caramel and whip until smooth.*** Add additional salt if desired if making a salted caramel buttercream.
Assembly:
- Trim cake layers slightly. Place one layer of cake on a cake stand or serving plate. Top with 1-2 Tbsp cooled caramel. Spread evenly pressing into the cake layers so the cake absorbs the sauce. Top with 2/3 cup of frosting, spread evenly. Repeat with remaining layers.
- Frost and smooth the outside with a thin crumb coat. Chill for 20mins.
- Frost and smooth the outside of the cake, generously frosting the sides specifically. Smooth with an icing smoother. Use a cake comb on the sides of the cake. Repeat, scraping off more frosting each time, until smooth.
- Using a small spoon, place dollops of caramel around the top edges of the cooled cake, allowing some to drip down.****
- Fill in the top of the cake with more caramel and spread evenly with an offset spatula. Pipe rosette dollops using a 1M tip with remainder of frosting.
Recipes You May Like
Notes
** Ensure there is NO trace of egg yolks in your whites and that your mixer bowl and whisk is completely grease free or your meringue won't stiffen.
*** The buttercream may look like it's curdled at some point. Keep mixing until it is completely smooth.
**** If caramel has thickened too much, microwave in 5-10 second intervals until it's pourable (but not warm). You want the caramel to be rather thick for the drips. It will continue to drip down.
Lorrie says
Hi,
I made the caramel for the first time and it came out perfect! My question is what do you use to grease the pans
Olivia says
Hi Lorrie! So happy to hear that. These days I use Pam for Baking and line the pans with parchment. Homemade Cake Release works amazingly well too! https://livforcake.com/homemade-cake-release/
Caitlyn Bedard says
I made this for a birthday, and it was a huge success. Thank you! The instructions were very clear and all your tips were so helpful. This was my first time making a swiss meringue buttercream, and so many people raved about it I think it will be my new go-to. 🥳
Olivia says
Hi Caitlyn! Yay for a successful first time SMBC! So happy you loved it 🙂
BOZENA IWUAMADI says
I am attempting to make this cake today. Should the caramel in a cake recipy and for the buttercream be room temperature?
Olivia says
Hi Bozena! Yes, they should be room temperature. I hope you like it!
Bozena Iwuamadi says
I think the metric conversion of caramel is wrong. 35g of caramel is certainly not 1/2 cup
Olivia says
The metric conversions are calculated automatically and I don’t verify the accuracy of the numbers. Thank you for calling that out! It should be about 150g or so, I’ll update the recipe.
Tori says
Hello!
Has anyone tried this with gluten free flour?
Olivia says
Hi Tori! I haven’t myself but as long as you use a proper all-purpose GF flour blend it should work. Cup4Cup comes highly recommended: https://amzn.to/2n9c5bQ
Laura Ashley says
Howdy! I’m considering making this recipe but I am a beginner baker in that while I have used many boxed mixes, I only recently began baking cakes from scratch. Consequently, I am intimidated by Swiss meringue. Can I use pasteurized egg whites in a carton and skip the part where they are brought up to 160 degrees? I’m afraid that I’m just going to make scrambled egg whites. I should add that I’m very visually impaired so watching the pot is not a good way to judge things. Thank you so much for the recipe
Olivia says
Hi Laura! Swiss meringue is really easy, I promise! Just be sure to read all my tips and troubleshooting here before trying it out: https://livforcake.com/swiss-meringue-buttercream-recipe/ I have not had success with carton whites myself — I can never get the meringue to whip up properly. If you try those then be sure to get ones that say Egg White only (to ensure no trace of yolks), those might work better but I can’t guarantee it. It’s really hard to overcook the whites since they’re sitting on a water bath. This step is important to melt the sugar or else you’ll have a grainy buttercream. I just do the touch test — whisk the whites and sugar for 3-5 mins over the pot and dip a finger in to see if the mixture is hot and no longer grainy. Let me know if you try it!!
Amy says
Morning,
I have just made and decorated this cake for tomorrow (I haven’t put the drip on yet) if I was to do this now and put in the fridge will the caramel start to go runny and ruin my cake for tomorrow?
Olivia says
Hi Amy! It should be totally fine in the fridge and won’t ruin the drip. Be sure your cake is very cold and your caramel very thick before you do the drip. I always do a test drip on the “back” first.
Diksha says
I made this cake last week with a few adjustments and it turned out amazing.
Olivia says
Hi Diksha! So glad you liked it 🙂
Jenne says
I’m considering doing this vanilla caramel cake and your pumpkin cake and swirling the batters…using the latte Swiss butter cream. Have you tried that, just wondering if the consistencies of the baked batters will work together.
Olivia says
Hi Jenne! I haven’t tried that myself. The pumpkin cake batter is slightly thicker, if I recall correctly, but you could give it a go. I don’t think it would be disastrous at any rate!
Monique says
I made this for my daughter’s 15th birthday today. OMG it is so delicious! Overall it was quite easy. I changed it to look like a caramel waterfall, with a larger bottom tier where the caramel sauce pooled. I have tried a few different caramel sauces and this one is the best I have ever tasted.
Olivia says
Hi Monique! I’m so glad you love this caramel sauce as much as I do. Your cake sounds amazing, I would love to see a pic!
Georgie says
This cake looks amazing! I am making my brother his birthday cake and we are having a huge party. Was wondering what recipe is best to use! Your vanilla birthday cake recipe, covered in caramel buttercream, the caramel sauce and salted popcorn or do this recipe of the salted caramel cake?
Olivia says
Hi Georgie! Either sounds delicious and I don’t think you can go wrong! Which do you think your brother would like better?
Dani says
Hi. I’m attempting this cake for my daughters birthday tomorrow. I don’t have a mixer with a paddle attachment just a reg old hand mixer. Will this be ok for the frosting?
Olivia says
Hi Dani! Truthfully, it is doable, but will require time & patience. It will just take a whole lot longer to whip and cool the meringue and then whip again once the butter is added. Be sure to review this post for tips in advance: https://livforcake.com/swiss-meringue-buttercream-recipe/
Dani says
Thank you for your quick response. I failed twice at the frosting with the hand mixer. I was about to give up altogether and make a reg buttercream frosting but I called my neighbor and borrowed her hand mixer and tried one more time! So happy I did. It turned out delicious. I also had trouble with the caramel sauce, to me it also tasted a bit buttery and was too light in color. I prob didn’t cook it long enough. I kept it as the caramel for inside the cake and for the frosting & made my usual caramel recipe for the top. Which is just melting the sugar directly no water and half the butter. Anyway, I used that for the drip. The cake was delicious! It took me a whole day but everyone loved it. And my little girl who loves all things salted caramel was very happy! Thanks so much.
Olivia says
So happy to hear it turned out for you in the end and that you loved it!! 🙂
Bria says
I just made this and it is absolutely delicious!! My only issue was the buttercream was very light and fluffy, not very stable. The piped icing on top actually slid towards the edges (mind you my cake was probably not perfectly exact levelled) but I would suggest cooling the cake once the caramel drips and top is done and then pipe the icing onto the top edges. Other than that I topped with caramel pop corn in the center and it is amazing!! Can’t wait to see what everyone thinks at the party tonight! Thanks for the amazing recipe!
Olivia says
Hi Bria! I agree re: letting the caramel set for a bit before adding the rosettes on top — I thought I had mentioned that so I’ll update the post. Love the addition of the caramel popcorn! I hope everyone loved it 🙂
Melanie says
Is it absolutely necessary to let the caramel sit for 2 hours?
Olivia says
Hi Melanie! For the cake and frosting, no, but you need to make sure it is completely cooled for both (to room temp). I found that to take a while. You can try to speed that up in the fridge, but I haven’t tried myself. For the drip it will need more time to thicken.
Viviana says
Hey! I love your page! I made the caramel yesterday and it came out a perfect consistency. The only thing I wanted to ask you is that it came out with too much of a butter flavor and I made the recipe as you posted it. Is there any way I can fix this? I’m making the buttercream and the cake today ❤️ Thanks I’m advance 🙏🏻
Olivia says
Hi Viviana! Was this just the cake layers themselves or the whole thing? I didn’t find it to taste buttery myself, but there is a LOT of butter in it.
Viviana says
Thank you for taking the time to answer 🙏🏻 The caramel is what I think tastes too much like butter and not like caramel. I used land o lakes butter unsalted.
Valerie Fallows says
Hi
I’m thinking of making this for my daughter’s wedding. Few questions, I hope that’s ok:
Can I freeze the cake ?
Once decorated how long should it last ie still be fresh
Any tips on storage ?
Thanks – it looks amazing
Olivia says
Hi Valerie! You should be able to freeze it just fine. In the fridge it will last 2-3 days, any longer and it will start to dry out.
Cindy Hardin says
Curious why is the amount of cream in m sauce measured by ml everything else in recipe is cups threw me off just a bit but I’m still going to try it
Olivia says
Hi Cindy! It’s not easy to convert 225ml to cups and since most cups have ml measurements on them I thought it would be more accurate. Let me know how it turns out!
Jennifer Millican says
I’ve tried to make the frosting twice and it comes out like soup. I followed the directions to the T. What am I doing wrong?!
Olivia says
Hi Jennifer! Have you read through all of my tips and troubleshooting here? https://livforcake.com/swiss-meringue-buttercream-recipe/
Brasta says
Hi, I just did your mint chocolate cake and it was amazing! I bought 6in cake pans for it and they looked a lot smaller than what I thought! Does your picture have a six inch round cake? It looks a lot bigger! It looks like it fills your cake stand.
Olivia says
Hi Brasta! Yes, I used 6″ rounds that were 2″ tall. The cake sand is only 8″ or so wide 🙂
Arwa says
Hi
The cake looks awesome!!! One question will the dark brown sugar melt easily with the eggs whites just like when mixing it with castor sugar?
Thank you
Olivia says
Hi Arwa! I don’t have a problem getting mine to melt, but it might take a little bit longer. My brown sugar is still fairly fine though, not large crystals.
Candace says
The caramel that is made is it enough to put into the cake, icing, and drip on the cake?
Olivia says
Hi Candace! Yes, it’s enough for all components.
Stacie Ives says
Hi, my daughter is entering a competition and wants to do a salted caramel drip, if she was to decorate the cake with the drip, fridge overnight, would it travel ok?
Olivia says
Hi Stacie! Yes, that should be fine — the cake sets quite firm in the fridge!
Omolola says
I tried the caramel and it was a huge success after many failed attempts. Thanks
Olivia says
Hi Omolola! So happy to hear you liked it!
Salma says
Made this, and it was great- thank you for sharing the recipe!
I have two questions, though.
1. I made the buttercream as stated, but added a quarter cup more of the caramel sauce to up the flavour. It ended up slightly curdled. It’s super hot and humid here, BTW. Do you think either of those factors might have contributed to its splitting?
2. Is there any specific reason you added as much butter to the caramel sauce? Most caramel sauce recipes have far less butter. I’m asking as I was wondering if I could get away with a typical sauce (about a cup of sugar, a cup of cream and a tablespoon or so of butter) whenever I next make this cake.
Olivia says
Hi Salma! 1. Yes, adding too much of it could have contributed there — it could throw off the balance of meringue to butter, to caramel. 2. It’s just how I learned to make it in pastry school. I love it so I haven’t bothered to stray from it!
Salma says
Thank you for replying. I have to make two birthday cakes soon, and after my overall excellent experience with your salted caramel cake, have been drooling over your fabulous collection, wondering which to make next. Will get back once I’m done.
Olivia says
I can’t wait to hear! 🙂
Dee Rhoded says
Wow; another beautiful, mouth watering cake! BUT, I want you to know that, I knowwww, the “accident”, with the first batch of caramel, was no accident! (Ugly caramel is still yummy delicious; clever girl, you😁)
I’m trying to decide between this one, and your Turtles Layer Cake to make for our sons girlfriends birthday…sooo many hard decisions!
Also, your pastry brush, which kind do you prefer: the rubber plastic kind or true brush? I like the way the bristled brush paints better, that the rubber one, but sometimes will leave a bristle or two!! What kind do you use?
Thanks for all of your hard work, great details and insight, and step by step instructions for us novice bakers!
Dee
Olivia says
Hi Dee! Thanks so much! Tough call between this one and the Turtles! Both SO delicious. My pastry brush looks like this: https://amzn.to/2U9AuZq I find that it works better than the plastic ones and only rarely have stray bristles 🙂
Michelle says
Can you make the cake in advance and freeze as long as it’s brought to room temp before using? Also how far in advance can you make the buttercream? Thanks
Olivia says
Hi Michelle! Yes, that will work fine. The buttercream you can make weeks in advance. This post has details on how to do that: https://livforcake.com/swiss-meringue-buttercream-recipe/
Nicole says
Another amazing recipe only ones to use
Olivia says
Thanks so much Nicole!!
Foodiewife says
This cake, like all of yours, is perfection. I absolutely adore caramel. Your instructions are clear and really helped me to visualize how to make this. I just upgraded my cheap cake turntable to one that is a pedestal and spins like a top. I can’t wait to practice your decorative sides of the cake. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful.
Olivia says
Ahh thanks so much! I can’t wait to hear about (and hopefully see??) your version of this cake 🙂