Southern Classic Caramel Cake Recipes

CLASSIC SOUTHERN CARAMEL CAKE RECIPE - (3.8/5)

Steps:

• CAKE: Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease three 9-inch cake pans and add optional parchment paper. Beat butter until light and fluffy. Add sugar and beat for 5 more minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, and mix well after each. Add flour and buttermilk, alternately, beginning and ending with flour, mixing well after each addition. Add vanilla and beat well. Divide among pans and bake 25 to 30 minutes until set. Turn out of pans onto cooling racks and allow to cool completely. FROSTING: Mix all ingredients over medium-low heat in a 3- to 4-quart cast iron dutch oven. Swirl pan to keep ingredients moving in the pan. Cook to softball stage, 235ºF to 245ºF on a candy thermometer, or when a drop forms a soft ball in a cup of cold water. Remove from heat and beat with a wooden spoon until creamy and ready to spread.

CLASSIC SOUTHERN CARAMEL CAKE RECIPE - (4.2/5)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare three 9-inch cake pans by greasing them and lining the bottom of each cake pan with a circle of parchment paper. The parchment paper makes it easier to get the cake out of the pan. Beat butter until light and fluffy and then add sugar and beat for about 5 more minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, and mix well after each. Add flour and buttermilk, alternately, beginning and ending with flour and mix well after each. Add vanilla and beat well. Divide among pans and bake for 25-30 minutes until set. Turn out of pans onto cooling racks and allow to cool completely. Prepare Southern Caramel Icing as cakes are cooling then frost the cake. FROSTING: Mix all ingredients in a 3-4 quart cast iron dutch oven. Swirl pan to keep ingredients moving in the pan. Cook to softball stage 235º - 245º on a candy thermometer or when tested in a cup of cold water. Remove from heat and beat with a wooden spoon until creamy and ready to spread. No thermometer? Do the cold water test: Take a some of the caramel and drop it into a bowl or cup of cold water. Give it a few seconds to cool. Fish around in the bowl or cup of cold water and try to retrieve the caramel and make a little ball with it. If you stick your fingers into the bowl, pull out a gooey mess and you can't do anything but smear the caramel, you need to boil the caramel some more. There is still too much water in your caramel and the concentration of sugar is too low. The caramel may even form little threads in the water, but if you cannot get the threads to form into a ball, you have some more boiling to do.

SOUTHERN CARAMEL CAKE

Steps:

• Gather the cake ingredients.
• Prepare two 9-inch round cake pans , lining the bottom with parchment paper. Do not grease the sides as this can prevent the cake from rising properly. If not using a springform pan, you can insert strips of parchment paper along the sides (lightly greasing the pan helps the paper stick). Position a rack in the upper and lower third of the oven and heat to 350 F.
• In a medium mixing bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
• Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment at medium speed, beat the butter until creamy and a little airy, about 2 minutes.
• Slowly add the granulated sugar and cream for 5 to 6 minutes, scraping the sides as needed, until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time until incorporated.
• Beat in the vanilla extract, then add the flour blend and buttermilk alternating the two ingredients in increments, starting and ending with the flour. Mix until thoroughly combined but do not overmix.
• Immediately pour the batter into the prepared pans, dividing it equally in each and spreading the batter evenly.
• Bake, rotating the pans half way through baking time, until the top is lightly golden and a toothpick poked into the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from the oven, and let the cakes cool for 10 minutes before carefully removing them from the pans to a rack. Continue to cool the cake while you make the frosting.
• Gather the frosting ingredients.
• In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine the light and dark brown sugar, butter, buttermilk, cream, salt, and vanilla. Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved and the mixture comes to a soft boil.
• Once the mixture foams and has bubbles around the edges, reduce the heat to low and continue to cook for 10 minutes, stirring regularly. The caramel should not reach more than 225 F on a candy thermometer.
• Remove from the heat and let cool, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Beat the frosting until it reaches a thick but spreadable consistency and begins to lose its glossiness. By hand with a whisk or spatula, this may take 10 minutes; in a stand mixer, it may only take 5 minutes.
• While the frosting is semi-fluid, begin frosting the cake. Start by pouring about a quarter of the frosting over the bottom cake layer (right-side-up) and spreading it out evenly.
• Add the top cake layer, pour about half of the remaining frosting on top, and spread it out evenly. Smooth out any drips that form on the sides.
• Begin with a light layer of frosting all the way around the cake to seal in the crumb, then build up the side with more frosting as it thickens. If you need to smooth it out or the frosting becomes sticky, dip the spatula into a bowl of hot water.
• Let the cake rest for 1 to 2 hours to allow the frosting to set completely before serving.