If I have to choose my all-time favorite cake recipe, this is it. An authentic southern caramel cake is a beloved southern delicacy. The flavors and textures are sublime. The not too sweet buttermilk caramel cake has a slight acidic bite, paired with the deeply aromatic, rich, crystalline caramel candy icing...you will fall in love with this iconic dessert!
SOUTHERN CARAMEL CAKE RECIPE
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Yield: This is a stately 4 layer cake that serves 16+ people!
INGREDIENTS (for the cake only):
12 ounces unsalted butter, softened
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
5 eggs, at room temperature
Chef Paula's Tip: To quickly bring cold eggs to room temperature, place them in a bowl of very warm water for several minutes.
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups full fat buttermilk (or whole milk combined with 1 tbsp vinegar)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract (please use pure extracts and not artificial ones)
DIRECTIONS (for the four-layer-cake only):
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and salt together (or mix together with a fork). Set aside.
In a separate small bowl, combine the buttermilk and baking soda together. Set aside.
Fit a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Add butter and the sugars to the mixing bowl. Beat together over medium speed until light and fluffy. Then, add in the eggs, one at a time, until combined.
Gradually add the flour mixture into the batter. Continue to mix until the batter is smooth.
Lower the mixer speed slightly, then slowly pour the buttermilk/baking soda mixture into the batter. Mix until smooth.
Blend in the lemon juice and vanilla extract.
Grease and flour two 9-inch cake pans. Divide the southern caramel cake batter between the 2 pans and bake 40-45 minutes, or until golden brown and the cakes spring back when lightly touched in center.
Place on wire rack to cool. Remove the southern caramel cakes from the pans once the pans are slightly warm to the touch.
Chef Paula's Tip: I've found layer cakes are best removed from the pans when the pans are slightly warm to the touch. Waiting until the pans are completely cool can cause the cakes to stick.
Once the cakes are cool, divide each layer into two and frost with the best caramel icing.
CARAMEL CAKE ICING
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 6+ cups of icing, which will fill and frost a large 4 layer cake.
Note: If you're frosting a smaller cake, divide the recipe in half. You can cook the icing in a 3-4 quart pot.
INGREDIENTS:
12 ounces unsalted butter
14 ounces evaporated (not sweetened condensed) milk (One 12 ounce can + 2 additional ounces)
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 cups granulated sugar
3 cups light brown sugar
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon white vinegar
DIRECTIONS:
In a heavy six quart saucepan or stockpot, over medium low heat, melt the butter. Add the evaporated milk, salt, vanilla extract, the granulated and brown sugars. Using a wooden spoon, stir well until sugar is completely dissolved and mixture is smooth.
Chef Paula's Tip: One of the tricks to making caramel icing is the quality of the pan. Using a heavy, high quality pan will allow the mixture to come to a boil quicker, and the caramel icing is less likely to burn. Here is the pan I use for this icing and countless other recipes. Investing in high quality cookware will improve your cooking experience and cooking results drastically. I use All-Clad cookware, and heartily recommend it!
Increase heat to medium, continuing to stir mixture, until the caramel icing comes to a steady rolling boil. Boil for 10-12 minutes, stirring consistently. While stirring, make sure your spoon stirs the bottom and sides of pan as well. Note that once the icing is boiling, it will nearly double in volume. For this reason, you must have a pan that is 6 quarts. Watch the caramel icing carefully to ensure it doesn't boil over. Reduce the heat slightly if mixture is boiling too vigorously.
Chef Paula's Tip: Patience is key---don't rush the process! Allowing the caramel icing to steadily boil for 10-12 minutes will yield the perfect result.
Once the caramel icing is the consistency of warm peanut butter, remove it from the heat. You may think the caramel icing is not thick enough yet, but it will continue to thicken quickly as it is beaten and cools.
Remove from stovetop.
Stir in the vinegar or lemon juice.
Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed for several minutes until caramel icing thickens and begins to form ribbons, see above.
Chef Paula's Tip: When the icing begins to thicken, it will become firm quickly. If icing becomes too thick, thin with milk.
Fill and frost the southern caramel cake.
I hope you love this delectable cake as much as I do. 😍
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