Caramel Cake

Pictures of this caramel cake from the Fearless Baker started appearing in my Facebook feed last year and I knew that I had to make it. I finally stumbled into the right opportunity, with enough advance notice for a test cake, when we celebrated a friend's birthday a few weeks ago. People raved about the taste of the cake but complained about how difficult it was to frost the cake before the frosting set and crumbled if you tried to move it, so I wanted to bake a practice cake before making the real deal. This cake is really easy to make, and while it's true the frosting sets quickly, Erin's caramel cake is so delicious, it's easy to live with a frosting that is a bit temperamental. This caramel cake relies upon a cake base made with heavy cream to  yield a very tender and delicate cake with a tight crumb, and the caramel frosting is easy, rapid to make, and absolutely incredible.

Let's start with the cake. This is a really strange-looking ingredients list, with roughly double the usual number of whole eggs, no butter or oil, and almost 3 cups worth of heavy cream. The heavy cream is replacing the fat from the butter, but heavy cream is only 36% fat, while butter is 80-83% fat; this makes the texture and tightness of the cake crumb very light and velvety.

You'll need some time for the eggs and cream to come to room temperature (I gave mine 2 hours), but the prep work itself is really simple. Having just spent hours making the gorgeous Lemon Chiffon Cake from the Fearless Baker only to have it turn out to be dry and disappointing, I was strict with setting a timer for each prep step and really careful to add the flour in four distinct steps, with the mixer off for each addition (this is one place where I thought things might have gone south with the chiffon cake, because I left the mixer running when I added each next addition). I added the vanilla together with the last bit of cream and just folded the last traces of cream into the batter.

Erin's original recipe has you making a 3-layer 9-inch cake, but I opted to bake mine as two 9x13-inch sheet cakes, both because I wanted to provide a greater number of servings and because after reading about the trouble people had with the frosting hardening and crumbling while frosting the sides, I thought frosting just two surfaces would be more successful.

You'll bake the cakes in two very well buttered 9x13-inch pans, distributing the batter evenly into the two pans (you should have 1050 grams of batter per pan). If you don't have two 9x13-inch pans (or three 9-inch pans), you can reserve the remaining batter and bake the next cake after the first one. With two 9x13-inch cakes in the oven, the cakes will take about 35 minutes (plan for 30-40 minutes, depending on your oven, mine is quite finicky). This is not the easiest cake for which to judge doneness, so aside from the toothpick trick (which didn't really work for me), look for the tops to turn golden and multiple dark speckles appear on the top of the cake. You could also take the temperature of the interior of the cake; you're looking for an interior that is at least 180 F, closer to 190 F (remember there will be a little carry-over cooking, but not much).

The caramel cake batter is sticky. If you don't grease your pan, layer it with parchment paper, then generously grease the parchment paper as well, you have only yourself to blame when it sticks to the pan (as the photo below should demonstrate). I won't lie to you: I thought this cake tasted like a spectacular pancake when eaten without the caramel frosting, which was not at all what I was expecting. Just wait to eat it until the frosting is on the cake. You won't associate it with a pancake at that point, I promise.

After the cake layers have cooled completely, it's time to make the caramel frosting. Only make the frosting when you are ready to assembly the cake. You should have your offset spatula ready to go, and your cake layers set wherever you plan to serve them from, because once the frosting is underway, you're not going to have the opportunity to pause. The caramel for the frosting cooks quickly, and because it's heated to ~250 F, it sets very quickly, so you'll need to work super fast to avoid it hardening on you while you're trying to frost. You'll notice I don't have any photos of the frosting process, and that's in part because I didn't feel like I could pause to take pictures. Also, my hands were a bit sticky....

Having made Erin's butterscotch blondies before, and suffered with grainy brown sugar caramel on the first bake, I modified the process here to reflect that knowledge. Melt the butter first over medium heat, add the brown sugar, stir it into the butter for about 1 minute, then add the cream. It's okay if the butter-sugar mixture looks separated, it will come together after you add the cream. Don't touch the knob for the stovetop, but continue cooking the brown sugar caramel sauce over medium for another 5 minutes, until the caramel has reached a temperature of 230 F (thread stage).

Once the caramel has reached thread stages, you'll pour the liquid slowly into the bowl of a stand mixer running on low, then add the vanilla extract, continue to beat for about 1 minute. The original recipe calls for adding half a vanilla bean, but never actually directs you to take it out. Obviously, you should remove the vanilla bean. Having made the frosting with half a vanilla bean and with 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract instead, I can say that I didn't taste any difference but the vanilla specks added a subtle pop to the frosting. Stop the mixer, add 3 cups of the powdered sugar, then turn the mixer back up to low, then medium once the powdered sugar is sufficiently incorporated so it doesn't fly out of the bowl. Poor in the another 1.5 cups of powdered sugar, run the mixer on low, then drizzle in 2-6 tablespoons of heavy cream. Turn the mixer up to high and whip for 15-20 seconds. The frosting should be thick but spreadable, and still a little warm.  Taste the frosting - does it need more powdered sugar for your taste? or a pinch of salt? Add up to the remaining 1.5 cups of sugar if the frosting isn't sweet enough. If it becomes too thick to spread, add a tablespoon or two more heavy cream. Once you're happy with the frosting, work quickly to cover the top of your cake layers, dividing the frosting in half and working with one layer at a time. If the frosting in the bowl stiffens up, you can hold the bowl over a pan of steaming water to rewarm the caramel frosting and/or you can beat in some additional cream.

Method adapted from the Fearless Baker

Caramel cake

See recipe notes for making a single layer caramel cake

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: caramel, the fearless baker

Prep Time: 1 hour hour

Cook Time: 42 minutes minutes

Cooling time: 2 hours hours

Total Time: 4 hours hours 2 minutes minutes

Servings: 16 people (2 9x13 single layer sheet cakes)

Ingredients

Caramel Cake

• 542 grams (4½ cups) all purpose flour
• 12 grams (1 tablespoon) baking powder
• 4 grams (1 teaspoon) fine sea salt
• 7 large (347 grams) eggs at room temperature
• 532 grams (2½ cups) packed dark brown sugar
• 665 grams (2¾ cups) heavy cream at room temperature
• 15 grams (1 tablespoon) vanilla extract

Frosting

• 227 grams (8 oz; 2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 425 grams (2 cups) packed dark brown sugar
• 121 grams (½ cup) heavy cream plus another 3-6 tablespoons as needed
• 3 grams (¾ teaspoon) fine sea salt
• ½ split vanilla bean, split lengthwise or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 510-680 grams (4½ - 6 cups) powdered sugar

Instructions

Make the cake:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease two 9 x 13 inch aluminum pans with nonstick spray, line with parchment paper, then generously grease the parchment paper.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the eggs and brown sugar on low speed to combine. Turn speed up to high and continue to whip until the mixture is slightly more pale and very thick, 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides, then whip on low speed for 1 minute more.
• With the mixer off, gently sprinkle a quarter of the flour mixture over the egg mixture, then mix on low speed just until incorporated. Try to avoid sprinkling the flour into the center of the whisk attachment space, where it will get "stuck" and not mixed in. Add the remaining flour in 3 discrete additions, turning off the mixer and scraping down the sides of the bowl each time.
• With the mixture running on low, gradually drizzle the cream into the batter,  adding the vanilla extract with the final splash of cream. Mix just until incorporated; do not overmix.
  
• Pour the batter into the prepared pans, dividing it evenly (~1000 grams) in each, and use a spatula to smooth the tops into an even layer. Bake until the cake springs back lightly when touched in the very center, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30-40 minutes. Cool completely.

Make the frosting:

• In a medium pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the brown sugar, cook for one minute, then stir in the cream and salt. Continue cooking over medium heat, stirring frequently to prevent scorching or sticking, until it has thickened slightly, about 5 minutes. It should reach 230°F on a candy thermometer.
• Carefully pour the mixture into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and mix on low speed for 30 seconds. Gradually add 3 cups of powdered sugar and mix to combine. You will need to scrape down the bowl several times.
  
• Add 2-4 tablespoons of cream, followed by another 1½ cups of powdered sugar, then whip on medium-high, scraping down the sides every 20-30 seconds, until the frosting is an even color and fluffy. Check for your taste and add more powdered sugar and/or salt if necessary. If the frosting becomes too thick, add a bit more cream.

To build the cakes

• Place about 1½ cups of frosting on each layer, then work quickly to spread into a swirly pattern before it sets. Stack the sheet cakes if you want, or don't (my preference). Serve.

Notes

This cake will keep up to 4 days in the refrigerator.

If you'd like to make the original 3 layer 9-inch cake, bake for 22-26 minutes.

If you'd like to make a single sheet cake, this recipe doesn't quite divide evenly in half. Instead, make with these measurements:

 

• 271 grams (2 ¼ cups) all purpose
  
• 6 grams (1 ½ teaspoons) baking powder
  
• 2 grams (½ teaspoon) fine sea salt
  
• 226 grams (4 large) eggs, at room temperature
  
• 14 grams (1 large) egg yolk, at room temperature
  
• 266 grams (1 ¼ cups) packed dark brown sugar
  
• 333 grams (1 ⅓ cups) heavy cream
  
• 7 grams (1 ½ teaspoons) vanilla extract