SALTED CARAMEL CHOCOLATE CAKE
I absolutely love Salted Caramel in anything, whether it’s cakes, shortbreads, brownies or ice-cream. It’s such a rich, yet light flavour and the combination of salty and sweet is so addictive. I decided to make salted caramel cake on a chocolate sponge cake because I think all the flavours really complement each other and prior to this I had only ever tasted salted caramel on a vanilla sponge.
The chocolate cake recipe I used is a really simple one and it’s very easy to knock up 2 round sponge cakes for this recipe. The star of the show is really the salted caramel buttercream which is used as the filling in between the sponges but also used to cover the sponge cake as well. The key to a good buttercream is patience.
WHY YOU’LL LOVE SALTED CARAMEL CHOCOLATE CAKE
- Sweet and Salty Combination: Salted caramel cake has a perfect balance of sweetness and saltiness. The caramel adds a rich, buttery sweetness, while the touch of salt enhances the flavours.
- Rich and Decadent Flavour: Caramel has a deep and indulgent flavour. The combination of butter, sugar, and salt and perfect for a rich dessert.
- Texture Contrast: The smooth, caramel, when paired with the softness of cake layers, provides the perfect contrast in both flavour and texture.
- Versatility in Presentation: The caramel can be used as a filling, buttercream, or drizzle. I personally created a salted caramel buttercream because I wanted to get the taste of salted caramel in every bite.
- Popular Flavour: Salted caramel has become a popular flavour recently. I’ve noticed that many desserts offer a salted caramel flavour as well as coffees and iced coffees.
Salted Caramel Buttercream Ingredients
Butter – Room temperature butter will create a much more fluffy and light buttercream. It will also be much easier for the butter to mix in with the icing sugar and create a smooth buttercream.
Icing Sugar – Be sure to sift your icing sugar before mixing into the butter as it will create a smoother, lump free buttercream.
Caramel – You can either make your own caramel or buy a tin or jar.
Pinch Salt – Add in a pinch of salt to balance the sweetness of the caramel.
TOP TIPS FOR THE PERFECT CHOCOLATE SPONGE CAKE
- Room Temperature and High Quality Ingredients: Ensure that your eggs and butter are at room temperature before mixing as this will allow the ingredients to mix together evenly.
- Sifting Dry Ingredients: Sift the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder as this will remove any lumps and create a smoother batter. This helps in even distribution of the leavening agents.
- Don’t Overmix: Overmixing can lead to a dense cake so only mix until incorporated.
- Preheat the Oven: Preheat your oven before baking as this will ensure that the cake rises evenly.
TOP TIPS FOR MAKING THE MOST DELICIOUS BUTTERCREAM
- Whisk butter: Whisk the butter before adding in any ingredients until it becomes fluffy and pale in colour. Often people will skip this step but if you want your buttercream to go from good to great, then spend a few extra minutes on this.
- Vanilla Extract: Add vanilla extract and make sure it’s a good quality one! This doesn’t mean it has to be expensive, just try different types and if one doesn’t enhance the flavour well then don’t buy it again. I once made the mistake of buying a vanilla extract which I didn’t like all that much because it was the only one available and I seriously regretted adding it into the cake! It created a really strange aftertaste which I felt ruined the cake (or at the very least, made it taste worse rather than better).
- Sift Icing Sugar: Sift the icing sugar and add it in gradually. I know there is a temptation to just throw it all into the bowl but trust me on this one, add it in slowly. If you add it in all in one go then you will surely experience a dust cloud and in my opinion, the icing sugar doesn’t usually mix into the butter as well as it could.
- Add in a little milk: You can skip this step if you don’t have any milk at home but I would highly encourage you to add some in and makes the buttercream more fluffy and creamy.
- Use room temperature ingredients: In order to get the perfect fluffy consistency, you will need to use room temperature butter.
OTHER RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE
Oreo Cupcakes – Oreo Cupcakes – My Simple Eats
Jam and Coconut sponge cake – Jam and Coconut Sponge Cake – My Simple Eats
School Cake – School Cake – My Simple Eats
Salted Caramel cake is the perfect sweet and salty dessert and the moist cake and creamy buttercream make the perfect combination. If you like salted caramel flavoured desserts then you’ll definitely love this cake!
Salted Caramel Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 225 g Butter
- 100 g White Sugar
- 125 g Light Brown Sugar
- 185 g Self-raising flour
- 40 g Cocoa Powder
- 4 Eggs
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Salted Caramel Buttercream
- 85 g Butter room temp
- 100 g Icing Sugar
- 85 g Caramel
- Pinch Salt
Instructions
Cake
- Pre-heat the oven to 180/160 fan Celsius and line two 8 inch baking tray with parchment paper.
- Mix the butter and both sugars in a bowl with an electric hand whisk (you can use a normal whisk or wooden spoon if you don’t have one) – mix them together until the mixture is pale.
- Add in the eggs and vanilla extract and whisk until light and fluffy, then sift in the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder and mix until combined.
- Pour the mixture into the lined baking tray and place into the oven for 20-25 mins
- Once baked, allow the cake to cool before decorating.
Buttercream
- Add the butter and 1/3 of the icing sugar into a bowl, beat using and electric whisk until combined. Repeat this process until all the icing sugar has combined into the butter.
- Beat the mixture for a few minutes until it becomes pale in colour.
- Add the caramel and pinch of salt into the mixture and whisk again until combined.
Decorate
- Assemble your cake by spreading the buttercream on the bottom layer (add a drizzle of caramel if you wish). Place on the top layer of cake and then cover with the buttercream using a spatula.Place the caramel into a piping bag and drizzle down the sides. You can add buttercream swirls to the top like I have or leave plain.
