The best, classic, old fashioned, easy chocolate caramel cake recipe, homemade with simple ingredients from scratch. Soft and moist with a silky smooth caramel icing.
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This dessert should not be confused with a Southern version, which is different and has a Vanilla Cake base layer. However, this is full of rich chocolate flavor balanced with the sweetness of caramel icing. If you like this combination you may want to try my Easy Chocolate Caramel (Salted) or Caramel Brownies (With Brownie Mix) as well.
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Key ingredients
- Eggs- Use large ones at room temperature.
- Oil- Adds moisture to the cake.
- Buttermilk- This can be made at home or bought at the store.
- Vanilla extract- Adds that warm aroma and taste.
- Flour- All-purpose flour works well.
- Sugar- Granulated, or table sugar is best for this recipe.
- Butter- I like to use unsalted for best results.
- Cocoa powder- The higher quality, the better the overall flavor.
- Evaporated milk- Not to be confused with condensed milk.
- Leavening agents- This recipe includes both baking powder and baking soda.
How to make easy caramel cake recipe from scratch?
- Mix together- Wet ingredients in one bowl and dry ingredients in another.
- Add wet mixture to dry- While alternating with hot water.
- Pour batter into prepared pans- And bake until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool cakes completely- Then decorate and enjoy.
Variations
- Add some sea salt to the cake batter- And even the icing to cut the sweetness and create a sweet and salty flavor profile.
- Poke cake- Bake the chocolate cake, as per the recipe below, in a rectangle pan (Dimensions: 9x13). Allow it to completely cool to room temperature. Poke holes with a bubble tea straw. Pour caramel sauce all over the cake. Spread Chocolate Buttercream Frosting or American Buttercream Frosting.
- For a quick icing- Consider making my Caramel Frosting (3 Ingredients) which is more fluffy and has different texture than the recipe below but still tastes delicious.
- Other decoration options- Sprinkle toffee bits, mini chocolate chips, chopped up candy bars, pretzels, sprinkles on top of the prepared cake to give it a little crunch and it will also make it look very pretty.
- Make a layered cake- I just made a single cake this time, but you can easily do layers with this recipe like I did for this Strawberry Shortcake Cake (Cake Mix).
- Toss on some decoration- Such as chopped nuts, mini chocolate chips, crushed Oreos, or sprinkles.
- Use a different extract- Such as almond or maple for different flavors.
Tips and techniques
- Caramel consistency- If the caramel is too thin, cook for a bit longer and it will also thicken a lot, as it cools. If it's too thick, mix in a little warm heavy cream to thin it out.
- Use nonstick saucepan- For making icing because this prevents burning and sticking.
- Unsalted ingredients are best- Because this prevents this cake from becoming too salty.
- Try a candy thermometer for the icing- The mixture needs to be cooked until it reaches the soft ball stage (235 degrees F - 240 degrees F). This should create a spreadable consistency.
- Grease and flour pans- Or use parchment paper to prevent cake from sticking to pans.
- Don't rush the process of making icing- Because you don't want to burn it if the heat is high or you're in a hurry.
- Don't over-bake cakes- Because that will dry them out and make them crumbly.
- Allow cake and icing to fully cool- Otherwise you will end up with a sticky mess.
Recipe FAQs
How do you thicken caramel icing?
You can continue to cook it for a bit longer. Also, you can chill it in fridge because it thickens significantly as it cools down.
What if I don't have buttermilk?
It's easy to make a buttermilk substitute. Simply add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white veingar to 1 cup whole milk. Stir and let rest about 5 minutes.
Can I use condensed milk instead?
No. This is a different thing entirely and will not work well in this recipe as a substitute. You must use evaporated milk. Also, keep in mind that the higher quality, the better.
Storage
- Make ahead- Since this cake takes longer to prepare than my other cakes, I highly recommend making it a day in advance or make the icing on the first day and the cake on the second day and then assemble on the third day.
- Room temperature- This cake can easily stay out for 3-5 hours.
- Refrigerate- In a sealed container for up to 3 days.
- Freeze- Icing and cake can be stored separately in sealed containers. When you are ready to enjoy this dessert, thaw and assemble as per instructions in the recipe card.
More caramel desserts
- Pecan Sticky Buns (With Caramel)
- Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Easy Caramel Fudge (2 Ingredients)
- How to Make Chocolate Caramel Apples
- Homemade Caramel Corn (Caramel Popcorn)
Recipe
Chocolate Caramel Cake
The best, classic, old fashioned, easy chocolate caramel cake recipe, homemade with simple ingredients from scratch. Soft and moist with silky smooth caramel icing.
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Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 2 Eggs Large, Room temperature
- 1 cup Buttermilk
- ½ cup Oil
- 2 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 2 cups Granulated sugar
- 1 ¾ cups All-purpose flour
- ¾ cup Cocoa powder
- 1.5 teaspoon Baking powder
- 1.5 teaspoon Baking soda
- 1 cup Water Boiling hot
Caramel Icing
- ¾ cups Butter Unsalted
- 2 cans Evaporated milk 12 oz. each
- 2 cups Granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon Vanilla extract
Instructions
Cake
- In a large mixing bowl, add eggs, milk, oil, vanilla extract and mix until smooth. Keep aside.
- In another mixing bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda.
- Add the dry mixture into the wet mixture, alternating with the hot water and mix until just combined.
- Pour batter in two greased and floured round cake pan (Dimensions: 8x3).
- Bake at 350 degrees F for about 40 minutes or until an inserted toothpick in the center comes out clean.
- Allow the cakes to cool down completely.
Icing
- While the cake is baking and cooling, prepare the icing. In a nonstick saucepan, add butter, evaporated milk, and sugar and cook over medium heat until everything has fully melted.
- Reduce heat to "medium low," stirring often and cooking uncovered for the next 1.5-2 hours, ensuring it doesn't burn and is thickened and darkened to a golden brown color. Icing is ready when it can THICKLY coat the back of your spoon.
- Remove from heat and mix in vanilla extract.
- Let it continue cooling for 30-40 minutes at room temperature. It will thicken further as it cools. If it's not cooling fast enough, you can chill in the fridge for 20-30 minutes too.
- Pour this on top of the cooled cake and use a spatula to spread it evenly and make swirls on top.
- Sprinkle some chopped nuts around the top and bottom of the cake and enjoy.
Notes
- This recipe yields 2 round 8 inch cakes to make a double layer cake with filling in middle but I wanted to make a single cake and used a round 9x3 inch pan. You can decide what you would like to do. Both options work well.
- Don't over-bake the cakes because that will make them very dry and crumbly. They are ready when an inserted toothpick in the center comes out clean.
- Please don't rush when making the icing and don't use very high heat because you can end up burning it.
- You must use nonstick saucepan to make the icing to prevent sticking and burning.
- Evaporated milk is different than condensed milk and cannot be used interchangeably.
- The icing will thicken further as it cools. It should be a thick consistency that can easily be spread on a cake without dripping everywhere.
- The cake and icing must cool completely before you assemble everything or else you will end up with a sticky mess.
- If your icing has become too thick, mix in some warm heavy cream.
- If your icing is too thin, then first thing you need to do is make sure it was cooked long enough to evaporate excess liquid. It's ready to be removed from heat when it's thickly coating your wooden spoon. The second thing you must do is to let it cool completely because it thickens further as it cools. Use a fridge to cool it faster.
- I used chopped nuts as rustic decoration. You can decorate with mini chocolate chips, Homemade Sprinkles, chopped up candy bars or even Chocolate Leaves (With Mint).
- Use unsalted butter to prevent this cake from becoming too salty.
- To make homemade buttermilk substitute, add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to a 1 cup whole milk. Stir the mixture gently and let it rest for about 5 minutes. It should have curdled.
- Read additional tips and variations above.
- Leftovers can be stored in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Calories: 974kcalCarbohydrates: 121gProtein: 11gFat: 52gSaturated Fat: 25gCholesterol: 143mgSodium: 610mgPotassium: 516mgFiber: 3gSugar: 98gVitamin A: 1230IUVitamin C: 1.5mgCalcium: 299mgIron: 2.6mg
An automated tool is used to calculate the nutritional information. As such, I cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information provided for any recipe on this site.
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Sandy Hovermale
It was just the best cake ever!!!
Nasim
Very nice combinations of Chocolate and Caramel and an easy recipe for a new baker as well. Thanks a lot for sharing.