Try this Salted Caramel Cake recipe, or contribute your own.
- Carbohydrate 2.51739000078047 g
- Cholesterol 110.915333347598 mg
- Fat 40.5637940038318 g
- Fiber 0 g
- Protein 2.00897066721833 g
- Saturated Fat 25.3143230023852 g
- Serving Size 1 1 -20 serving (141g)
- Sodium 7598.57275473704 mg
- Sugar 2.51739000078047 g
- Trans Fat 3.10386906686423 g
- Calories 377 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat oven to 375.
- Butter and flour a half-sheet pan (18x12) or jelly roll pan (15x10).
- Sift flour and salt into large bowl.
- Add sugar and whisk until blended.
- Combine butter and water in a saucepan.
- Bring to a boil and pour over the flour mixture. Whisk until blended.
- Add the soda, buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla, and whisk until blended and smooth.
- Pour into greased and floured baking pan.
- Bake for 12-20 minutes, checking cake after 12.
- Cake is done when tester comes out clean but be careful not to overcook.
- NOTE: You will have two pots going while making this frosting so have everything ready to go and have a large hot pad.
- In large saucepan, place 2½ cups sugar, butter, cream, and a dash of salt. Cook on medium until almost to a rolling boil then pour in sugar syrup that you are making in another skillet.
- At the same time, in a small skillet, put ½ cup sugar and melt on medium until it becomes an amber color. You don't stir this sugar but you will need to shake the skillet every few minutes to help distribute the sugar. This is the sugar syrup that you will pour into the saucepan.
- Once you pour in the syrup, cook on medium to medium-high, stirring constantly until almost soft ball stage or 232 on thermometer, about 10 minutes.
- Remove pot from heat, stir in vanilla, and let cool for about 15 minutes.
- Either transfer to large stand mixer on medium or use hand mixer and whip until it becomes frosting consistency, 15-20 minutes.
- If frosting sets too quickly or gets too thick, you can add a little additional cream.
Will the hot sugar syrup seize when it hits the heavy cream? This specific anxiety arrives for many home bakers working with boiled caramel frostings. Sheet cake formats originating from American Southern traditions often rely on a boiled caramel technique, yielding a fudgy, opaque icing rather than a translucent spun sugar. Success depends entirely on temperature control and active management of two burners simultaneously.
Controlling the Caramelization Process
Dry-melting sugar in a skillet requires patience. Do not introduce a utensil to the dry sugar; simply swirl the pan horizontally every sixty seconds to redistribute the melting edges until the liquid reaches a deep amber hue. Meanwhile, the primary saucepan must maintain heat without scorching the dairy solids present in the heavy cream and butter. Combining these two streams at precisely the right moment determines whether the frosting sets into a smooth spread or hardens into brittle candy. Whip the cooled mixture for fifteen to twenty minutes until it transforms from a glossy liquid into a matte, spreadable frosting.
- If the frosting stiffens too rapidly during whipping, incorporate heavy cream one tablespoon at a time until the desired spreadability returns.
- Use a reliable candy thermometer to hit 232 degrees Fahrenheit before removing the base from the heat.
- Bake the cake layer in a standard half-sheet pan for twelve to twenty minutes, pulling it as soon as the center tester emerges clean.
