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    Home » Recipes » Classic Baking

    Chocolate Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting

    Published: Sep 13, 2023 by Nicole Spiridakis ·

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    This luscious Chocolate Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting is filled with chocolate ganache and frosted with fluffy, sweet-salty caramel frosting -- the stuff dreams are made of! This cake is perfect for celebrations or whenever you need a special treat.

    A slice of chocolate cake with salted caramel buttercream.

    Chocolate Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting

    When you want to take your regular cake up a notch, make this chocolate cake with salted caramel frosting. This is a literal dream of a cake, one you'll be making over and over. First, you have dark, rich chocolate cake layers that sandwich an even richer and darker chocolate ganache. It's so good! But the crowning glory is the fluffy caramel frosting that's kissed with a hint of salt.

    This gorgeous cake is perfect for birthdays or any special celebration. You do need to make three components to put it together, but neither one is particularly difficult. And the result is a stunning cake that will be asked for again and again! And, you can use the chocolate cake with any frosting you choose. It's a sturdy, foolproof recipe that will be your jumping-off point for any flavor combination you like.

    What You'll Need to Make This Chocolate Cake

    Here’s what you’ll need to make this incredible cake The full ingredient amounts and instructions are in the recipe card below.

    FOR THE CAKE

    • Chocolate
    • Flour
    • Baking soda
    • Fine sea salt
    • Unsweetened cocoa powder
    • Unsalted butter
    • Brown sugar
    • Vanilla extract
    • Eggs
    • Buttermilk
    • Boiling water

    FOR THE GANACHE

    • Heavy cream
    • Semi-sweet chocolate chips

    FOR THE FROSTING

    • Granulated sugar
    • Water
    • Heavy cream
    • Fine sea salt
    • Vanilla extract
    • Unsalted butter
    • Powdered sugar

    How to Make Chocolate Cake with Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting:

    FOR THE CAKE

    1. Heat the oven and prepare the pans: Preheat oven to 350℉. Butter three 8-inch cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper. Butter the parchment and dust the pan with a little cocoa powder. Shake out the excess.
    2. Melt the chocolate: Melt the chocolate. Set aside.
    3. Whisk together the dry ingredients: Whisk the dry ingredients together.
    4. Cream the butter and sugar: In a large bowl, cream butter. Add the brown sugar and vanilla and mix until fluffy.
    5. Add the eggs: Add the eggs one at a time and mix well to incorporate.
    6. Stir in the rest of the ingredients: Stir in melted chocolate. Add half the dry ingredients and combine. Add the buttermilk and the rest of the dry ingredients and combine. Add the boiling water on low speed until just incorporated.
    7. Bake: Pour batter into pans and bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

    FOR THE GANACHE

    1. Make the ganache: Place the chocolate chips in a medium bowl. Heat the cream until just barely boiling and remove from heat and pour over the chips. Let stand for about 5 minutes, then whisk and stir to completely melt the chocolate into the cream. Whisk until smooth. Set aside to cool – the ganache will thicken as it cools. Tip: I stick the bowl in the fridge for a bit to speed up the process.

    FOR THE FROSTING

    1. Make the caramel: Briefly stir together granulated sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat (make sure the sugar is melted). Continue cooking, without stirring, until the mixture turns dark amber in color, about 6 to 7 minutes.
    2. Add the cream: Remove from heat and very slowly – mixture may froth up initially – add in the cream and vanilla, stirring with a wooden spoon until completely smooth. Stir in the salt. Set aside until cool, about 25 minutes.
    3. Whip the frosting: Then, cream the butter in a large bowl, beat on medium-high speed until light in color and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low, add the caramel and powdered sugar, and mix until completely incorporated.
    4. Assemble: Spread the bottom cake layer with a thick layer of ganache, top with another layer, add ganache, and top with the third layer, then frost the top and sides with the salted caramel frosting.
    A slice of chocolate cake with salted caramel buttercream.

    Tips for Success

    Need subs? I’ve got you covered! Read on for substitution suggestions and tips:

    • Make it gluten-free: This is a traditional cake that's easily adapted to be gluten-free by substituting 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour for the flour.
    • Watch the caramel carefully: Caramel can be tricky, so the best practice is to watch it carefully while you're cooking it.
    • Use any leftover caramel in other dishes: Make a sauce! Or turn it into a cake.
    • Make it ahead: Bake the cake the day before you plan to serve it - I always try to bake my cakes a day in advance so that the flavors can fully develop and the crumb firms up, making it easier to frost them. You can frost the cake the day of.

    Serving Suggestions

    Chocolate cake with salted caramel frosting is amazing with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or chocolate ice cream.

    Storage Options

    Store the leftover cake, tightly covered with foil, in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can serve it cold or bring it to room temperature before serving.

    More Chocolate Cakes

    • Gluten Free Chocolate Cake
    • Oat Flour Chocolate Cake
    • The Best Chocolate Cake
    A slice of chocolate cake with salted caramel buttercream.
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Chocolate Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting

    Nicole Spiridakis
    This luscious Chocolate Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting is filled with chocolate ganache and frosted with fluffy, sweet-salty caramel frosting is the stuff dreams are made of! This cake is perfect for celebrations or whenever you need a special treat.
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 30 minutes mins
    Cook Time 1 hour hr
    Total Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American
    Servings 12 servings
    Calories 360 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    For the Cake

    • 4 ounces unsweetened or semi-sweet chocolate , chopped
    • 2 cups flour
    • 2 teaspoons baking soda
    • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
    • 6 tablespoons cocoa powder
    • ½ cup unsalted butter , softened
    • 2 ½ cups brown sugar
    • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    • 3 eggs , at room temperature
    • ½ cup buttermilk
    • 1 ¼ cups boiling water

    For the Ganache

    • 1 cup heavy cream
    • 1 ½ cups bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate chips

    For the Frosting

    • ¼ cup granulated sugar
    • 2 tablespoons water
    • ¼ cup heavy cream
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • ½ cup unsalted butter , at room temperature
    • 2 cups powdered sugar

    Instructions
     

    For the Cake

    • Preheat oven to 350℉
    • Butter three 8-inch cake pans and line bottoms with parchment paper. Butter the parchment and dust the pan with a little cocoa powder. Shake out the excess.
    • Melt the chocolate. Set aside.
    • Whisk the dry ingredients together.
    • In a large bowl, cream butter. Add the brown sugar and vanilla and mix until fluffy.
    • Add the eggs one at a time and mix well to incorporate.
    • Stir in melted chocolate. Add half the dry ingredients and combine. Add the buttermilk and the rest of the dry ingredients and combine. Add the boiling water on low speed until just incorporated.
    • Pour batter into pans and bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

    For the Ganache

    • Place the chocolate chips in a medium bowl. Heat the cream until just barely boiling and remove from heat and pour over the chips. Let stand for about 5 minutes, then whisk and stir to completely melt the chocolate into the cream. Whisk until smooth. Set aside to cool – the ganache will thicken as it cools. Tip: I stick the bowl in the fridge for a bit to speed up the process.

    For the Frosting

    • Briefly stir together granulated sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat (make sure sugar is melted). Continue cooking, without stirring, until mixture turns dark amber in color, about 6 to 7 minutes.
    • Remove from heat and very slowly – mixture may froth up initially – add in cream and vanilla, stirring with a wooden spoon until completely smooth. Stir in the salt. Set aside until cool, about 25 minutes.
    • Then, cream the butter in a large bowl, beat on medium-high speed until light in color and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low, add the caramel and powdered sugar, and mix until completely incorporated.
    • To assemble, spread the bottom cake layer with a thick layer of ganache, top with another layer, add ganache, and top with the third layer, then frost the top and sides with the salted caramel frosting.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 360kcalCarbohydrates: 57gProtein: 4gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 71mgSodium: 424mgPotassium: 206mgFiber: 2gSugar: 54gVitamin A: 445IUVitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 81mgIron: 1mg
    Disclaimer: Nutrition information is automatically calculated and is an estimate (I'm not a nutritionist and can't guarantee accuracy!). Even when not specified, be sure to check that all the ingredients you use are gluten free if you need them to be by reading labels on all packaging and/or confirming with the manufacturer.
    Did you make this recipe?Let me know in the comments how it went!

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    Comments

    1. candace says

      June 11, 2012 at 8:37 pm

      I am making a cake for 50 people and i am very seriously considering this little number. in your opinion can i just double this or triple ? does it multiply without any problem or should i make a cake and cupcakes ?

      Reply
    2. Mary Grover says

      June 01, 2012 at 11:28 am

      I made the cake a while back and was very glad I had more than one 9" pan. I made two nine-inch cakes. I didn't make them into a layer cake. The picture here shows three layers which leaves me wondering just how the final product was assembled. The cake I made was delicious but I had forgotten how much of a mess cake baking would create and how many bowls I'd wind up using.

      Reply
    3. Rachel Dangermond says

      May 30, 2012 at 12:50 pm

      This is firmly at the top of my to do list! Yum.

      Reply
    4. art and lemons says

      May 30, 2012 at 10:26 am

      I arrived here at just the right time! That recipe of Alice Waters' is my favorite for chocolate cakes but oh, that ganache filled and salted caramel buttercream topped cake means I need to get out the mixing bowls immediately and finally celebrate my (three plus weeks ago) birthday with candles.

      Reply
    5. Janet Bright says

      May 29, 2012 at 7:04 pm

      Looks great, but does all the batter go into one 9-inch pan?

      Reply
    6. Spencer says

      May 29, 2012 at 6:14 pm

      Looks absolutely delicious! It is my son's birthday coming up soon so I might have to try and recreate the recipe.

      Reply
    7. Melissa // thefauxmartha says

      May 29, 2012 at 8:59 am

      Whoa, this looks like the cake I made for my sisters wedding with the frosting switched. I love it! Looks divine!

      Reply
    8. sizzle says

      May 29, 2012 at 9:27 am

      OMG that looks amazing. I love salted butter cream. MMMM.

      Reply
    5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

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    Cucina Nicolina is your home for easy gluten free baking recipes made with simple, wholesome ingredients. I'm a writer, recipe developer, and cookbook author who loves to share all things yummy and gluten free. Learn more about me.

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