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This Real Deal Caramel Cake is just that – the real deal! A delicious caramel cake recipe straight out of my friend Jocelyn’s cookbook, Grandbaby Cakes!
Jocelyn’s Old Fashioned Caramel Cake
I could not be more excited to share this cake and cookbook with you today. First of all, the author is one of my favorites. Jocelyn’s blog, Grandbaby Cakes, is wonderful and she is a gem. You won’t meet anyone else who can light up a room like she does and keep you laughing. Love her. Plus, she’s so real. I love that.
And her realness totally shows in her cookbook which is full of stories about her family and growing up baking. Every recipe is so personal to her and it makes it not only fun to bake from, but fun to read too. She’s largely influenced by her grandmother and the photos of her, her mom and her grandmother sprinkled throughout the book are absolutely beautiful.
And then the cakes! My goodness the cakes! I want them all. There’s pound cakes, layer cakes, sheet cakes, cupcakes and so much more. And you guys know how I feel about cake.
You’ll also find this amazing cake in her cookbook. I have been eyeing this cake ever since I first saw it. I couldn’t wait to make it.
As you may know caramel is one of my favorite things ever. I even have two recipes for homemade caramel sauce: There’s this easy caramel sauce, then this recipe for salted caramel sauce! Douse a cake in it and you have my full attention. My only regret when I made this cake was that my dad wasn’t visiting so that he could have some too. I dare say we are caramel lovers to core.
And while this cake takes a little time to make because of the caramel, it’s definitely worth it.
The cake is pretty straightforward to make and makes the most silky and beautiful batter. Is that weird to say about batter? It really is pretty. 🙂 And it bakes into a wonderfully moist, light cake.
Making this Caramel Cake
The caramel is where it’s at though. I actually started making the caramel first and while it cooked I made the cake. The caramel takes just shy of 2 hours to make, so there’s plenty of time for making the cake.
However don’t be deterred by the time! You aren’t nursing the caramel that whole time. In fact, you hardly nurse it at all. Despite taking some time, it’s the easiest caramel to make. The base of it is evaporated milk, which I’d never used for caramel before. The flavor is different than the traditional caramel that I’m used to, but it is delicious! And really, once you mix the ingredients together, it pretty much cooks on it’s own with only an occasional stir. Like I said, I baked the cake while it cooked – and even did some laundry. 🙂
Then once the caramel was done, the cake was all ready to go. The timing actually works out quite nicely to make everything at once, then layer it and serve. And OMG! It’s delicious – especially with the caramel still being a little warm. Yum, yum, yum! The caramel definitely pools a little around the bottom, so make sure the stand or plate you use has an edge that will catch it. It’s perfect for dipping fingers in. 🙂
And to sweeten this deal even more, there’s a great giveaway below for a brand new KitchenAid Mixer. Score! Be sure to enter below!
Real Deal Caramel Cake
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 18-22 Slices
- Category: Cakes
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
This Real Deal Caramel Cake is just that – the real deal! A delicious caramel cake recipe straight out of my friend Jocelyn’s cookbook, Grandbaby Cakes!
Ingredients
CAKE
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 1/2 cups sugar
- 7 eggs, room temperature
- 3 cups sifted cake flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup sour cream, room temperature
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
AUNT BEVERLY’S CARAMEL ICING
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter
- 2 (12-ounce) cans evaporated milk
- 2 cups sugar
- pinch salt
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Notes
I started the caramel first, allowing it to cook for about 20-30 minutes. Then I baked the cake. The timing worked out well – by the time the caramel was done, the cake was baked and cooled and ready for layering.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Slice
- Calories: 474
- Sugar: 43.4 g
- Sodium: 306.5 mg
- Fat: 23.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 60.3 g
- Protein: 6.9 g
- Cholesterol: 101.7 mg
Filed Under:
Recipe shared from Grandbaby Cakes with permission.
Enjoy!
I love the Carmel frosting can I beat in mixer for more spreadable consistency
I’m not sure that beating it would achieve that, but you could try it. You could also try adding a bit of cream.
The cake was beautiful but I think I must have done something wrong with the Carmel. I followed everything but I couldn’t seem to ever get rid of the white film, once cooled it didn’t really thickened and the butter seemed to still be separate. Where did I go wrong?
It sounds like it separated, which could be from cooking it on too high heat. It’s really something you want to cook low and slow.
I made the carmel but before I could frost the cake the frosting was hard. What did I do wrong ?
Caramel firms up as it cools, so you may just need to warm it back up a bit in order for it to be spreadable.
This recipe came out delicious like so many others I’ve tried from Lindsay
So glad to hear that! Thanks Jasmine!
I am making a 7 layer Carmel cake will this be enough for between layers, top and sides? The layers will be thinner than a normal cake layer. Thanks!
I’m not really sure. It’s been a long time since I made this cake and I didn’t make it that, so it’s hard to say.
Can I make the Carmel sauce ahead of time like the day before needing it? If so, do I need to put it in the fridge or can I leave it on the countertop over night?
Thanks,
Lesa
It should be fine to make ahead. I’d store it in the fridge. You may need to warm it back up a touch before using it.
Can you make this into a two-layer cake instead of three?
Sure, just increase the bake time if you’re using the same size pans.
What adjustments must I make to turn this three layer cake into a two layer cake?
If using the same size pans, just bake them for a little longer.
Does the icing get hard when it cools???
I’m looking for one that does.
I don’t remember it getting hard.
Does it matter what goes into the pot first when making the caramel thanks
I’m not sure what you mean. The first step of the caramel adds several ingredients at one time.
Hey lindsay! For making salted caramel buttercteam which caramel would be better? This one or the traditional one with water as the base? Which one would give a richer yummier taste?
Hmmm, they are different. I would say the more traditional one is probably my favorite and might give a stronger flavor when added to buttercream. I often use this one.
In the picture, it looks like you may have punched holes in the cake with a wooden spoon handle. Do you think I could do this so the caramel goes all through the cake? It looks delicious. I love caramel.
I did not poke holes in the cake, the caramel just naturally dripped down onto the cake. If you wanted to poke some small holes in the cake, you could. But, be careful not to damage the structure of the cake, or it may fall apart when stacked.
Hi Lindsay,
I would really like to make this cake for my mother on her birthday, considering how much she loves caramel. I was just wondering if I can use condensed milk instead of evaporated milk?
Thank you in advance.
Enjoy your day!
Those two milks are different, I would probably stick with evaporated milk.
The cream is not always the main factor for yummy cake. This cake is really amazing and ill try this for my children.
Can I use sweet condensed milk to make caramel for a cake instead of evaporated milk?
I have seen caramel sauces made with SCM, but I haven’t made it myself. You could probably swap out a recipe for that caramel sauce with this cake though.
This cake looks amazing! Definitely decadent. Love it!
Thank you Emily!
I am making this for my husbands Thanksgiving Day Birthday. Is this best made the day of and served right away or can I make the day before? Thanks so much for the recipe.
You can make it a day ahead. Should be fine.
Hi, thank you for that recipe, it looks delicious. Sorry for a dumb question but do you mean 3 cups of flour that has already been sifted? ie. sift a bunch of flour and then measure out 3 cups of that already sifted flour?
Thanks,
Natasha
Not a dumb question! Yes, 3 cups of already sifted flour.
my fave is an intricate nut kifle that my grandmother used to make. but she did not let us have the recipe. she refused to admit that her son had any children
a family recipe called Wacky Cake
I think that caramel cake will become a family favorite. It looks so good, can’t wait to make itt.
This cake looks amazing! Caramel- yum! Our favorite family recipe is marinara. It is amazingly good, none of my family can ever eat it outside of our homes!
My family’s favorite oldest and favorite recipe is for a spicy cheese rice.
This cake looks delicious! My favorite recipe, is my husband’s grandma’s pork posole. We’d have it every year on Christmas Eve as a family, after she passed I’ve carried on with the tradition.
strawberry pretzel salad
So yummy looking!
My mom’s lasagna!
Goodness. I have several favorite family recipes. If I have to pick one, my children (and me,too) really love pumpkin roll.
My grandma’s Old Fashioned Cream Pie…yum!
A family favorite recipe is my mom’s steak and gravy. I asked for this dinner almost every birthday growing up!
One of our favorite family recipes are my homemade pizzas!
Favorite family recipe is my mom’s sesame chicken. And I am all over this cake-looks divine!!
Holy crumbs, this cake looks too good! My favourite childhood recipe (though not the only one as I was raised by bakers) is my great-grandmother’s mincemeat, made with ground beef and lots of apples.
This looks amazing!
It’s a rainy cold weekend in my neck of the woods. All the ingredients are in my pantry and refrigerator.
I am looking forward to spending some time in a cozy kitchen making this. Yum. Caramel!
Love the look of this caramel cake. It reminds me of our favorite family cake, which is called Kentucky Butter Cake- delish!
My favorite family recipe is my dad’s spaghetti and meatballs. Yum!
We love Tortellini with spinach, peppers, and ham.
This cake looks like a must try! A favorite family recipe in our house is Hungarian Chicken Goulash Soup with egg dumplings. It’s great for a cool fall day.
I just joined FB pg Grandbaby Cakes. looking forward to being among those of you who share my passion for cake baking.
That carmel cake looks completely delicious. I have pinned it and will be making it for Thanksgiving dessert this year. Such a beautiful photograph too! thanks
Awesome, thank you! I hope you enjoy it!
This caramel cake is perfection! Aren’t you just loving her cookbook?!
Thanks Joan! Yes, the cookbook is beautiful!
We have a great recipe for peanut butter swirl brownies.
Love this recipe! Looks like something I might try with cupcakes!
My favorite family recipe is either my abuelo’s sangria or my abuela’s Mexican Chocolate Cake!
Lindsay! I baked this cake while helping Jocelyn test recipes for this cookbook and loved it! You did such a beautiful job!!!! Simply stunning!
Thanks Alice! 🙂
SO much caramel goodness, this looks like a must try!
Looks so good! One of the best cakes I ever had was a caramel cake but it had more of a butter cream icing. Bet this one would be just as delicious!
My favorite family recipe is homemade pierogies! We make them every Christmas!
The icing puts me at ease; where I am, it’s hard to find caramel candies for icing, so this evap milk frosting recipe really -ahem-takes the cake! (Horrible puns). I’d love to give this a go!
This cake is so caramel-y, I can barely handle it. I wish I could grab that slice right through the screen!
This cakes looks delicious, I will definitely bake it this weekend. My mom loves everything caramel.
gorgeous as always!! I think I can handle a caramel that doesn’t burn easy!
amazing caramel cake, first photo got me loose my mind, thanks for sharing the cookbook and this wonderful cake
This cake looks divine! and I love your cake plate too.
My grandma’s home made macaroni and cheese.
Lindsay, this cake looks scrumptious! Thank you for sharing it with us! (p.s. I love that cake stand; I’ve had my eye on the same one for months!)
What an incredible cake! Love how the caramel soaks into the layers of cake!
III am also a caramel freak!! I think I love it more than chocolate:) This cake looks amazing and is something I could probably demolish by myself:/
Oh my heavens! I can literally smell this cake just by looking at it. You did a fantastic job!
This looks amazing! One of my favorite family recipes is homemade pizzelles!
Hooray girlfriend! This looks unbelievable!!!! Girl I wish I could come over and get a slice right now! Thank you so so much my friend for being part of this. I love you and I love cake hahaha!
Hi Lindsay!
Thanks for posting this recipe! I came across it before and wrote it down but haven’t made it yet! I made your new caramel last night and now this is next! 🙂
This looks downright beautiful. Our family would devour this in a heartbeat!
Gotta get my hands on this cookbook. 🙂
That cake does look like the real deal! So much delicious caramel sauce… 🙂
Thanks for this great recipe. I, too, love de caramel. Based on your recommendation, I think I’ll slip over to Jocelyns blog and see what’s going on over there too! Thanks for all the time you spend putting your blog together. I really enjoy it!
A lemon meringue pie that’s delicious and creamy!
Yum! Looks delicious!!
Hi! That cake looks amazing! but the truth is I don’t know what caramel tastes like, I have never seen it in my country (Argentina), so I’m really happy to have the caramel recipe now! I think it might be similar to our “dulce de leche”, which I love so much.
Yes, caramel and dulce de leche are pretty similar in flavor. This particular caramel sauce is actually a good bit thinner than dulce de leche though.