Chocolate Cake with Caramel Frosting

If you like rich, decadent flavors (and really who doesn’t?) than you’re going to love this cake.  The oooey. gooey caramel icing is decadently delicious! For my Sam’s 10th birthday, he was quite specific about his request.  He wanted a chocolate cake with caramel frosting, but not too much frosting!  And, since that’s what he requested, I set out to find a caramel frosting recipe that he would like!

This frosting doesn’t exactly have a light and fluffy texture.  It is definitely a little more dense than most buttercream.  The only real way to describe it is gloriously gooey.  And, like most caramel, the brown sugar flavor shines through.

Since Sam chose a Camping Party theme for his sleepover, we topped the cake with a plastic bear.  It was Sam’s favorite detail of the whole dessert table.  It was kind of like he stood guard on top of the cake to make sure no one snuck a little sample before it was time 😉

Chocolate Cake with Caramel Frosting

Start by making your favorite chocolate cake recipe.  For this cake, I used a chocolate cake mix.  I separated the batter into four equal parts and poured them into four 6″cake pans.  If you prefer to make your cake from scratch, this is always a yummy choice.  Once your cakes are cooled and ready to be frosted, start your caramel frosting.

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

9 tablespoons milk

1 1/2 cup light brown sugar

3 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3-4 tablespoons milk

Add butter, milk and brown sugar to a saucepan.  Bring to boil over high heat, stirring continuously.  Once the mixture begins to boil, let it boil for 1 minute, while stirring, then remove from heat.

Whisk 1 cup powdered sugar and vanilla extract into mixture.  Pour mixture into a mixing bowl.  Let cool slightly for about 15 minutes.  Once the mixture has cooled slightly, gradually add 1 cup powdered sugar alternately with 1 tablespoon milk, beating on low speed until blended and smooth after each addition.  Add additional milk, if desired.  Frost cake immediately, as this frosting tends to set quickly.