This perfect brown sugar latte cake is an extra soft and moist brown butter, brown sugar cake soaked with sweet, milky espresso and frosted with delectable espresso cream cheese frosting. It’s incredibly soft, full of sweet brown sugar espresso flavor, with the most irresistible texture from the latte soak, almost like a tres leches, but not quite as wet. It’s the perfect cake for coffee lovers!

Why You’ll Love this Brown Sugar Latte Cake

Deliciously moist brown butter brown sugar cake– Brown butters adds the most delectable and rich nutty flavor to the cake, while the brown sugar adds deep caramel flavor and extra moisture, resulting in a perfectly tender and moist cake.

Brown sugar latte soak- We’ll be mixing together espresso, brown sugar, half & half, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla extract. After the cake bakes, it will get poked with small holes, and this delicious mixture will get poured over the cake, allowing it to soak up all that latte goodness!

Espresso cream cheese frosting- Adding a bit of espresso powder to the cream cheese frosting adds an extra rich coffee flavor to the cake, while a tiny bit of molasses adds brown sugar flavor. The frosting is silky, fluffy and makes each bite of cake just completely melt in your mouth!

For the full recipe, including measurements, step by step instructions, and bake time, please see the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is just a brief overview!

Start by preparing the brown sugar cake batter and baking the cake.
While the cake cools, make the latte milk soak by mixing together the espresso and brown sugar until the sugar is dissolved. Then mix in the half & half, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla extract.
Make the espresso frosting while the cake cools by whipping softened butter with an electric mixer until fluffy. Then mix in the cream cheese. Dissolve the espresso powder into the vanilla extract, then add it to the frosting along with the molasses and powdered sugar. Mix until very fluffy.
Once the cake has had ample time to cool, remove a thin layer off the top so that the latte mixture can easily soak into the cake. Poke holes liberally in the cake, then pour the latte mixture over the top.
Frost the cake with espresso cream cheese frosting and sprinkle chopped chocolate covered espresso beans on top. Slice in 16 servings & serve!
Enjoy a slice with a brown sugar latte! 🙂

Tips for baking a perfect brown sugar cake

Room Temperature Ingredients-  You’ll have the best textured cake if you use room temperature ingredients instead of cold. Cold wet ingredients, like eggs and buttermilk, can cause the cake to bake with more of gummy consistency, and we don’t want that. We want a moist and fluffy cake!

Mixing the Batter- You’ll want to cream the cooled brown butter and brown sugar together until pale in color and fluffy, and the eggs should be mixed in until smooth. It’s okay at this point to mix a lot, as we’re adding air into the eggs, helping to give the batter a “lift”. However, mix the dry ingredients on low speed just until they are blended into the wet ingredients to avoid an overly dense cake.

Measuring Your Flour Properly- If you learn anything from making this recipe, please let it be this: measure your flour (and all other ingredients) with a digital kitchen scale. Please don’t scoop your measuring cup into your flour. This will always lead to inaccurate flour measurements and therefore, a wonky bake.

Baking Pan- I recommend using a light colored metal baking pan. This will help to ensure that the cake gets baked evenly. A glass or dark colored baking pan can cause baking variations, like the cake baking too quickly, being over-baked in some areas, while underbaked in others. 

Brown Sugar Latte Cake FAQs

How do I store this brown sugar cake?

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge, for three days. Allow the cake to come to room temperature before enjoying for the best texture!

Can I use something else in place buttermilk?

If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you can easily make it but mixing 1 cup (240 ml) of whole milk with 1 tbsp of fresh lemon juice or white vinegar

Can this cake be made gluten free?

I have been on my own gluten free journey lately and have found that most of my recipes turn out great GF- Hooray! There is a caveat though, I can only say the recipe will come out good with Bobs Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten free baking flour. This is not sponsored, but my true opinion. This is the only gluten free flour I use as it bakes most similarly to regular, all-purpose flour.

If you make this cake please leave a star review! Also, tag me on Instagram @inbloombakery_ so I can see your creation! Follow me on Pinterest for other dessert ideas!

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4.41 from 5 ratings

Brown Sugar Latte Cake

Yield: 16 slices
Prep: 1 hour 30 minutes
Cook: 28 minutes
Total: 1 hour 58 minutes
This perfect brown sugar latte cake is an extra soft and moist brown butter, brown sugar cake soaked with sweet, milky espresso and frosted with delectable espresso cream cheese frosting. It’s incredibly soft, full of sweet brown sugar espresso flavor, with the most irresistible texture from the latte soak, almost like a tres leches, but not quite as wet. It's the perfect cake for coffee lovers!
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Ingredients

For the Brown Butter Brown Sugar Cake

  • 3/4 cup (168 g) unsalted butter
  • 2 1/4 cups (282 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 1/3 cups (294 g) light brown sugar, packed 
  • 3 eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 tbsp vanilla
  • 1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk, at room temperature

For the Brown Sugar Latte Soak

  • 1/4 cup (60 ml) espresso or strong coffee
  • 2 tbsp (28 g) light brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup (80 ml) half & half or whole milk
  • 1/3 cup (100 g/ 80 ml) sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla

For the Espresso Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 1 cup (224 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 8 oz (226 g) cream cheese, cold
  • 2 tsp instant espresso powder
  • 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 tsp molasses , (optional, adds brown sugar flavor)
  • 2 cups (260 g) powdered sugar
  • chocolate covered espresso beans, chopped

Instructions
 

For the Brown Butter Brown Sugar Cake

  • Start by browning the butter. Add the butter to a medium pot and heat it over medium heat. Allow the butter to melt and come to a simmer. Simmer until the butter is foamy, giving off a nutty aroma and has turned a deep golden brown. The whole process should take about 8-10 minutes.
    3/4 cup (168 g) unsalted butter
  • Transfer the browned butter to a large bowl, then pop it in the fridge and allow it to cool completely until it is solid but still malleable. While it's cooling in the fridge, stir it with a rubber spatula every 10 minutes to make sure it cools evenly.
  • Preheat the oven to 350°F (175 ℃). Grease a 9×9 inch light metal baking pan and line it with parchment paper.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Then set aside the flour mixture.
    2 1/4 cups (282 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt
  • Whip the cooled brown butter with an electric mixer on high speed until pale and fluffy. (If using a stand mixer, use a paddle attachment.)
  • Add the brown sugar to the whipped brown butter. Cream together for 2 minutes on high speed.
    1 1/3 cups (294 g) light brown sugar, packed 
  • Then add in the eggs and vanilla and mix on medium speed until pale in color and smooth, about 1 minute.
    3 eggs, at room temperature, 1 tbsp vanilla
  • Add in the buttermilk and dry ingredients, mixing on low speed until all is combined and the batter is smooth. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as necessary. 
    1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
  • Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. Bake the cake for 38-42 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center.
  • Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 30 minutes, then pull up on the parchment paper to release it from the pan. Let the cake continue cooling on the cooling rack until completely cooled.

For the Brown Sugar Latte Soak

  • While the cake cools, make the latte milk soak. Add the espresso and brown sugar to a liquid measuring cup or something easily poured from. Whisk together until the brown sugar is dissolved.
    1/4 cup (60 ml) espresso or strong coffee, 2 tbsp (28 g) light brown sugar
  • Then add in the half & half/milk, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla. Whisk until combined. Let the latte mixture chill in the fridge until ready to use.
    1/3 cup (80 ml) half & half or whole milk, 1/3 cup (100 g/ 80 ml) sweetened condensed milk, 1 tsp vanilla

For the Espresso Cream Cheese Frosting

  • While the cake cools, make the cream cheese frosting by adding the butter to a large bowl. Whip the butter on high speed with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, 5-10 minutes.
    1 cup (224 g) unsalted butter, softened
  • Then add in the cold cream cheese and mix on medium speed until combined and fluffy.
    8 oz (226 g) cream cheese, cold
  • Dissolve the instant espresso powder into the vanilla extract in a small ramekin. Then add it in, along with the molasses and powdered sugar.
    Mix on medium-low speed until combined, then on high speed until light and fluffy.
    2 tsp instant espresso powder, 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, 1 1/2 tsp molasses, 2 cups (260 g) powdered sugar

Assembling the Cake

  • When the cake is completely cooled, cut a very thin layer off the top of the cake using a sharp knife. This will make it easier for the latte mixture to absorb into the cake. Transfer it to a serving plate. Poke holes on the top of the cake using a wooden stick or the handle of a wooden spoon.
    (I used the handle of a honey dipper for smaller holes.)
  • Slowly pour the latte mixture on top of the cake. It is thin so it should absorb into the cake and the poked holes easily, but do be patient as it does.
  • Frost the top of the cake with a thick layer of espresso cream cheese frosting using an offset spatula. Sprinkle chopped chocolate covered espresso beans on top of the frosting, then cut into 16 slices and serve!
    chocolate covered espresso beans, chopped
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: brown butter, brown butter cake, brown sugar, brown sugar latte cake, cake, latte cake
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