Three layer cake flavored with autumn spices, iced with cream cheese frosting, and topped with salted caramel sauce.
What is salted caramel spice cake?
This is a three layer cake that is flavored with the warm spices of fall. the cake itself is very moist and uses a blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger and cloves to give it a delicious autumn flavor. Then the layers and outside of the cake are filled and iced with cream cheese frosting. Lastly, a drizzle of homemade salted caramel is poured over the cake. The cream cheese frosting and salted caramel sauce work perfectly together with the autumn spices and make this cake the perfect way to celebrate the change of the seasons. If pumpkin desserts are not your favorite, salted caramel spice cake just might be.
What is needed to make salted caramel spice cake?
- Cake flour- gives this cake the best, most tender crumb
- Granulated sugar- goes in the cake and is turned into salted caramel sauce
- Brown sugar- gives the cake a rich flavor
- Eggs- whole eggs will be used, make sure they are room temperature
- Butter-make sure it is softened, will be used in the cake, caramel sauce and frosting
- Buttermilk- helps to keep the cake moist
- Ground spices- a blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger and cloves go in the cake
- Vanilla- I recommend vanilla bean paste for the best flavor
- Baking powder & baking soda- help the cake to rise
- Cream cheese- used in the frosting, make sure it is room temperature
- Powdered sugar- used to sweeten the cream cheese frosting
- Salt- helps to bring out all the flavors
- Heavy cream- used to make the best salted caramel sauce
- Whole spices- cinnamon sticks and star anise for decorating (optional)
How to make the salted caramel spice cake:
For the homemade salted caramel:
Add 1 cup of granulated sugar to a sauce pan and heat over medium heat until the sugar has melted. Stir occasionally to ensure it gets equally heated. It will take a little while for it to melt down so be patient. Make sure to regulate the heat and watch the sugar so it does not burn.
Once the sugar has melted, turn the heat down to low and add in 5 tablespoons of butter right away. If you wait too long once the sugar has melted it can easily burn and have a weird taste.
Once the butter has melted in, add in ½ cup of heavy whipping cream, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, and ½ teaspoon of salt. (Add more salt if you want it to be extra salty).
Stir until everything is combined together and let the caramel simmer on the stove for a few more minutes to allow it to thicken a little more. Once it has become thicker, it should coat the back of a spoon thickly, remove it from the heat and allow it to cool completely.
For the cake:
Start by creaming 10 tablespoon of softened butter, 1 cup of granulated sugar and ½ cup of light brown sugar together.
Then add in 3 eggs and 1 teaspoon vanilla and combine. Next add in 1 cup of buttermilk and mix.
Sift together 2 ¼ cup of cake flour, 1 ½ teaspoon of baking powder, ¼ teaspoon baking soda and ½ teaspoon of salt together. Then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, along with ½ teaspoon of ground allspice, ½ teaspoon of ground nutmeg, ½ teaspoon of ground ginger ¼ teaspoon of ground clove and 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon.
Mix until everything is combined. Divide the batter evenly among three 6" x 2" cake pans. Bake the cakes at 350 degrees for 31-33 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean from the center.
After baking, remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool in the pans for 15 minutes. Then let them finish completely cooling on a cooling rack.
For the cream cheese frosting:
In a medium sized bowl add two sticks of softened, unsalted butter and beat on medium speed with an electric mixer until the butter is smooth.
Then add in 8 oz of softened cream cheese and beat for about two minutes until light and fluffy.
Next mix in 1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste, 3 cups of powdered sugar and ½ teaspoon of salt. Mix for about 2 minutes until all the sugar is combined and dissolved and the frosting is smooth.
Assembling the salted caramel spice cake:
Once the cakes are completely cooled you can assemble the cake. You can simply fill each layer and ice the outside with cream cheese frosting and then pour the salted caramel sauce over the top. However, if you are looking to make a really beautiful cake, follow these extra steps.
For these steps you will need:
- a cake scraper
- a rotating cake turntable
- a cake frosting spatula
- a sharp knife
- a squeeze bottle
- an icing bag fitted with a decorative star tip
Getting perfectly sized cake layers:
Once the cakes are completely cooled, wrap them in plastic wrap and place them in the freezer for a few hours. Once they are frozen, or nearly frozen, remove them from the freezer and begin to make each layer as similar in size as possible. Usually you will only have to cut the tops off of each cake layer. With a sharp knife, remove the tops from each cake layer until each are flat and can be stacked to where the cake is even. So, each layer should sit flat on each other without the cake leaning.
Creating the crumb layer:
Then place a dollop of cream cheese frosting in the center of your cake turntable. Place the first cake layer over it. Then add a generous amount of cream cheese frosting on top of the cake layer and even it out with your frosting spatula, turning the cake table as you go. Place the next layer over top and repeat the step. Then place the final layer over the top and place small dollops of frosting on the outsides and top of the cake. Even out the frosting as much as possible with your frosting spatula.
Then with your cake scraper, scrape the icing across the cake, turning the cake table as you go to make this as easy as possible. This layer of frosting should be very thin. This is called the 'crumb layer' and will ensure that the cake's final coating of frosting is smooth and free of crumbs. Freezing the cake layers before frosting them also helps tremendously with this step.
Final frosting layer & salted caramel:
Once the crumb layer of frosting has been applied, place the cake in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to allow the frosting to harden. Once the cake has chilled in the fridge, remove it and apply the final coating of frosting. Apply generous dollops of frosting on the sides and top of the cake and smooth them out with your cake frosting spatula. Then with your cake scraper even out the frosting, turning the cake table as you go, to give you an even coating of cream cheese frosting. Make sure it is not too thin so you do not see the layers underneath, unless of course that it is how you want it to look.
Once the final layer of frosting is applied, place the cake back in the fridge to chill for another 30 minutes, up to an hour. While the cake chills prepare the caramel by pouring it into a squeeze bottle. Once chilled, remove the cake from the fridge. Go around the top edges of the cake and squeeze the caramel sauce so it starts to drip down the sides of the cake. If at first it doesn't look like it will be a long enough drip, just wait a few minutes because the caramel will continue to drip down the sides of the cake. Also squeeze caramel around the top of the cake and smooth it out slightly with a clean frosting spatula. As it sits the caramel will smooth out and come together to form a beautiful glossy finish on top of the cake.
Decorating the cake:
Place the cake back in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour to let the caramel harden up a bit. While it is chilling, place the remaining cream cheese frosting in a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. Once the cake is chilled, remove it from the fridge and go along the top edges of the cake with cream cheese frosting to create a ruffle. Do this by slowly moving the piping bag back and forth in a small zigzag formation. Practice on a cutting board before to get the feel for it. Once your ruffle is on you can decorate the top of the cake with whole cinnamon sticks, star anise, flowers, or whatever else you think would look beautiful!
Serve this cake right away, or keep in the fridge until ready to serve. Store left overs in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days for the freshest, best flavor.
If you make this cake, please tag me on Instagram @inbloombakery_ so I can see your beautiful cake! Also follow me on Pinterest for other dessert ideas!
📖 Recipe
Salted Caramel Spice Cake
Ingredients
For the Spice Cake
- 2 ¼ cups (281 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 10 tablespoon (140 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (110 g) light brown sugar, packed
- 3 eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
For the Salted Caramel Sauce
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 5 tablespoon (70 g) unslated butter, softened
- ½ cup (120 ml) heavy whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 cup (224 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 8 oz (226 g) cream cheese, cold
- 3 cups (390 g) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
For the Spice Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray 3 6-inch cake pans with non-stick spray and line the bottoms with parchment paper rounds.
- In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg, and cloves.2 ¼ cups (281 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled, 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ½ teaspoon ground allspice, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- In a large bowl cream the softened butter, granulated white sugar and brown sugar together on high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.10 tablespoon (140 g) unsalted butter, softened, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar, ½ cup (110 g) light brown sugar, packed
- Then add in the eggs and vanilla and mix on medium speed until pale in color and smooth.3 eggs, at room temperature, 2 teaspoon vanilla
- Add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the butter mixture a little at a time until it is all added, mixing on low then medium speed for each addition. Mix just until the batter is combined and smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
- Divide the batter evenly among the cake pans. Bake the cakes for 31-33 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean from the center.
- Remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool in the pans for 5 minutes and then on a cooling rack until they are completely cooled.
For the Salted Caramel Sauce
- Add the granulated sugar to a sauce pan and heat over medium heat until the sugar has melted. Stir occasionally to ensure it gets equally heated. It will take a little while for it to melt down so be patient. Make sure to regulate the heat and watch the sugar so it does not burn.1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- Once the sugar has melted, turn the heat down to low and add in the butter right away. If you wait too long once the sugar has melted it can easily burn and have a weird taste.5 tablespoon (70 g) unslated butter, softened
- Once the butter has melted in, add in the heavy whipping cream, vanilla, and salt. (Add more salt if you want it to be extra salty).½ cup (120 ml) heavy whipping cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla, ½ teaspoon salt
- Stir until everything is combined together and let the caramel simmer on the stove for a few more minutes to allow it to thicken a little more. Once it has become thicker, it should coat the back of a spoon thickly, remove it from the heat and allow it to cool completely.
For the Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a medium sized bowl, add the softened, unsalted butter and beat on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.1 cup (224 g) unsalted butter, softened
- Then add in the cream cheese and beat for about two minutes until light and fluffy.8 oz (226 g) cream cheese, cold
- Sift in the powdered sugar a little at a time and mix on medium-low speed until all is combined. Then add in the vanilla and mix on high speed for about 2 minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy.3 cups (390 g) powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla
Assembling the Cake
- Once the cakes are completely cooled you can assemble the cake.
- Add generous amount of frosting in between each layer and on the outside of the cake. Smooth the frosting out.
- Pour the salted caramel sauce over the top of the cake.
- *See blog post for steps to get your cake looking like the recipe pictures*
Any changes if I'd like to use your batter recipe for cupcakes instead?
Hi Krystal! Nope, you can make this recipe into about 24 cupcakes with no changes 🙂