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Old School style Caramel Butter Cake with Fudgy Chocolate Frosting. Taking a step back into our grandma’s youth with this DELICIOUS butter cake. Picture a buttery vanilla cake layered with rich, fudgy, chocolate frosting in the center. Then topped with the most delectable, roll your eyes back good – brown sugar frosting that’s sweet and creamy with notes of caramel mixed throughout. Sooo much to love here! Every bite is sweet, salty, extra chocolatey, and truly delicious. The perfect cake to enjoy any day of the week, no “celebratory” reasons required.
Taking it back to the old school days with this cake…or at least that’s what it feels like to me! Growing up my mom made cakes religiously. Come Friday night we’d have fresh baked cookies, cake, or some other kind of dessert on the counter without a doubt. She was the queen of the Friday night dessert.
No matter what the dessert was, we’d always eat them a little warm and gooey, just after baking. Oh, and always with a cold glass of milk. Baking in the kitchen with mom on Friday nights was such a special time. More times than not my brothers would be MIA, so it was just mom and me. My memories of those Friday nights are so fond and perfect. To this day, they are some of my favorites.
My mom would often bake up a classic chocolate cake, it was everyone’s favorite. What she wouldn’t bake however was any kind of vanilla cake. They were just not her thing. But, my grandma on the other hand? She’d bake up any flavor of cake…chocolate or vanilla, it just had to be easy.
While I don’t remember the exact cakes my Nonnie would bake, this feels like something she would have happily made. Something about a vanilla butter cake, with a super easy (secret ingredient) chocolate frosting, and a sweet brown sugar icing overtop just feels “old school” to me.
Like something she might have found in one of her Better Homes and Garden Magazine’s back in the day. I can literally picture the torn-out magazine page now…
How many of you have super, super old magazine cutouts your mom gave you with recipes? Please cherish those FOREVER. I wish I had more of them!
When my cousin, Maggie mentioned a butter cake yesterday, I was really curious about the idea. And then I got thinking and loved the idea of doing some kind of “old school” style cake.
So here we are!
And everyone? This cake is GOOD, and it’s even pretty easy.
Here are the details, start with the cake.
Start with the vanilla butter cake. I kind of based this off my tiramisu cake, but with a few adjustments. Either way, it’s easy…just beat the wet ingredients together, add the dry, and then beat in some buttermilk.
I always go heavy on the vanilla with my cakes. It’s KEY, so don’t skimp on it.
The chocolate frosting.
While the cake is cooling, you can start making the chocolate fudge frosting. Now this really IS old school. It’s simply just melted chocolate chips and sour cream. I also added espresso powder, which really highlights the chocolate.
For having just three ingredients, this is some of the most magical frosting. Very creamy, rich, and fudgy. And I love that it’s not too sweet, but just sweet enough.
Now, spread the frosting over one layer of the cake. Add the top layer, then chill the cake while you make the brown sugar icing.
Last thing…the brown sugar icing.
I stole this recipe from my chai cupcakes with brown sugar frosting. It’s the same recipe, only this is melted down into more of an icing/glaze…which yes, also feels very old school.
The brown sugar melted down adds hints of warm molasses and really deepens the flavor to create an icing that’s perfectly rich and caramel-like. And when you add a touch of vanilla and sea salt? Well, it’s hard to say no to a second piece. I highly recommend slathering on more icing than you think your cake needs.
Also, you’ll want to swirl on the icing while it’s still warm, once it cools it will stiffen up.
To finish, I topped my cake with chocolate curls and sea salt for a salty-sweet finish.
And that’s it. Honestly, this cake is pretty simple to put together. There are three “steps”, but they’re all very easy. And so very good. Each bite is filled with sweet vanilla butter cake, fudgy chocolate frosting, and sweet caramel-like brown sugar icing.
Best kind of any day cake to bake, no reason required. Although it is my Dad’s birthday today…but he’s not big on celebrating it!
Looking for other easy winter desserts? Here are some favorites:
Brown Butter Malted Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Lastly, if you make this Caramel Butter Cake with Fudgy Chocolate Frosting be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Caramel Butter Cake with Fudgy Chocolate Frosting
Servings: 10
Calories Per Serving: 809 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (1 cup) salted butter at room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk, at room temperature
Chocolate Fudge Frosting
- 1 1/2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder (optional)
Brown Sugar frosting
- 2 sticks salted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2-3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- flaky sea salt, for sprinkling
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Butter 2 (8-inch) round cake pans and line with parchment paper. 2. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla, beating until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until combined. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stream in the buttermilk, beating until just combined. Pour the batter among the 2 cake pans.3. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the center is just set. Let cool 5-10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the cake and invert the cake onto a plate, flip it back over onto a serving plate. Let cool.4. To make the chocolate frosting. Microwave the chocolate chips and a pinch of salt, stirring every 45 seconds, until melted. Stir in the sour cream and espresso, a dollop at a time, until the mixture is smooth. Swirl the frosting onto the top of the cake. Place the second cake layer on top. Run a knife around the side of the cake to clean up any frosting. Chill while you make the brown sugar frosting.5. To make the brown sugar frosting. Melt together the butter, brown sugar, and cream in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook 2 minutes or until the sugar has dissolved. Add a pinch of salt. Remove from the heat and add to the bowl of a stand mixer. Sift in the powdered sugar, then add the vanilla. Beat until well combined. The frosting should be glossy and pourable. If it feels too runny, add powdered sugar to thicken it.6. Pour the frosting over the cake, spreading around the sides of the cake too. The frosting will set quickly on the cake. If desired top with chocolate curls and sea salt. Slice, eat, and enjoy!!
Notes
This post was originally published on February 19, 2021
This looks delicious!!! I only have 9” round pans, how would I adjust the bake time for the larger pans?
Hey Angela,
I would just reduce your bake time by 5 minutes or so until a knife comes out clean. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
I will try this recipe on Sunday, it looks so delicious!
Can you add the ingredient in metric measurements? That would be fantastic!
Hey Frances,
Thanks so much! Yes, so sorry, will add those now! I hope you love the recipe:) xTieghan
Love this. I’m older and used to cut out recipes too. I don’t need 10 servings, so I’ll half the recipe some way…and always heavy on the vanilla. Never had the caramel cake though.
Hey Joyce,
Thanks so much for making the recipe, I am delighted it was enjoyed! Happy Friday:) xTieghan
I can hardly wait to make this! Just made your Earl Grey Blueberry Lemon Bread so as soon as that is gone, THIS is next! My pix of the bread are on Instagram. kweenbee_612
Thank you Tieghan, you ROCK!!!
Thanks much Chelle! I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan
Looks like you listed baking powder twice in the cake recipe. Is one supposed to be baking soda?
Hey Colette,
Sorry about that! Yes, 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda, I fixed the recipe:) xTieghan
You have baking powder listed twice in the cake recipe. Is one of them supposed to be baking soda?
Hey Kelley,
So sorry for the confusion, I fixed the recipe! You will want to use 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Found my birthday cake! OMG this is MY kind of cake! every element makes me say mmm! Can’t wait to make this because I already know it’s going to be to die for! Thank you! and it’s soooo beautiful!
Thanks so much Autumn! I hope you love the recipe:) xTieghan
Opps ! Baking powder is listed twice? Help!! I wanted to make it for tonight’s dinner . Thank you for all your wonderful recipes! You don’t know how much fun it is to look forward to what recipe is going to pop up on your website next ! You offer so much joy to all of us bakers, Tieghan ! ❤️
Hey Lulu,
Sorry for the confusion, the recipe is fixed! You will use 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
You have baking powder listed twice. I am sure one is supposed to be baking soda.
Hey Claudia,
So sorry for the confusion, yes the 1/4 teaspoon is baking soda, I fixed the recipe. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
I wish I had more of my grandma’s recipes, too! She used to make this plain vanilla cake. It didn’t have frosting, but she liked to serve it with ice cream. I regret not asking her how to make it. Looking forward to trying this recipe! Thanks!
Hey Jessica,
Yum, that sounds fantastic! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know how it turns out! xTieghan
Tieghan, you have baking powder listed twice in the ingredients list. Is it safe to assume the first is baking powder and the second is baking soda?
Hey Adele,
Yes, that is correct, I fixed the recipe! xTieghan
Is the espresso powder required? I know it enhances the chocolate flavor but I’m trying to be better about not buying ingredients that I’ll use 1 or 2 times a year. Could I use a small amount of coffee instead? Or leave out all together?
Hey Alix,
You can just skip it:) I hope you love the recipe, let me know how it turns out! xTieghan
Oh wow, another perfect cake to finish the working week. Adding this one to the list, as I love a fudge flavour with chocolate too. Thank you for sharing 🙂
Thanks so much Colleen! I hope you love the recipe:) xTieghan
Hi Tieghan! This cake looks delicious! Quick question ~ you have baking powder listed twice. Which measurment should be baking soda?
Many thanks,
Dianne
Hey Dianne,
So sorry for the confusion, the recipe is fixed, but it is 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda. I hope you enjoy the recipe, let me know how it turns out! xTieghan
Good Morning.
Any suggestions what to make instead of the Choc Frosting? I cannot have choc anymore. :(..
Not sure White Choc would compliment?
Thanks much.
Hey there,
You could do a vanilla frosting or white chocolate would be great too! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan