One of my favorite things to do with my homemade salted caramel recipe is incorporate it into buttercream. The flavor ends up an awesome blend of sweet and salty, and the consistency is perfect for topping cakes and cupcakes or using as a cake filling. It can transform basic flavors like chocolate cake and vanilla cake into something above and beyond, and it also adds complexity to Fall-inspired flavors like apple spice cake and pumpkin cake. Whatever flavors you love pairing with caramel, this salted caramel buttercream is magic!
One Reader, Stellis, says: “Oh. My. Goodness!! Earlier I made the salted caramel (and left rave reviews) and I just finished making this to frost my dark chocolate cake and it is perfection! I could literally eat this buttercream by itself!” ★★★★★
Why You’ll Love This Salted Caramel Buttercream
- Ideal for Cake Decorating. This buttercream ends up the perfect consistency for filling and stacking cakes, frosting a smooth buttercream finish, piping onto cupcakes, adding as a layer under fondant, creating buttercream borders, and more!
- Delicious Salty-Sweet Flavor. This buttercream tastes just like salted caramel in frosting form!
- Perfect Excuse to Make Homemade Caramel. But it’s always a good time to make caramel from scratch, especially when you realize how easy my salted caramel recipe is.
- Easy to Make. Once you make the salted caramel and let it cool to room temperature, the salted caramel buttercream recipe is super straightforward. You’ll essentially whip the butter until creamy, combine it with powdered sugar, then add the salted caramel, vanilla, and salt. Easy peasy.
Salted Caramel Buttercream Ingredients
- Salt. A pinch of salt helps balance the sweetness and adds to the salty-sweet flavor even more.
- Unsalted Butter. This is the base of the buttercream and gives the frosting a rich buttery flavor and velvety smooth texture. If you only have salted butter on hand, you can use that instead and omit the salt at the end of the recipe.
- Powdered Sugar. This adds stability to the frosting while sweetening. I like to use less powdered sugar than the average American buttercream so that the frosting doesn’t end up cloyingly sweet, but if you’d like it even less sweet you can reduce the powdered sugar amount by up to ½ cup (60g). Just keep in mind that the consistency of the buttercream will be thinner.
- Salted Caramel. The buttercream gets its flavor from homemade salted caramel. It’s the perfect thickness for adding to the frosting without thinning out the consistency, plus the flavor is out of this world!
- Pure Vanilla Extract. A little vanilla enhances the flavor of this salted caramel buttercream beautifully.
How to Make Homemade Salted Caramel
This recipe starts with making a batch of my easy homemade salted caramel. It’s only four ingredients: granulated sugar, unsalted butter, heavy whipping cream, and salt. I love that this recipe comes together in minutes with simple techniques, and you don’t even need a candy thermometer to make it! I recommend reading through the entire recipe beforehand so you know what to expect, but here’s a simplified version of how to make it:
- Melt the sugar. Add the granulated sugar into a medium saucepan set over medium heat and stir frequently until it melts into an amber colored liquid.
- Add the butter. Whisk the butter into the melted sugar until the mixture is uniform, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add the heavy whipping cream. Whisk in the heavy whipping cream, then let the mixture boil for one minute without stirring it.
- Add the salt. Whisk the salt in and remove the salted caramel from the heat and let it cool to room temperature. It will thicken as it cools.
Making the salted caramel from scratch is the key to this beautiful caramel buttercream flavor, so if you have your own favorite salted caramel recipe, feel free to incorporate it into the buttercream recipe below. Just avoid pre-made salted caramel sauces that tend to be overly sweet, because they might send the sweetness level of this buttercream way over the top.
How to Make Salted Caramel Buttercream
Once the salted caramel has cooled to room temperature, the salted caramel buttercream takes just about 10 minutes to make. It’s as simple as this:
- Whip the Butter.
- Add the Powdered Sugar
- Add the (Cooled) Salted Caramel, Vanilla, and Salt.
- Mix Until Smooth.
The process is about as basic as it gets when it comes to an American buttercream recipe, but the end result is buttery salted caramel magic that you’ll want to eat by the spoonful!
Salted Caramel Buttercream FAQs
- Do I have to make the salted caramel from scratch? If you have a favorite store-bought caramel sauce, feel free to substitute it instead! I like to use homemade salted caramel because I can count on it being perfectly thick and not overly sweet, so the resulting buttercream is the perfect consistency and has the ideal caramel flavor.
Can I color this buttercream? Yes, but note that the buttercream starts as a beige color. This means that whatever color you add may be slightly muted because of the beige undertone. - How do I store salted caramel buttercream? You can store this buttercream in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Before you’re ready to use it, thaw it to room temperature and re-mix with your stand mixer on low speed until it’s smooth and creamy.
- What happens if I add less powdered sugar than the recipe calls for? The powdered sugar adds thickness and stability to this recipe, and I’ve already reduced it to account for the sweetness of the caramel. If you’d like it even less sweet you can reduce the powdered sugar amount by up to ½ cup (60g), but note that the buttercream will be thinner in consistency.
Cake Flavors to Pair with Salted Caramel Buttercream
Here are some of my favorite cake recipes to pair with this salted caramel buttercream. The recipe makes enough to frost about 15 cupcakes, fill and crumb coat a layer cake, or frost and decorate a layer cake. One batch will be enough for any of the cupcake recipes below, but if you’re planning on filling and frosting any of the layer cakes listed, be sure to double the recipe.
- One-Bowl Chocolate Cake or Chocolate Cupcakes
- Apple Spice Cake
- Salted Caramel Apple Cake
- Pumpkin Layer Cake or Pumpkin Cupcakes
- Spiced Vanilla Chai Cake
- Vanilla Cake
- Coffee Layer Cake
I hope you love this salted caramel buttercream recipe as much as I do! Let me know what you pair it with in the comments below (be sure to leave a star rating!) and feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram to show me if you post a photo. I love to see what you create with my recipes!
Salted Caramel Buttercream
Ingredients
Homemade Salted Caramel
- 1 Cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 6 Tbsp (85g) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into slices
- 1/2 Cup (120ml) heavy whipping cream, room temperature
- 1 1/4 tsp kosher salt
Salted Caramel Buttercream
- 1 Cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 Cups (360g) powdered sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 Cup (120ml) salted caramel, room temperature recipe above
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
Instructions
Make the Salted Caramel
- Have everything pre-measured and ready to go (you’ll be constantly stirring). Place the sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat and stir constantly with a wooden spoon, until it melts into an amber-colored liquid and no sugar clumps remain, 5-6 minutes.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low. Carefully add the butter (it will bubble up when you do) and use a whisk to combine it with the sugar mixture until the butter is fully melted and incorporated, 2-3 minutes.
- Add the heavy whipping cream in a steady stream while whisking. As soon as the cream is incorporated, let the caramel boil for a full minute before removing it from the heat and stirring in the salt.
- Pour the salted caramel into a glass jar or container and refrigerate until room temperature, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. You can make this element ahead and store it in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. It will thicken as it cools and solidify when cold. If needed, bring it back to room temperature by gently heating in the microwave in 10 second increments, stirring after each one, until room temperature and pourable.
Make the Salted Caramel Buttercream
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip the butter on high until it’s creamy and light in color, 5-6 minutes.
- Turn the mixer to low and add the powdered sugar a few cups at a time, scraping down the bowl and paddle after each interval.
- With the mixer still on low, mix in the vanilla extract, salted caramel, and salt. Continue mixing on low speed until fully combined and smooth, about 1-2 minutes.
Notes
- The salted caramel can be made ahead and stored ahead in an airtight glass jar or container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. When you’re ready to use it, reheat it in the microwave in 10 second intervals, stirring after each one, until room temperature and pourable.
- The salted caramel buttercream can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for up to 2 months. When you’re ready to use it, bring it back to room temperature and re-mix with your stand mixer on low speed to bring it back to smooth buttercream consistency.
- Frost 12-15 cupcakes with a piping bag
- Fill and crumb coat a three-layer 6-inch cake or two-layer 8-inch cake. To have enough for frosting and decorating as well, double the recipe.
Do you think this would work with sticky date cupcakes?
Hi Jayne! Yes, this would be amazing on those cupcakes!
I am sorry if you have already answered this, but could you make this with butterscotch instead of the salted caramel. I love butterscotch!
Hi Tyler! Yes, you could sub in butterscotch sauce for the salted caramel, either homemade or store bought. I don’t have a recipe for butterscotch but this one looks good if you need it: https://thecafesucrefarine.com/ridiculously-easy-butterscotch-sauce/
Thank you!
I wanted to leave you a 5-star rating because this frosting was phenomenal. A lot of the other ones I found called for brown sugar and this one just sounded more straightforward and good. It went over amazingly and I’m doing it again this weekend. I had to dig around and find your recipe but I’m telling you yours needs to be promoted because it’s amazing.
Made this for a lactose intolerant friend with a dairy-free caramel that used coconut cream, and a plant butter in place of the unsalted. It still came out as perfectly as I’ve come to anticipate from Sugar and Sparrow recipes! I used this frosting on your Pumpkin Cupcakes (also made with plant butter). My dairy-free friends say they’ve never tasted such wonderful birthday cakes and treats! Thank you!!
Hi! I’m trying to make a vegan salted caramel buttercream for my friends birthday, do you happen to remember the recipe used for the caramel??
Hi Hannah! I used this recipe but it’s not vegan: https://sugarandsparrow.com/salted-caramel-recipe/. You can use any vegan caramel recipe or store bought sauce in place of it though!