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salted caramel apple cake
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Salted Caramel Apple Cake

An ultra-moist apple spice cake paired with salted caramel buttercream filling, then topped with vanilla buttercream, dripping salted caramel, and chopped almonds. A Fall classic!
Prep Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 20 minutes

Ingredients

Apple Spice Cake

  • 2 1/2 Cups (332g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp allspice
  • 1 Cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 1/4 Cups (250g) granulated sugar
  • 3/4 Cup (150g) packed brown sugar light or dark
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 large egg, room temperature
  • 2 Cups (500) unsweetened applesauce

Homemade Salted Caramel

  • 1 1/2 Cups (300g) granulated white sugar
  • 9 Tbsp (128g) unsalted butter, room temperature cut into Tbsp sized slices
  • 3/4 cup (180ml) heavy whipping cream, room temperature
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt

Vanilla Buttercream

  • 1 1/2 Cups (339g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 5 Cups (600g) powdered sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 2 Tbsp whole milk, room temperature
  • 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste

Salted Caramel Buttercream

  • 2 Cups (432g) vanilla buttercream (recipe above)
  • 1/2 Cup (120ml) salted caramel, room temperature (recipe above)
  • pinch of salt, or to taste

Additional Garnish

  • 1 medium apple
  • 1/2 Cup chopped pecans

Instructions

Make The Apple Spice Cake

  • Preheat the oven to 350ºF (177ºC) and prepare three 6-inch or two 8-inch cake pans by spraying the sides with cooking spray and fitting the bottoms with a parchment paper circle.  
  • In a medium bowl, add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. Whisk together and set aside.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer and a large bowl), beat the butter on high speed until light and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the brown and white sugars and continue to beat on medium-high until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the bowl and paddle as needed.
  • Turn the mixer to low speed and add the vanilla and the eggs. Turn the mixer to medium and beat for one full minute.
  • Turn the mixer back to low speed and add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the applesauce, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. When it begins to come together after the last flour addition, turn off the mixer and give it a few stirs by hand to make sure everything is incorporated. The batter will be very thick.
  • Divide the batter between your prepared cake pans (fill no more than 2/3 full) and smooth the tops, then bake for 36-42 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let the cakes cool completely before filling and frosting.

Make The Homemade Salted Caramel

  • Have everything pre-measured and ready to go (you’ll be constantly stirring). Place the sugar in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat and stir constantly with a wooden spoon, until it melts into an amber-colored liquid and no sugar clumps remain, 6-8 minutes. 
  • Reduce the heat to medium. 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, 1-2 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. 
  • Let the caramel cool completely to room temperature before using it in a buttercream recipe, dipping a caramel apple, or dripping the cake. It will thicken as it cools. 

Make The Vanilla Buttercream

  • With a hand mixer or paddle attachment on your stand mixer, cream the butter on medium-high until it’s creamy and light (almost white) in color, about 7 minutes. 
  • Add the powdered sugar a few cups at a time, mixing on low speed and scraping down the bowl and paddle after each addition is mixed in. Keep the mixer on low speed while you add the vanilla, milk, and salt. Continue mixing until fully incorporated and smooth, about two minutes.
  • Set about 3 Cups (648g) of the vanilla buttercream aside in an airtight container, keeping about 2 Cups (432g) of the vanilla buttercream in the mixing bowl for making the salted caramel buttercream.

Make the Salted Caramel Buttercream

  • Once the salted caramel is room temperature and thick, add 1/2 Cup (120ml) to the 2 Cups of vanilla buttercream in your stand mixer from the previous step. Mix on low speed until incorporated and smooth, adding a pinch of salt to balance the sweetness.

Assembly

  • When the apple spice cake layers are cooled completely, level them to your desired height. Place the first cake layer on your turntable and add a layer of salted caramel buttercream as filling. Drizzle with cooled salted caramel before placing the next cake layer on top and repeating the process of filling and stacking. Place the final apple spice cake layer on top, upside down so that the bottom of the cake becomes the top. Crumb coat the cake with the remaining salted caramel buttercream and refrigerate until firm to the touch, about 30 minutes.
  • To create the look pictured, frost the cake with a smooth buttercream finish using the vanilla buttercream and garnish the bottom edge with chopped pecans. Refrigerate the cake once more to let the frosting firm up, about 15 minutes this time.
  • While the cake is chilling, pour the remaining Homemade Salted Caramel into a small bowl. Insert a popsicle or cookie stick into the apple and dip it into the caramel, coating it thoroughly. Let the excess caramel drip off of the apple and then set it onto a sheet of wax paper, then place it into the refrigerator with the cake to let the caramel set slightly.
  • To create the caramel drip effect, first do a test drip on the chilled cake with room temperature salted caramel. If it's too thick, microwave it in 15 second bursts to bring it to perfect drip consistency without heating it too much. Drip the sides of the cake with salted caramel and partially fill in the top before topping with the caramel apple. Garnish with more chopped almonds on top of the cake and apple. 

Notes

Make Ahead Notes: 
  1. The spiced apple cake layers can be made ahead and stored, wrapped in plastic wrap, at room temperature for up to two days. Alternatively, you can store the wrapped cake layers in the freezer for up to 2 months before thawing and frosting.
  2. The homemade salted caramel can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you're ready to use it, reheat it in the microwave in 15 second intervals until it reaches room temperature.
  3. Both of the buttercream flavors can be made ahead and stored in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you're ready to use them, bring them back to room temperature and re-whip each in your stand mixer to bring back to smooth buttercream consistency.