Salted Caramel Chocolate Cake For A Birthday
A rich dark chocolate cake filled and covered with a whipped creamy salty chocolate icing then topped with salted caramel. This salted caramel chocolate cake is just what you need to celebrate a birthday or any other special occasion.
I had a birthday cake to make for a friend. And as I was given free rein to make what I thought fit, I was in the mood to create a salted caramel cake. A once unfamiliar concept on British shores, it seems to have taken the nation by storm and is now everyone’s favourite flavour. It’s certainly one of mine.
Salted Caramel Chocolate Cake
I’ve made a few salted caramel bakes but so far only one full on salted caramel cake. It was delicious and went down a storm at the Clandestine Cake Club meeting. I keep promising myself I will make it again.
However I wanted to try something a bit different this time and had visions of salted caramel splashed over a cake and dripping down the sides. For the base, I envisaged a rich chocolate cake with a slightly salty caramel flavour filled and covered with a rich and creamy salty chocolate icing. So that’s what I made.
This is not a quick cake to make. But any celebration cake worth it’s salt (geddit?), is worth putting a little love into. It’s a three stage process. You need to make the cake, the whipped ganache and also the caramel. Then you have to put it all together.
I used a little mesquite powder in the cake, but it’s entirely optional. Mesquite has a natural caramel flavour along with various health benefits.
All went according to plan. But, I didn’t get to try the cake. Luckily, the reports back were very positive. Lashings of salted caramel and chocolate stars seemed to do the trick. The only course open to me is to make it again one day so I can try it for myself. It’s a hard life.
Other Salted Caramel Recipes You Might Like
- Chocolate & salted caramel tart
- Cornish sea salted caramel birthday cake
- Salted caramel chocolate milkshake
- Marmite caramel brownies
- Salted caramel chocolate cupcakes
- Salted caramelised almond chocolates
Keep in Touch
Thanks for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make this salted caramel chocolate cake for a birthday or any other celebration, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. And do please rate the recipe. Have you any top tips? Do share photos on social media too and use the hashtag #tinandthyme, so I can spot them.
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Choclette x
Salted Caramel Chocolate Cake. PIN IT.
Salted Caramel Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
Salted Caramel
- 125 g golden caster sugar
- 1 tsp honey (or liquid glucose)
- 25 g salted butter
- 125 ml double cream (heavy cream)
- 1 pinch Cornish sea salt
Cake
- 250 g salted butter softened
- 200 g dark muscovado sugar
- 50 g golden caster sugar
- 2 tbsp golden syrup
- 4 large eggs (I used duck eggs)
- 250 g flour half wholemeal, half plain white
- 80 g ground almonds
- 60 g cocoa powder
- 2 tsp mesquite powder (optional)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 100 ml coffee
Salted Chocolate Icing
- 150 g dark chocolate (72%)
- 100 g milk chocolate (37%)
- 150 g salted butter softened
- 100 g full fat cream cheese
- 50 g light muscovado sugar
- 200 g icing sugar
- 2 tbsp milk
Instructions
Salted Caramel
- Place a heavy bottomed pan over medium to high heat, then gradually pour in the sugar and leave for a few minutes to melt.125 g golden caster sugar
- Heat the double cream in another pan, so that it doesn’t cause the caramel to seize when it’s added. Stir in the salt.125 ml double cream (heavy cream), 1 pinch Cornish sea salt
- Add the honey or glucose and butter to the caramel as soon as it turns a reddish brown colour, but be careful not to let it burn. Stir and then add the cream a little at a time, stirring all the while. As soon as this has been well mixed, leave to cool.1 tsp honey, 25 g salted butter
Cake
- Set the oven to 180℃ (160℃ fan, 350℉, Gas 4).
- Cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the golden syrup and beat some more.250 g salted butter, 200 g dark muscovado sugar, 50 g golden caster sugar, 2 tbsp golden syrup
- Beat in the eggs one by one, adding a little of the flour in between each one to prevent curdling.4 large eggs
- Sieve in the dry ingredients alternately with the coffee and vineger, stirring lightly until all is combined.250 g flour, 80 g ground almonds, 60 g cocoa powder, 2 tsp mesquite powder, 2 tsp baking powder, ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda), 1 tbsp vinegar, 100 ml coffee
- Divide the mixture between two 23 cm (9″) round silicone moulds or lined tins. Bake as near to the centre of the oven as you can manage for about 35 minutes or until well risen and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
- Leave to cool for ten minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.
Salted Chocolate Icing
- Roughly chop the two chocolates then melt in a bowl suspended over a pan of hot water. Leave to cool a little.150 g dark chocolate, 100 g milk chocolate
- Beat the salted butter with the muscovado sugar until all os incorporated. Beat in the cream cheese. Sift in half of the icing sugar to ensure there are no lumps, and beat. Repeat with the remaining icing sugar.150 g salted butter, 100 g full fat cream cheese, 50 g light muscovado sugar, 200 g icing sugar
- Beat in the milk, 1 tbsp of the salted caramel followed by the melted chocolate and whip vigorously until light and airy.2 tbsp milk
- Sandwich the cakes with half of the whipped chocolate and spread the rest on top. Decorate with chocolate stars, if wished then drizzle the caramel over the top allowing it to pool and run down the sides.
Notes
Nutrition Estimate
Sharing
As I used local eggs and local flour, I am sharing this salted caramel chocolate cake with Shop Local over at Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary. The wholemeal flour is both grown and milled locally at Cotehele Mill and the duck eggs come from a local smallholding as does the honey.
And this birthday cake also seems like a suitable post to share with Bake of the Week over at Casa Costella.
What a wonderfully extravagant birthday cake! I have a birthday coming up – fancy making this for me? 🙂 Thank you for sharing with Shop Local!
Oh it would make a fabulous birthday cake for your birthday Elizabeth.
Oh wow, this looks incredible – Cannot believe you didn’t even get to taste a nibble of it. You are a stronger person than I! Thanks again for joining in with #Bakeoftheweek x
Thanks Helen – didn’t really feel I could hand it over with a bite taken out!
looks wonderful
Thank you 🙂
OH YES please! I love all salted caramel desserts and cakes! x
It’s addictive stuff Sylvia
That looks truly amazing. When I move I will just have to try baking again!
You will indeed Fiona – none of this can’t bake, won’t bake nonsense!
If we were told 10 years back that we’d all be raving about salted caramel we’d have been sceptical…but I love the stuff now! What an ace looking cake
Thanks CC – strange how tastes continue to evolve.
Wow! I don’t know how you could bear to part with that cake. Please make another one and invite us all around to sample!
Would love to Ros 🙂 Was wondering if I could get an I out of it for Alpha Bakes, but I suspect icing isn’t allowed!
well, you could make one for me, drive up to Lincolnshire to deliver it and then maybe i’d let you have a slice… maybe…
Dom, you are just too good to me 🙂
Bake one more, so you can get to try it…but don’t forget to invite all of us, Choclette :-)) The cake looks heavenly.
Now that really would be fun Angie. I’d love to bake a cake for a bloggers party and get to try out some of their fabulous creations.
That looks fabulous! I love how indulgent the caramel looks drizzled over the cake like that. The choc cake looks very moist too. I’m sure it went down a storm
Thanks Katie, that was just the effect I was hoping for – something screaming indulgence.
Lush cake! What a shame you didn’t get to try it…… It looks divine. Especially the salted caramel dripping down the sides. I would have been thrilled to have this made for my birthday. Nice job!
You and me both Kate 😉 Thanks for your lovely comment, you are always so supportive.
This sounds so delicious, love salted caramel. Your recipe seems easy enough to follow and your photo of the finished cake looks perfect.
Thanks Lorna, it’s amazing what a difference a bit of salt make.
This Cake sound and looks lovely, will be trying it. Thanks for sharing x
Thank you. Let me know how you get on if you ever do try it.
I am certain that the reports on this cake were excellent. The recipe sounds wonderful. ~ Catherine
Thank you Catherine 🙂
Wish I had the opportunity to try this cake, it looks delicious!
Hmm, yes – have to say the cake didn’t come in at under a fiver.
Choclette, that looks gorgeous and sounds perfectly scrummy! I love caramel.
Thank Jean – it’s the sort of thing that appeals to just about anybody I reckon.
That looks amazing Choclette. I’d be happy to tuck into that. Like now!
Me too Jac 😉
Oh my it looks heavenly! I adore salted caramel, so much more than regular caramel!
I had to google mesquite powder as its a new one on me – I think I need some in my life!
Thanks Anne, I’m with you on the caramel front. I’ve been using mesquite for a while and it just adds a little touch of caramel.