This Cornish sea salted caramel cake is rich and chocolatey. But most importantly it offers the discerning punter three separate hits of salted caramel with differing intensities. It's the best and also the perfect birthday cake for any salted caramel lover.
Dissolve the sugar in a large pan over a gentle heat with the water. Don't stir, but give an occasional swirl.
225 g golden caster sugar, 100 ml water
Once dissolved, bring to the boil and leave for a few minutes to bubble away. "Watch like a hawk" for it to turn to a nice reddish brown caramel colour and to ensure it doesn't burn.
Meanwhile, heat the cream in another pan to near, but not quite boiling. Basically it needs to be hot to stop the caramel from seizing when you stir it in.
200 ml double cream (heavy cream)
As soon as the sugar has caramelised, pour in the hot cream and stir until smooth. Be careful not to burn yourself as the mixture may bubble up.
Stir in the salt and vanilla extract and leave to cool.
½ tsp sea salt, 1 tsp vanilla extract
Cakes
Set the oven to 180℃ (160℃ fan, 350℉, Gas 4).
Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
250 g unsalted butter - softened, 200 g dark brown sugar
Beat in about one ⅓ of the cooled caramel.
Break in the eggs, one by one and beat well. If the mixture starts to curdle, add a spoonful of the flour.
3 large eggs
Sift in the flour, cocoa and baking powder and stir until everything is just mixed.
200 g flour, 40 g cocoa powder, 1½ tsp baking powder
Divide the batter between two 20 cm (8 inch) round silicone cake moulds or lined tins. Level with the back of a spoon, then bake in the centre of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out more or less clean.
Leave to cool for ten minutes then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Buttercream
Cream the butter and icing sugar together until the mixture is very light and fluffy.
80 g salted butter - softened, 120 g icing sugar
Beat in another ⅓ of the caramel (in other words, half the remaining caramel).
Spread on top of one of the cooled cakes and place the other on top to form a sandwich.
Lick the bowl clean - cook's perk!
Spread the remaining caramel over the top of the cake.
Decorate as you please. I sprinkled various milk, dark and white chocolate bits over the top and dusted very lightly with two types of edible gold glitter.
Notes
Double the quantities of caramel and keep it in a jar in the fridge. It will last for a good couple of weeks.For best results ensure the butter and eggs are both at room temperature prior to starting.I generally mix my cakes by hand, as long as you remember to bring the butter to room temperature first, it's very easy to do. However, if you prefer to use an electric mixer, by all means do.You’ll find additional tips and info about this recipe in the main body of the post.Please note: calories and other nutritional information are per serving. They’re approximate and will depend on serving size and exact ingredients used. Please refer to my nutrition disclaimer for further information.