Real Deal Caramel Cake (2024)

There’s a reason why my Real Deal Caramel Cake is sought after by everybody on the web. It’s legit the best, hands down! It’s been the number one caramel cake recipe online for over 10 years, and here’s why! It’s got a moist buttery yellow cake base made from scratch that’s coated in the ultimate caramel icing from my Mississippi bred Aunt Beverly who handed it down to me. The icing is cooked slowly over the stove until it reaches the perfect sticky silky texture. This is about as authentic of a recipe as you will find, plus I have a video to help you along with step by step images. They don’t call it the real deal for nothin!

The absolute best! Ten toes down! Make me feel like I am back down south at my cousin Bert house who kept a caramel cake on her table for every family occasion! – Janel Robinson

Folks from the South know that an old fashioned caramel cake is a delicacy. It’s a classic that deserves time, love and true skill. It ain’t to be played around with. That’s why Southern folks know that everybody can’t make this recipe. I couldn’t wait to share this recipe with you that’s been in my family for as long as I can remember. The funny thing about caramel cake is a lot of people did not become familiar with it until the movie “The Help” mentioned it. After the movie was released in theaters, I saw tons of replicas of this classic cake online but none of these recipes were as authentic as I thought they should be. Let me show you why they call this one the “real deal”.

The Lowdown on the Best Caramel Cake Recipe

Cuisine Inspiration: Southern Classic Done the Right Way!
Primary Cooking Method:Baking and Simmering
Dietary Info:Contains Dairy and Gluten boos
Key Flavor:Buttery, Moist, Vanilla Vibes with Sweet, Gooey, Rich, Caramel Vibes
Skill Level:Intermediate to Advanced (this ain’t for the faint of heart!)

• Moist Cake: If you make this right and don’t overbake, you will have a super tender, slightly dense but light yellow butter cake that is the perfect foundation for that insanely addictive caramel.
• Caramel Cake Icing: Listen, this icing is the thing that keeps folks coming back asking you how you made it! It takes patience and commitment. While it’s a simple recipe with simple ingredients, you gotta be all in on making it just right.
• No shortcuts! My southern caramel cake recipe is all from scratch with no shortcuts. We play no games here. If you see one of those recipes online that tell you brown sugar goes in caramel, run don’t walk! That ain’t it boos! This is how you make caramel cake like the Southern old schoolers do.

Ingredients You Will Need To Make Southern Caramel Cake From Scatch

For the Moist Caramel Cake Batter

• Butter: This is gonna give our cake that buttery, tender crumb. And it needs to be room temperature boos. Grab unsalted so you can control the salt content here.
• Vegetable oil: Truth be told, butter cakes can sometimes dry out if you let them overbake slightly so I give y’all some insurance by adding just a little neutral flavored oil in to keep it moist.
• Granulated sugar: Creamed with that butter, sugar gives structure and texture as well as the perfect amount of sweetness.
• Flour: Cake flour is the move here so our cake doesn’t develop too much gluten and get tough. We lighten the texture by sifting it too!
• Eggs: I know this cake has a lot of eggs but they are necessary. They bind the cake together and give structure while also adding rich flavor and color too! Egg yolks have more moisture than egg whites so we add a couple in.
• Baking powder and salt: These give our cake some lift so it rises and is fluffy while also providing a bit of flavor. Don’t ever forget to sprinkle a pinch of salt in any dessert you make.
• Sour cream: This is gonna give this cake so much moisture and a bit of tangy flavor.
• Vanilla extract: Grab the very best you can find since the quality will dictate how much of that wonderful aromatic vanilla vibe you get in your finished product.

For the Caramel Cake Icing

• Butter: We use salted here. This is the base of our caramel and nothing adds better richness than real butter.
• Evaporated Milk: This is gonna give that creaminess and smooth silky texture once that caramel thickens.
• Granulated Sugar: If it ain’t sticky and sweet, it ain’t caramel. Gotta add that sugar boos!
• Vanilla extract: Yep, that vanilla has to show up again to enhance that final flavor with some slight aromatic notes.

How to Make Caramel Cake

Step 1: Mix Up the Cake Batter

1. Cream the butter, oil, and sugar on high until good and mixed up. We are looking for nice, light and fluffy vibes so let the mixer go for about 5-6 minutes.
2. Turn the mixer to medium speed and mix in the eggs and egg yolks one at a time until they are well incorporated. Next, toss in the vanilla extract and mix again.
3. Sift the cake flour, baking powder and salt into a medium sized bowl then slow the mixer to slow speed. Alternate adding in the dry ingredients with the sour cream then finally end with the rest of the dry ingredients.

At the end of mixing, the batter should be silky and super smooth.

PRO TIP: Don’t overmix. Once you add the flour, it’s time to relax boos. We don’t want to overact the gluten and create a tough cake texture.

Step 2: Time to Bake!

1. Evenly pour batter into the greased up parchment lined cake pans and bake in the oven until fully baked, about 23-30 minutes.
2. Remove the cake pans from the oven and cool on cooling racks for 10 minutes and then remove them from the pan to continue cooling.

PRO TIP: You don’t want to overbake the cakes. I suggest checking earlier and watching closely in the last 5-10 minutes of baking so you can remove them as soon as they are done. Remember if you are using the toothpick test, a few moist crumbs are fine. It shouldn’t come out completely clean.

Step 3: Make the Caramel Cake Icing

1. Add the butter, evaporated milk, and sugar to a saucepan over medium heat, mix together after it all melts.
2. Cook over low to medium heat for about 1 1/2- 2 hours, stirring consistently and watching the entire time to make sure it does not burn. Once it has thickened and the caramel has darkened to a beautiful golden brown, it’s good to go boos.

TOP TIP: Low and slow is the best way to achieve this perfect icing. The color will deepen and it will naturally thicken but it takes time y’all.

TOP TIP: Remember to make sure that the caramel turns the color and thick texture of the photo BELOW before stopping the heat. It should also COMPLETELY coat the back of a spoon and slowly slide off to ensure thickness.

3. When the correct color is reached, remove the caramel icing from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
4. Cool the icing for about 15-20 minutes to allow it to thicken before icing the cake.

Step 4: Ice the Cake and Serve It Up!

1. To assemble, make sure those cake layers have cooled down completely. Melty sliding cake ain’t cute.
2. This cake bakes up pretty flat so no need to use a cake leveler plus I think classic caramel cakes should look a little rustic. Add a small dollop of icing to the center of your cake plate or stand then place the first layer on top. This will help it stay in place.
3. Using an offset spatula, spread a 1/4 of the caramel icing over the first layer spreading to the ends. Let it set for about 5 minutes so it can firm up just a bit.
4. Then carefully add the next layer and center it directly over the first layer. Repeat adding another 1/4 of the icing and spreading over it. Set another 5 minutes.
5. Finally repeat with the final layer of the cake adding right on top. Spread the remaining caramel cake icing over the top and around the sides of the cake. It ain’t gotta be perfect because it’s homemade ya dig? Let it set for about 30 minutes to set then get ready to serve it up!

How to Serve Old Fashioned Caramel Cake

• Ice Cream or Whipped Cream: While caramel cake can stand on its own just fine, some homemade vanilla ice cream or whipped cream on the side ain’t never hurt nobody.
• Southern Sunday Supper: Homemade caramel cake is right at home after a feast of fried chicken, collard greens, candied yams, black eyed peas, and hot water cornbread.
• Thanksgiving: After you’ve had your fill of fried turkey, honey glazed ham, cornbread dressing, and Southern green beans, serve this caramel cake recipe along with that sweet potato pie.
• Birthday: Go against the grain and serve this for the next birthday gathering.
• The Ultimate Southern Dessert Spread: Get a buffet together for a wedding shower or book club meeting and serve this up along with some Southern peach cobbler, cream cheese pound cake and hummingbird cake.

We owe a debt of gratitude to Aunt Bev. Her caramel icing is the most luscious thing I’ve tasted in years – it’s worth every minute you watch it thicken. And the cake – it’s my new standard for yellow cake. Thank you for sharing this. FIVE stars and more! – Jean Grow

Recipe Substitutions

• Butter: If you only have unsalted, add in a pinch of salt to the icing. If you only have salted butter, omit the salt in the cake batter.
• Sour Cream: If ya ain’t got sour cream lying around, sub in buttermilk or even plain greek yogurt. They will both give that wonderful tangy flavor and moisture.
• Cake Flour: You can make your very own boos! Just grab all-purpose flour and cornstarch and follow these steps on how to make cake flour.
• Baking Powder: No baking powder? Combine 1 teaspoon of cream of tartar with 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda to create a great substitute.

Recipe Variations and Additions

• Turtle Vibes: If you love turtle candy, this can give all those vibes too. Drizzle the classic caramel cake with some smooth chocolate ganache and sprinkle on toasted pecans.
• Salt it Up: Ain’t nothing like salted caramel y’all. Salty and sweet stay winning. Just add some sprinkles of sea salt over the cooled caramel icing to really amp up the salt.
• Rum: Add a little rum extract to the batter to give a fun boozy note. You can toss a bit into the caramel too.
• Chocolate: Change the layers to this chocolate birthday cake for a delish chocolate caramel cake that is as indulgent as they come.
• Give it Fall Vibes: Either change up the cake layers to pumpkin cake layers or add some apple filling to the layers, and it’s ready for Autumn.

Expert Tips and Tricks for the Best Old School Caramel Cake Recipe

• This cake recipe takes planning boos. Make sure you allow plenty of time to bake this up- at least three hours from start to finish.
• Is your cake sliding? It’s because the caramel icing recipe is too thin and needs to be thickened u some.
• Make sure the cakes are fully cool before icing.
• After cooling the icing, if you see that it is too warm and still not completely thick enough, cool it in the refrigerator to allow it to thicken more.
• Want more of a frosting texture? Some people like to take the caramel and whip it in a stand mixer to create more of a frosting rather than an icing. That is totally up to you.
• Give it time to cool. I like to let it cool at least 30 minutes. It will help with frosting the cake without the icing dripping everywhere and the layers sliding too much.

How to Store Classic Caramel Cake

• Room Temperature: This cake can stay at room temp for up to 3 days due to the high sugar content in the cooked icing. Just add to a cake carrier to keep it protected.
• Fridge: Wrap your cake loosely with plastic wrap or add to a cake carrier to keep it from drying out. It will last about 4 days.
• Freezer: Double wrap your iced cake loosely in plastic wrap so it creates a good sealing. Then wrap the plastic wrap with foil for an extra layer of freezer burn protection. It should last about 2 months boos.
• How to Re-Serve: Bring your slices back to room temperature before serving it up! It will soften the texture and return the caramel icing back to silky glory.

Frequently Asked Questions

Your Cake Creations

I love seeing your Real Deal Caramel Cake Recipe Creations!! Check out some of the amazing photos I have received! After more than 10 years, I must say my southern caramel cake recipe is still one of my top ones!

More of the Best Cake Recipes You’ll Love

• Black Forest Cake Recipe
• Banana Pudding Cake
• Sour Cream Pound Cake
• Peach Pound Cake

Fave Caramel Recipes

• Homemade Caramel Pie
• Caramel Buttercream Frosting
• Caramel Apple Cheesecake
• Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Salted Caramel Lava Cake

*Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating and leave comments below!* Post a photo of how your version of the recipe came out on Instagram (using #grandbabycakes)!!

This post was published in November 2012. It has been updated with new content.