Hello all, Ami here! What a month it has been. We have really enjoyed all the positive feedback we have gotten since we started the blog. This week I had the privilege of making a cake for a friend to celebrate her mom’s birthday. She wasn’t too particular on what she wanted so I asked what some of her mom’s favorite things were and as soon as she said Heath bars are her favorite candy I new that was the flavor I wanted to make.
This cake consist of chocolate cake layers filled with chocolate buttercream, homemade caramel and Heath toffee crumbles. This is a fairly simple cake to put together that will wow your guests. I like to make the caramel in advance so I have less work the day I assemble the cake. I actually made all the component of this cake the day before I assembled it. The caramel sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for at least a month. I like to use mason jars because I can pour the hot caramel directly into the jar and once it’s cooled just place the lid on and put it in the fridge. When you are ready to use the caramel, let it sit on the counter to soften up or place the jar in a bowl of hot water until you get it to the desired consistency. The cake tiers were baked and then wrapped in plastic wrap (I leveled them the next day). The buttercream needs to be stored in an air tight container and can either be left out or in the fridge. I like to place plastic wrap flush against the buttercream and then cover the container with a lid. I love my glass mixing bowl for this very purpose. It came with a lid so I am able to leave the buttercream in the bowl, cover it and then easily give it a quick whip the next day. If you plan on making your buttercream more than a day in advance I recommend putting it in the fridge, however allow enough time for it to come back to room temperature before you need to decorate your cake. If you made a large batch I suggest letting it sit out overnight. By baking your cake and making the fillings the day before you can put more energy into decorating your cake. If you try and do everything in the same day, by the time you get to decorating your cake you may be too exhausted to give it the attention want.
Assembling the Cake
To assemble the cake you will need:
- Three 6″ round chocolate cake tiers
- One batch chocolate buttercream
- Half batch caramel sauce
- Heath toffee bits.
Start by placing your first cake round on a 6″ cardboard round then apply a layer of chocolate butter cream (bout 1/2″ thick). Sprinkle toffee bits on the layer of buttercream avoiding the outer inch of the cake, then drizzle caramel sauce over the toffee bits. Stack the second layer of cake and repeat. After you top the cake with the third and final cake tier crumb coat the cake by applying a layer of chocolate buttercream on the tides and top of the cake. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but try and get it as smooth and even as you can. Chill the cake for about 30 minutes and then add a final layer of buttercream. Cover the bottom portion of the cake with toffee bits, drip caramel sauce around the top of the cake Optional: decorate the top of the cake with a chocolate buttercream rope boarder and pieces of Heath bar.
Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup hot water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray three 6-inch round cake pans with cooking spray and line with parchment paper.
- Combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt into the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, oil, eggs, water and vanilla.
- With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl and mix a little longer to make sure everything is fully incorporated.
- Divide the batter between the prepared pans and bake for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.
Caramel Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tbsp corn syrup
- 2/3 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 – 1 tsp salt depending on how salty you want it
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
Instructions
- Place the sugar, water and corn syrup in a sauce pan. Place over high heat and stir until the sugar begins to dissolve.
- Continue to boil without stirring until the mixture reaches a medium amber color and then remove from heat.
- Carefully whisk in the cream. The caramel will foam, but continue whisking and then add the salt, vanilla and butter until smooth.
- Transfer to a heat proof container to cool to room temperature.
Notes
Chocolate Buttercream
Ingredients
- 2 cups unsalted butter slightly cold
- 6 cups powdered sugar measured then sifted
- 1 cup cocoa powder measured then sifted
- 6 ounces milk or dark choclate melted and cooled
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed for about 1 minute.
- Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time. Stop the bowl to scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl.
- Add the cocoa powder and mix until smooth.
- Add the melted chocolate, vanilla and salt and mix until combined.
- Slowly add in the whipping cream. Turn off the mixer to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Mix on medium high speed for 3-5 minutes.
- If your buttercream is too thin you can add a little more powdered sugar. If it is too thick add a little whipping cream.
Notes
What type of cake pan do I need?
Hi Tracy,
For this cake we used three 6″ round pans. Wilton or Fat Daddio are both great brands.
Another hit! I haven’t had a miss with any of your recipes, and this cake was no different-so good! I look forward to trying more ❤️
So glad to hear!!! We love this cake!
I loved this recipe. The cake turned out so moist and delicious. I was wondering if I could use the cake recipe to make cupcakes?
Hi Sabrina,
So glad to hear you loved the cake! We are big fans of chocolate and caramel so this is definitely a favorite of ours. You can definitely use this recipe for cupcakes. Just reduce the baking time to around 15-20 minutes.
Can I use an 8″ pans?
Yes you can, but you will need to reduce the baking time since the layers will be thinner.
I plan to use 3 – 9” pans. Guessing I can increase recipe measurements to 1 1/2, except for caramel sauce … I’ll keep measurements as suggested, does that sound right?
Hi Patty! You could even double it for 9 inch pans. Just depends on how talk you want the cake. Either would work.