Caramel Cake: "Horse Cake"

This caramel cake is sentimental to me. It’s the cake that brings back memories of happiness and hope. In 2018, it was my Dad’s birthday. It wasn’t just any birthday, it was his 70th. Over the past four years, my Dad had undergone cancer treatments with many uncertainties of his survival, so we wanted to make this a really special day.

I told my son, Oliver, that we were going to visit my parents to celebrate my Dad's birthday or as he's fondly known as Grandgre or Georgia. I asked him what kind of cake that he wanted to make and without hesitation, “A horse cake!”. I found a horse cake mold and we were ready to create this masterpiece. Needless to say, it looked nothing like a horse, but tasted so yummy! My Dad even told me that this was the best caramel cake he had tasted. This cake will be an annual celebration of my Dad’s birthday and continued hope for a healthy life for years to come.

Ingredients for Cake

2 cups of all-purpose flour (268 g)
1 ½ cups of granulated sugar (308 g)
2 teaspoons of baking powder (6 g)
½ teaspoon salt (2 g)
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 Tablespoon of vanilla bean paste (you can use vanilla extract 1:1 substitution)
1 cup of whole milk
1 stick of unsalted butter

Ingredients for Caramel Icing

1 ½ sticks unsalted butter
2 cans evaporated milk 12 ounces each
1 ¾ cup granulated sugar (434g)
1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
½ teaspoon of Kosher salt

Directions for Cake

1. Preheat the oven 350F degrees. Grease two 9 inch rounds and line with parchment paper.
2. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together and set aside.
3. Heat a small sauce pan to medium heat. Add butter and milk, stirring occassionally until butter is melted, around 5 minutes.
4. On medium-high speed with whisk attachment (6-7 on a standing mixer) or hand mixer, beat the eggs and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
5. Reduce the speed to low, add in the dry ingredients until just incorporated.
6. Gradually pour in the hot milk mixture and stir in vanilla bean paste or extract.
7. Pour the batter evenly in the prepared cake pan.
8. Bake the cakes for 25-30 minutes until lightly golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
9. Transfer the cakes to a cooling rack for 10 mins. Then, run a knife around the edge of the pan and turn the cake over to cool completely.

Directions for Caramel Icing

1. Over medium heat, add butter, evaporated milk and sugar to a medium saucepan. Stir to combine until the butter and sugar have melted.
2. Reduce the heat to medium-low and stir occasionally for about 1 ½ hours (I know it’s a long time, but so worth it in the end!). You want to watch the entire time to make sure it doesn’t burn. When it is ready, the icing will start to thicken, coat the back of a spoon and become a golden brown color (see the video for the color).
3. Remove from the heat and add in the vanilla extract.
4. Cool for about 20-30 mins to allow the icing to thicken before icing the cake.

Pro Tip: Measuring Flour

1. It is best to measure your dry ingredients with a scale so you can have a consistent and desired outcome of your baked goods. If you don’t have a scale, you can use a measuring cup.
2. When measuring the flour with a cup, you want to first take a spoon and fluff your flour. This will give air and make it less dense when putting it in a measuring cup.
3. Scoop the flour with a spoon and then level it off the top with a straight edge.