April is a big Birthday month around here so I am going all out with birthday cakes galore featuring cakes made with all the glory and love of caramel. Guess what that means for you? As you can see, my super yummy caramel cake recipes!!! Today’s cake recipe showcases the natural pairing of caramel with chocolate. Next week’s request is a cake creation with caramel & apples. Guess what that means for me? Oh yeaaaahhh! I love cake + feeding family & friends + birthday celebrations + eating cake = big love happiness. Guess what that means for my tummy jelly rolls? Big + Sigh = boo. But I’ll save tummy jelly roll talk for another day ~or~ NOT. Unless the jelly roll is the kind that is sprinkled in powdered sugar.

My sister’s birthday & visit kicked off the party with her request for a caramel and chocolate cake. Of course not just any chocolate & caramel cake will do for my sis. That’s where my creation of her Chocolate Caramel Decadence Cake comes into play. A rich chocolate cake is layered with a purely decadent and out of this world caramel filled center, topped with a salted caramel whipped cream frosting, sprinkled with toffee bits and drizzled in a homemade caramel sauce. Enough said? Huh.

***NOTE!*** Start by making the Caramel Sauce for the Salted Caramel Whipped Cream Frosting. It will need some time to set up and must be cool before using in the frosting recipe. Bonus – the frosting recipe does not use the entire batch of caramel sauce and you will end up with extra! This caramel sauce will keep in the fridge for about 2 weeks. The extra sauce is great drizzled over ice cream, sundaes, pies, etc…

Let’s get our caramel cake extravaganza on!

Ingredients: 1 package (14 ounces) caramels, 1 can fat free sweetened condensed milk, 1/3 cup butter, 4 squares unsweetened chocolate, 1 stick butter, 1 cup hot water, ½ cup buttermilk, 1/3 cup natural (no sugar added) applesauce, 2 eggs, 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract, 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 1 3/4 cups sugar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and 1 teaspoon salt.

Let’s start with the caramel filling

Unwrap 1 package caramels into a small saucepan.

Add the fat free sweetened condensed milk and 1/3 cup butter.

Heat it all over low heat.

Stir until the caramels are melted

and the mixture is smooth.

Set the caramel filling aside and preheat the oven to 350°. Grease and flour (I use the baking spray) a 13×9 glass baking dish.

It’s now chocolate cake makin’ time!

Melt the chocolate and butter.

With a Kitchen Aid or hand mixer, beat the chocolate and butter at low speed while adding the hot water.

Continue mixing on low, until it is glossy and smooth.

Add the applesauce,

buttermilk,

vanilla,

and eggs.

Beat on medium speed until thoroughly mixed.

Okay, time to do a little taste test just to make sure that it is good. That taste was not good. It was GREAT!!!!

In a medium bowl whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt together.

Gradually add the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture.

Beat on medium speed until all of the flour is incorporated.

Keep beating until the cake batter is smooth.

Pour half of the batter in the prepared baking dish

Evenly spread the cake batter out. Time to pop the cake in the oven.

Get the caramel filling ready by reheating it on low heat and stirring until it is a spreadable consistency.

After 15 minutes (do not over-bake), remove the cake from the oven to a heat safe surface and

immediately pour the caramel filling over the top of the hot cake.

Evenly spread out the caramel filling, covering the cake completely.

Top with the other half of cake batter.

Completely cover and smooth the cake batter over the caramel filling.

Pop the cake back into the oven for 23 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.

Now on to the Salted Caramel Whipped Cream Frosting.

First things first, homemade Caramel Sauce. YUMMMM!

Ingredients: 4 Tablespoons butter, 1 cup brown sugar, ½ cups cream, ½ teaspoon salt and 1 tablespoon vanilla extract.

Using a wire whisk, mix the butter

cream,

brown sugar,

and salt in a saucepan over medium low heat.

Cook and whisk for 7 minutes until bubbly.

Remove from heat and

add the vanilla extract.

Whisk until the vanilla is blended into the caramel goodness.

Pour the caramel sauce into glass bowl.

Cover and refrigerate.

The next day I poured the sauce into a fine tipped plastic squeeze bottle to use for decorating the cake and to drizzle on ice cream.

Take the caramel sauce out of the fridge at least 20 minutes before starting the whipped frosting; the caramel sauce should be at room temperature.

For the whipped frosting: 2 ½ cups whipping cream, 1 cup confectioners sugar and 4-6 Tablespoons of the caramel sauce you made.

Using a Kitchen Aid or a hand mixer, whip the cream on medium high speed.

Add 1 cup confectioners sugar

and beat until soft peaks start to form.

Turn off the mixer. Are you ready? Oh yeah! Taste test time, must insert spoon (or clean finger) into the whipped cream.

Ahhhh. All good.

On low speed add 4-6 Tablespoons of the caramel sauce,

or if you are like me add the caramel sauce to your liking. I likes…A LOT.

Beat on medium speed

until stiff peaks are formed and the caramel is fully incorporated. Cover the frosting and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before using.

The finito Salted Caramel Whipped Cream Frosting. OH MY. This frosting is highly addictive and is truly the BEST frosting I have ever made! For alls y’all, you know I make and taste test a lot of frosting. I could seriously do some damage and taste test the entire bowl of frosting. But my sis would never forgive me.

Speaking of my sista. Here is her adorable son, my nephew. Today he is my little cake helper and the candy crusher. He is fondly gazing at the frosting, and cooked cake. Aunt Robyn when can I have a taste???

I gave him a plastic zip lock bag filled with 2 Skor bars, a smooth mallet and then let him loose. He did such a great job! This is the smile I got when I told him that he get’s to taste test EVERYTHING just like his Aunt Robyn.

Now that the candy is crushed, we can frost the cake!

Start by frosting the top of the cake.

Make it fancy with a generous sprinkle of crushed toffee bar pieces all over and some drizzling of the caramel sauce over the top.

Chocolate Caramel Decadence Cake

Happy Birthday Alycat.

My mega bite.

Pure decadence.

 Printable Recipe

Chocolate Caramel Decadence Cake

Caramel Filling
1 package caramels, 14 ounces
1 can fat free sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup butter

In a small saucepan heat the caramels, butter and butter over low heat. Stir until the caramels are melted and the mixture is smooth; set aside.

Chocolate Cake
4 squares melted unsweetened chocolate, melted
1 stick butter, melted
1 cup hot water
½ cup buttermilk
1/3 cup natural applesauce
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease a 13×9 glass baking pan.

In a large mixing bowl, melt the chocolate, and butter. With a Kitchen Aid or hand mixer, beat the chocolate and butter at low speed while adding the hot water. Continue mixing on low, until it is glossy and smooth.Add the applesauce, buttermilk, vanilla, and eggs. Beat on medium speed until thoroughly mixed.

In a medium bowl whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt together. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture. Beat on medium speed until all of the flour is incorporated. Keep beating until the cake batter is smooth.

Pour half of the batter into the prepared baking dish. Using a spatula, evenly spread and smooth out the cake batter. Bake for 15 minutes, do not over-bake. Remove the cake from the oven to a heat safe surface and immediately pour the previously prepared caramel filling over the top of the hot cake. Evenly spread out the caramel filling, covering the cake completely.Top with the other half of the cake batter and spread it to completely cover the caramel filling. Bake for an additional 23 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.

Salted Caramel Whipped Cream Frosting

Caramel Sauce Adapted from Pioneer Woman
4 Tablespoons Butter
1 cup brown sugar
½ cups cream
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Vanilla extract

Mix the butter, brown sugar, cream and salt in a saucepan over medium low. Cook and whisk for 7 minutes. Add vanilla. Turn off heat and pour sauce into glass bowl. Cover and refrigerate.

Take the caramel sauce out of the fridge at least 20 minutes before starting the whipped frosting; the caramel sauce should be at room temperature.

For the whipped frosting:
2 ½ cups whipping cream
1 cup confectioners sugar
4-6 Tablespoons Caramel Sauce (or to taste)

Using a Kitchen Aid or a hand mixer, whip the cream on medium high. Add 1 cup confectioners sugar and beat until soft peaks start to form. On low speed add 4-6 Tablespoons (or to taste) of the caramel sauce. Beat on medium speed until stiff peaks are formed and the caramel is fully incorporated. Cover the frosting and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before using to frost cake.

Frost the top of the cake and sprinkle crushed toffee bar pieces on the top. Finish by drizzling caramel sauce over the top.

This is a family favorite of ours passed along to me from my Dad’s Mom. I have had this growing up and at various Taylor gatherings over the years. It is so tasty, easy, feeds a crowd, and never lets me down. This is a special recipe for me. I love eating it as much as I love making it. I get to share a bit of my Grandma Taylor through this recipe, and know that you will enjoy it as much as me.

My parents are here visiting this week which is a real treat. It was also an opportune time for me to find out a little more about this dish from my Dad. Here is a bit of the history of Grandma Taylor’s Tamale Pie according to my Dad, “Mom used to make this in a cast iron Dutch oven. We had her Tamale Pie growing up. I do not remember her ever using a recipe card or where she got the recipe from, she just made it up from memory. This meal is hearty and was an easy and cheap way for Mom to feed me and my 9 brothers and sisters.”

I acquired this recipe from my mom whom asked Grandma Taylor for the recipe after she got married. She asked her to write the recipe down and I am sure glad she did! Even though Grandma Taylor is not with us anymore, her original handwritten recipe for Tamale Pie is. I have provided y’all with her original recipe (below) courtesy of my Dad (thanks Dad for learning how to scan it it in). Now we can all remember – Grandma Taylor, a wonderful mother and grandmother to us all. Thank you Grandma for your Tamale Pie recipe!

Ingredients: 2 lbs. hamburger or ground turkey (I only used 1 lb. cause that’s what I had on hand), 2 large onions, 2 cloves garlic, 1 can (15 oz) whole kernel corn, drained, 1 can (6 oz) med. pitted olives, drained, 1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce, 2 ½ cups yellow corn meal, 2 t. salt, 5 cups cold water,

1 pkg. chili seasoning mix (1.25 oz. pkg.), 2 t. chili pepper, and 7 dried Chiltepin (aka Tepin Chili, or Tepin Pepper), crumbled (see below). I didn’t have the chiltepin but I did have a chili pepper blend of my own making. I used 1 tsp. of Robyn’s Chili Pepper Spice.

Updated: I thought you would enjoy these Tepin Chile facts. According to Wikipedia, Chiltepin pepper (Capsicum annuum var. glabriusculum) was named “the official native pepper of Texas.”  It is also called the “mother of all peppers” because it is the only wild native chile in the US and all other chile peppers are thought to have evolved from the Tepin chile. Cool huh?? Warning. There is truly nothn’ cool about the Tepin chile, which is said to be hotter than a habanero chile. Aye yai yai. Muy caliente! Here is where you can purchase some Chiltepin for this recipe.

You will also need ¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese for the top. Shhhh. I won’t tell if you add more.

Let’s start by making the corn meal crust.

Combine the cornmeal,

salt,

and 1 tsp. chili powder in a saucepan.

Give it a whisk.

Add the water and

cook over med. heat until quite thick and stiff, about 10 min., stirring frequently. Put a lid on it and set it aside.

Let’s move on to the tamale Pie Filling.

Chop and mince the garlic and onions.

Brown the meat and then

stir in the onion and garlic.

Now add the chili seasoning and

chili pepper.

Go ahead and give it another stir.

Now add the corn, olives and tomato sauce

Stir it once again

and let it all simmer.

Let’s assemble Grandma’s Tamale Pie!

Start by using a spoon to line a 13×9 glass Pyrex dish (sides and bottom) with the cooked corn meal mixture.
Reserve 1½ cups to use later on top of filling.

Now add the tamale pie filling.

My way: Sprinkle 3/4 cup cheese on top. I obviously was so anxious to eat this that I put the cheese on first and then the corn meal mixture. My bad. But it was still oh soo good!

Grandma Taylor’s Way: Top with rounded tablespoons of remaining corn meal mixture. Sprinkle ¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese on top.

My way continued: Top with rounded tablespoons of remaining corn meal mixture. Case in point, you just can’t flub this recipe up!

Now it’s ready for the oven. Bake @ 325° for about 30 minutes.

Everyone will be crowded around this dish…waiting…and salivating.

Well worth the wait for this -

Let me count the ways in bites how much I love Grandma’s Tamale Pie.

yum X a trillion and

super yum. Thank you Grandma Taylor for this recipe!

 Printable Recipe

Grandma Taylor’s Tamale Pie

Tamale Pie Filling:
2 lbs. hamburger or ground turkey
2 large onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (15 oz) whole kernel corn, drained.
1 can (6 oz) med. pitted olives, drained
1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce
1 pkg. chili seasoning mix (1.25 oz. pkg.)
1 t. chili pepper (if available)
7 dried Chiltepin, crumbled aka Tepin Chili, or Tepin Pepper (if available)
In a large fry or saucepan, brown hamburger. Stir in the onion, garlic, chili seasoning, chili pepper, and tomato sauce. Let it simmer as you add the corn and olives.

Corn Meal Crust:
5 cups cold water
2 t. salt
1 t. chili powder
2 ½ cups yellow corn meal
Combine all corn meal crust ingredients in a saucepan. Cook over med. heat until quite thick and stiff, about 10 min., stirring frequently.

Use a spoon to line a 13×9 glass Pyrex dish (sides and bottom) with the cooked corn meal mixture. Reserve 1½ cups to use later on top of filling. Then add the tamale pie filling. Top with rounded tablespoons of remaining corn meal mixture. Sprinkle ¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese on top.

Bake at 325° for about 30 minutes. Yields 10-12 servings. Cut and serve.
Enjoy with pico, guacamole, sour cream and a sprinkle of cilantro!