A pourable warm caramel icing for a smooth, glossy finish. Best with Madagascar vanilla (rich, creamy, classic); any pure vanilla works. Makes about 1 1/2 cups; covers an 8-inch cake or 24 petit fours.
Warm Caramel Icing
Baking
Frostings fillings toppings
Origin: Madagascar
Vanilla: Extract
Easy
A pourable warm caramel icing for a smooth, glossy finish. Best with Madagascar vanilla (rich, creamy, classic); any pure vanilla works. Makes about 1 1/2 cups; covers an 8-inch cake or 24 petit fours.
Prep
10 min
Cook
10 min
Cool
10 min
Total
30 min
Servings
12
Diet
—
Ingredients
Adjust yield
servings
Ingredient amounts change with yield. Follow the recipe instructions for times, temperatures, and equipment.
- ½ cup (114.0 g)unsalted butter
- 1.0 cup (213.0 g)light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup (60.0 ml)heavy cream
- ⅛ tspfine sea salt
- 1 ¾ cups (210.0 g)confectioners' sugar, sifted
- 1.0 tsp (5.0 ml)VanillaGoods pure vanilla extract
Make it at home
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Instructions
- Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, stir in the brown sugar, and bring to a boil. Boil, stirring, for 2 minutes.
- Carefully stir in the cream and salt, return to a boil, then remove from the heat and cool for 10 minutes.
- Whisk in the confectioners' sugar and vanilla until smooth.
- Pour over the cake while the icing is warm; it sets as it cools.
Tips
- Vanilla swap: use vanilla bean paste 1:1 in place of the extract for visible specks, or the seeds of 1 vanilla bean for each tablespoon of extract.
- Best vanilla for this: Madagascar (rich, creamy, classic), or Mexican (spiced, warm, woodsy). Any pure vanilla works.
- Storage: Keep iced cake covered at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Recipe FAQ
How long does it take to make warm caramel icing?
Plan on 10 minutes of prep and 10 minutes of cooking, plus 10 minutes to cool. It makes about 1 1/2 cups; covers an 8-inch cake or 24 petit fours.
How should I store warm caramel icing?
Keep iced cake covered at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Can I use a different form of vanilla?
use vanilla bean paste 1:1 in place of the extract for visible specks, or the seeds of 1 vanilla bean for each tablespoon of extract.
Estimated · per serving
Nutrition
Per serving = 1 of 12 servings this recipe makes.
222
Calories / serving
9.5g
Fat
35.1g
Carbs
0.2g
Protein
34.6g
Sugar
Whole recipe (12 servings): ~2664 cal · 114g fat · 421g carbs · 2g protein · 415g sugar
Estimated values per serving, calculated from standard ingredient data. Not verified Nutrition Facts; actual values vary with brands, measurements, and preparation.
Per serving · 222 calories
What it takes to burn one serving
- Brisk walking 42 min·2.5 mi·~4900 steps
- Walking uphill or incline treadmill 30 min·1.5 mi·~3000 steps
- Moderate cycling 23 min·4.6 mi
- Swimming laps 31 min
- Jogging 22 min·1.8 mi·~3500 steps
- Stair climbing 21 min·~1900 steps
- Dancing 36 min
- Bodyweight circuit training 23 min
- Cleaning, errands, or playing with the dog 52 min
Rough estimates for one serving, based on standard MET values at about 155 lb. Your own burn depends on body size, effort, and fitness. Shown for context only — food is not something you have to earn.
Made with VanillaGoods
Recipe Rating
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