Layers of moist rich dark chocolate, caramel and white chocolate are encased in a velvety smooth salted caramel frosting in this alluring cake, complete with drips of salted caramel sauce and crispy sweet chocolate swirl meringue kisses. It doesn’t get much more stylish or delicious than these luscious layers in the world of ombre cakes.
Baking Notes
(1) If this is your first time making a Layer Cake or you encounter any problems while making it, I would highly recommend you refer to my post on Layer Cake Basics.
(2) If this is your first time making Swiss Meringue Buttercream or you encounter any problems while making it, I would highly recommend you refer to my post on Swiss Meringue Buttercream Basics.
(3) I have used a combination of brown and dark brown sugar in the caramel mud cake to achieve a perfect mid-tone between the dark and white chocolate cakes, enhancing the ombre effect. If you choose to use all brown or dark brown sugar instead, bear in mind the cake will be slightly lighter or darker respectively, and also the flavour will have less of that lovely deep molasses flavour if dark brown sugar is omitted.
(4) This recipe incorporates two of my other recipes – Salted Caramel Sauce and Chocolate Swirled Meringue Kisses. They are both ridiculously moorish and can’t recommend them enough, but if you are short on time you can substitute locally sourced good-quality salted caramel sauce and/or meringue kisses. If using store bought salted caramel, ensure you choose one that is quite thick to allow the caramel to suspend in drips on the cake. Also keep in mind that both the Salted Caramel Sauce and Chocolate Swirled Meringue Kisses recipe will make a larger quantity than required for this cake. I’d suggest using the leftovers to decorate another stylish cake or happily devour them alone.
Chocolate Salted Caramel Ombre Cake
Makes a six layer 15cm (6”) cake
Serves 8-12 people
Ingredients
White Chocolate Mud Cake
90g butter, coarsely chopped
60g good-quality white chocolate, coarsely chopped
165g (3/4 cup) caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla paste
85ml (1/3 cup) water
110g (3/4 cup) plain flour, sifted
2 tbsp self-raising flour, sifted
1 large egg, at room temperature, lightly whisked
Caramel Mud Cake
90g butter, coarsely chopped
60g good-quality white chocolate, coarsely chopped
50g brown sugar
50g dark brown sugar
1 tbsp golden syrup
1 tsp vanilla paste
60ml (1/4 cup) water
60ml (1/4 cup) full cream milk
75g (3/4 cup) almond meal
75g (1/2 cup) self-raising flour, sifted
1 large egg, at room temperature, lightly whisked
Dark Chocolate Mud Cake
125g butter, coarsely chopped
60g good-quality dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
220g (1 cup) caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla paste
125ml (1/2 cup) water
110g (3/4 cup) plain flour, sifted
2 tbsp self-raising flour, sifted
2 tbsp dutch-process cocoa, sifted
1 large egg, at room temperature, lightly whisked
Salted Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream
6 large egg whites
270g caster sugar
375g unsalted butter, softened
3-4 tbsp Salted Caramel Sauce (or to taste)
Decorations
150-200ml Salted Caramel Sauce
15-20 Chocolate Swirled Meringue Kisses
Sifted cocoa and icing sugar, to serve
Method
White Chocolate Mud Cake
(1) Preheat oven to (170°C/150°C fan-forced) and line one 15cm (6”) round baking pan with greaseproof paper.
(2) Melt butter, white chocolate, sugar, and vanilla in a medium saucepan over low heat. Once the butter and chocolate have melted, slowly add water and stir until smooth.
(3) Transfer mixture to large bowl and allow to cool for about 10 minutes.
(4) Add 1/3 of the sifted plain flour and gently mix, then the rest of the flours and lastly the egg, until mixture is smooth. Take care not to overmix.
(5) Pour mixture into prepared cake pan and bake for approximately 50 minutes or until a cake tester inserted comes out clean.
Caramel Mud Cake
(1) Preheat oven to (170°C/150°C fan-forced) and line one 15cm (6”) round baking pan with greaseproof paper.
(2) Melt butter, white chocolate, sugars, golden syrup and vanilla in a medium saucepan over low heat. Once the butter and chocolate have melted, slowly add water and milk and stir until smooth.
(3) Transfer mixture to large bowl and allow to cool for about 10 minutes.
(4) Add 1/3 of the sifted flour and gently mix, then the rest of the flour, then almond meal and lastly the egg, until mixture is smooth. Take care not to overmix.
(5) Pour mixture into prepared cake pan and bake for approximately 50 minutes or until a cake tester inserted comes out clean.
Dark Chocolate Mud Cake
(1) Preheat oven to (170°C/150°C fan-forced) and line one 15cm (6”) round baking pan with greaseproof paper.
(2) Melt butter, dark chocolate, sugar, and vanilla paste in a medium saucepan over low heat. Once the butter and chocolate have melted, slowly add water and stir until smooth.
(3) Transfer mixture to large bowl and allow to cool for about 10 minutes.
(4) Add 1/3 of the sifted plain flour and gently mix, then the rest of the flours, cocoa and lastly the egg, until mixture is smooth. Take care not to overmix.
(5) Pour mixture into prepared cake pan and bake for approximately 60 minutes or until a cake tester inserted comes out clean.
Salted Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream
(1) Place egg whites and caster sugar in heatproof bowl over small saucepan of simmering water, ensuring the base of the bowl does not touch the water.
(2) Allow the sugar to dissolve, whisking intermittently, heating to 65°C to ensure egg whites are pasteurised.
(3) Allow mixture to cool to room temperature, then whisk in free-standing mixer until white, glossy, soft meringue peaks form.
(4) Very slowly add small 1cm cubes of softened butter, and continue whisking until buttercream is light and fluffy.
(5) Continue whisking buttercream while slowly adding tablespoons of salted caramel sauce to taste.
Assembly
(1) Assembling this cake is easiest when the cake is slightly chilled, the buttercream is at room temperature and the salted caramel is slightly warmed to an easy pouring consistency (take care to ensure it is not hot otherwise it will melt the frosting).
(2) Level each cake by slicing off the crusty tops, then cut them in half lengthways to yield six cake layers in total.
(3) Place the first dark chocolate layer on a round cake plate or turn-table and spread a thin layer of frosting on the top, smoothing with a palate knife. Repeat frosting between each cake layer, ensuring the dark chocolate layers are used first, then the caramel mud, and lastly the white chocolate on top. Also ensure the base of the white chocolate layer is used as the top layer of the finished cake, and placed cut-side-down on the top of the cake to avoid crumbs in the buttercream.
(4) Cover the sides and top of the cake with frosting, smoothing with a palette knife.
(5) Place the cake in the fridge for about 15-20 mins at this stage to chill slightly, allowing this first thin layer of frosting to form your ‘crumb coat’, locking in crumbs and preventing them from entering your final coat.
(6) Remove cake from fridge and using a palate knife, spread another layer of frosting over the whole cake. Repeat this process of chilling and frosting 3-4 times in total to create a smooth crumb-free finish.
(7) Slowly pour the salted caramel sauce on top of the cake, allowing a little to drip down the sides.
(8) Decorate the cake with chocolate meringue kisses and finish with a light dusting of sifted cocoa and icing sugar.
Enjoy!
Credits and Sources
White and dark chocolate mud cakes adapted from Cupcakes by The Australian Women’s Weekly
Caramel mud cake adapted from Katherine Sabbath’s Persian Love Cake
Frosting recipe adapted from Lomelino’s Cakes by Linda Lomelino
Scalloped dessert plates from Robert Gordon Australia
Small white milk bottle from Bison Home
Small white bowl from Anthropologie
I seriously love this recipe. I’ve made it twice, the caramel layer is my fave!
Thanks so much Cayla, so lovely to hear that you like this cake. I love the caramel layer too!
Hi Salma,
This cake looks amazing. I am going to make it as a birthday cake, however, noticed that they are small cakes. I imagine I am able to double the quantities for each cake, however, am not sure of the tin size and the baking time. Would you be able to give me some insight with this.
Thanking you.
Tonya
Hi Tonya, thanks for your comment. This is one of my favourite layer cakes and hope you enjoy it! Regarding quantities, to give you the best estimate on cake tin size, how many guests are you planning to serve?
About 22. Thank you for the speedy reply!
To serve 22 people, I would recommend using 8″ cake tins and doubling each cake recipe, then baking each one for approx 15-20 mins extra (ensuring to test each one appropriately as this is only an estimate). You will likely need 1.5 – 2x the amount of frosting and approx 1.5x the amount of salted caramel drizzle. If you are making a batch of meringue kisses yourself, you should have more than enough for the top of the cake as my recipe makes heaps extra. I would serve the cake by cutting it in event-style slices. You could go bigger (9 or 10″) if you wish, although I worry the six layers would be hard to manage, and the aesthetic may be affected with the height-diameter ratio. Hope this suggestion works for you and please let me know how it goes!
Hi there.
This cake sounds amazing! I want to make it for my man’s farewell “party” at his job. I am planning on making just one layer of each cake – so it will be three layers in total per cake. My plan is to double the recipe, and then make 4 cakes in total. I see that Tanya is asking, if it’s possible to do so, and my question now is; is it really possibly to make such a large badge, and then slicing it over to make four layers for each cake?
Hope my question makes sense,
Julie 🙂
Hi Julie,
Thanks for contacting me and so lovely to hear you are interested in making this cake! I’m sure your man will be pretty popular at work with this little number, they will be sad to see him go! 🙂 if I understand you correctly – you are intending to make four 15cm (6″) three-layer cakes, each with one layer of each flavour? If this is the case, I would recommend doubling each cake recipe as you mentioned, then split each flavour of cake batter between two 15cm tins, and bake two 15cm cakes of each flavour, thereby baking six cakes in total. I would recommend baking the cakes for the time recommended in the recipe, as the quantity in each tin would essentially remain the same. I would then slice each cake in half to generate 12 layers in total, then use one layer of each flavour layer per cake, resulting in four cakes. If you double the recipe then bake the whole batter in one 15cm tin, you will likely find the cake won’t rise enough, and will tend to become burnt and crispy on the outside but the middle will be undercooked. You will likely need approximately 3-3.5x the quantity of buttercream, and 3-3.5x the quantity of salted caramel, and 1-1.5x the quantity of meringue kisses (given the recipe makes such a large quantity to begin with). If you decide to use a different size tin or need further advice, please don’t hesitate to contact me. Happy baking!
Salma
Hi Salma,
Hope this finds you well. I am looking forward to making this gorgeous looking cake for a birthday this weekend and I was wondering what you mean my full cream milk in the caramel mud cake. Is that supposed to be a full fat milk, or a single/double type of cream? Would appreciate your help on this as I really hope to make this to perfection! Thanks a million!
Hi Liana, thanks for contacting me and delighted to hear you will be making this cake! It’s one of my favourites ☺️ Yes, depending when you’re based, full cream milk refers to full fat milk or whole milk or essentially milk without any fat removed, usually around 3-4% fat content. Hope this helps and happy baking! Let me know if you have any further queries 😊
Thanks so much for your rapid response! Super excited to try this, hope all works out!!
Hi there, this recipe looks great and I plan to bake it for my sister’s hen weekend. I’m going to do as you suggest in the comments above in order to make the cake serve 20ish.
However, I need to transport the cake to the venue and I can’t work out what is best? Should i just crumb coat it and then take the icing with me to finish off at the venue or ice it totally and hope it holds out? Or take it totally uniced and then assemble there? Have you had experience transporting the icing?
Thank you in advance!
Hi Laura,
Glad to hear you are interested in baking this cake, it is one of my favourites! I have transported a few layer cakes to various venues over the years and for this particular one, I would recommend baking and frosting the whole cake (including crumb and final coat) the day prior and refrigerating it, allowing the layers to set together. I would frost the cake on a cake board so it’s a bit sturdier for transport, and then use a couple of pieces of double sided tape (or even blu tack!) to adhere the bottom of the cake board to a container or box large enough to hold the cake. If possible, it can help to have a second person in the car with you to hold the cake container/box, or alternatively you could place it on the floor of the passenger seat. If the venue is under an hour away, and the weather isn’t too hot or humid, the cake should survive pretty well under these circumstances to the venue.
I would take the salted caramel sauce and meringue kisses with you, and drizzle the sauce and place the meringue kisses at the venue prior to serving. Sometimes if the sauce is a little thin, it can drip further down the sides during a car trip than intended, and consequently the meringues can slide off, so you may find these steps easier at the venue. Don’t forget to take a pourer or spoon with you to drizzle the sauce over the cake.
You may also wish to take along a palate knife and a small container of extra frosting, just in case you need to do any last minute touch ups. It can also help to have a good quality sharp knife and a cake stand to display your cake, so you can do it justice after all your hard work!
Best of luck baking. I hope you and your friends enjoy the cake.
Kindest, Salma
Hi, this cake looks amazing..,
I am organising a beer tasting birthday party for my husband and the layers of the cake resemble the different types of beer – lager/stout/pale ale etc etc hits winter here in Australia and was wondering if I made the buttercream and decorate the night before will it be ok and should I put the cake in the fridge or can I leave it in the coolest room of the house . We are expecting about 50 guests – I was hoping to double the recipes and make a big cake in a tin of diameter of 7.5 inch and 3.5 inch depth and layer them . I was also thinking of only having the buttercream on the inside and outside have fondant but would the caramel sauce be ok on fondant ? Your advice will be greatly appreciated. Kind regards
Hi Kristel,
Thanks for your query and so glad to hear you are making this cake – I’m sure your guests will love it. I think you’ve appropriately converted the recipe (I usually tend to double the recipe when converting a 6” cake to an 8” cake). Regarding serving all 50 guests – you may find the one cake may not be enough – but if you are planning on serving small slices and anticipating not all guests will have cake, and/or there are other desserts/sweets then the catering may be appropriate.
Regarding frosting and decorating the cake – I would make the cake, frosting and caramel sauce the day before. I would layer the cake and frost it completely, then keep it in the fridge if you have space (or in a cold room in Australian winter would be suitable if no fridge space available). I would leave drizzling the caramel until closer to the serving time, to keep it looking fresh. I don’t usually work with fondant, I’m sorry, so unfortunately I can’t give you too much advice about this in regards to the salted caramel sauce.
Good luck baking and hope your husband enjoys his birthday cake ☺️
Hi,
Is the butter used in the cakes,salted butter?
Thanks
Hi Ayse, thanks for your query. I generally use unsalted butter, but if you only have lightly salted butter available, that would also work for this recipe given the ratio of ingredients. Happy baking!
Hi the cake looks amazing. Can i substitute the eggs with buttermilk?
Hi Ankita,
Thanks for your query, and so glad to hear you are interested in making this cake. I have used buttermilk in various recipes before to help provide baking properties of rise, texture and/or tang, but I’ve never substituted buttermilk entirely for eggs. I would be hesitant as the eggs help to bind the cake ingredients together, and I don’t feel buttermilk would be a complete substitute. It may be easier to find a similar eggless recipe(s) for chocolate and caramel cakes but use the same aesthetic from my recipe to ensure you get the best result possible. Sorry I couldn’t be of more assistance!
Kindest,
Salma
Hello
I want to make this caje but I don’t have a fan forced oven. What do i do?
Hi Evi,
You can use the temperatures recommended for all the cakes in the recipe above – 170 degrees Celsius. It’s roughly 150 degrees Celsius for a fan-forced oven. Hope that helps and happy baking!
Salma
I really liked your post. I read your blog quite often and I just
shared it on Twitter. Keep up the good work.
Hi Mike,
Thanks for the comments and glad you liked it.
Kindest,
Salma
Hi, salma,
I made this cake today for my daughters 21st birthday. Since i didn’t have 6″ pan, i made in 8″ pan without cutting out layers. The buttercream is superb. I made the caramel sauce as per your recipe. But i used it with a mirror glaze and it was beautiful. And i piped rosettes around. Thamk you for a great recipe. It was quite easy though.
Hi Sabreena,
I am delighted to hear you baked this recipe and how lovely to hear that you made it for your daughter’s 21st. I hope she enjoyed it. I love that you used a mirror glaze and piped rosettes around, it’s always even more special to add your own touch to a recipe. I’m glad that you stuck with the salted caramel though – it is always a winner, especially with all the lovely chocolatey layers in this one. Thanks for stopping by to leave such detailed feedback, I really appreciate it and happy birthday to your daughter!
Kindest,
Salma