Chocolate Caramel Drip Cake
What’s better than chocolate and caramel? Chocolate + Caramel + Espresso! This chocolate caramel drip cake has four layers of chocolate cake filled with espresso ganache, covered in caramel buttercream and a caramel drip. This chocolate caramel cake is perfect for a special occasion!
Ingredient Notes
Below are some notes on key ingredients for this recipe. For a full list of ingredients, see the recipe card below.
- Chocolate – the majority of the time I bake I use chocolate chips, just out of convenience and cost efficiently. That’s what I am using in my chocolate cake recipe. Ganache however is something I usually splurge for better chocolate on such as baking bars, baking disks or just higher quality chocolate chips. Guittard makes great chips, wafers and baking bars.
- Coffee – anytime you’re baking something chocolatey adding coffee doesn’t hurt. I often add espresso powder to brownies and for cakes such as this one I add freshly brewed hot coffee. The coffee just enhances the chocolate flavor, the baked cake will not have a coffee flavor. If you don’t have coffee or prefer to to use it you can substitute hot water.
- Cocoa powder – The one ingredient I usually go for a higher quality on its cocoa. My favorite is Guittard Cocoa Rouge. Another good one, slightly cheaper is Ghirardelli Unsweetened cocoa.
- Vegetable oil: I almost always go for oil over butter in chocolate layer cakes to make it super moist. You can use vegetable or canola oil.
- Buttermilk: If you don’t have store-bought buttermilk you can easily substitute with milk and lemon juice. Add one tablespoon of lemon juice to a measuring cup and then add enough milk until you have 1 cup total. Let sit for about five minutes before adding to your batter.
- Espresso powder – This recipe calls for espresso powder in both the ganache and the caramel sauce. It’s a subtle flavor that pairs really well with chocolate but you can omit if you prefer. My favorite espresso powders are from King Arthur and Medaglia D’Oro
- Salted butter – I only bake with salted butter. You’ve probably heard to use unsalted because there can be discrepancies in how much salt is in different brands but I have yet to come across a brand of butter that is too salty. I find that when I use unsalted butter I have to add a lot of salt to balance out the sweetness of most of my recipes, especially buttercream. For the caramel buttercream we want to use room temperature or softened butter. You can leave it out at room temperature about an hour before you need to use it, or microwave it for about 15 seconds to soften.
- Chocolate sprinkles – I like using a smaller sprinkle to make the frosting easier to smooth. My favorite for this cake is the Chocolate Vermicelli from India Tree
My favorite chocolate cake recipe
I’ve been working on and tweaking this chocolate cake recipe for awhile and finally got it just right. I use both chocolate chips and cocoa powder in the batter, which in addition to coffee really brings a strong chocolate flavor. The oil and the buttermilk make this an extremely moist chocolate cake.
Most of the cakes I make are 4-layer, 6” cakes. They’re tall, which I love when I’m decorating and you can get 10-12 servings. If you don’t have 6” pans you can use this same recipe and use three 8” pans, bake times for both sizes are in the recipe.
Always grease your cake tins. When using 6” pans I find that a non stick baking spray is enough, when I use 8” pans (or larger) I usually line the bottom with parchment paper. Alternatively if you don’t have baking spray or parchment paper you can rub the pans with butter and dust with cocoa powder.
step by step instructions
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 and grease 4 6-inch cake pans or 3 8-inch cake pans.
Step 2: Place the chocolate chips in a medium bowl. Pour the hot coffee over the chocolate and allow to sit while you prepare the rest of the batter.
Step 3: In a large bowl, whisk together the all purpose flour, sugars, cocoa, salt and baking soda. Whisk the eggs, vanilla, oil and buttermilk into the dry ingredients. The batter will be thick. You can switch to a rubber spatula or mixing spoon at this point if it’s too thick to whisk.
Step 4: Return to your bowl of chocolate and coffee and stir until smooth. Gradually pour the coffee mixture into the batter and mix until fully incorporated. Divide batter evenly between the cake pans. Before placing your layers in the oven, tap them a few times on the counter to get the air bubbles out. Bake for 33-35 minutes for 6-inch pans or 25-30 minutes for 8-inch pans.
I rarely bake and decorate the same day. A day or two before I need to serve the cake I bake the layers and then freeze overnight. See the instructions below for making cake layers in advance in my Peanut Butter Oreo Cake post.
Espresso Ganache
Dark chocolate ganache with a hint of espresso is the perfect filling for this cake. Start by heating the heavy cream and espresso powder over medium heat until it starts simmering. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate chips and whisk until smooth. Cover and keep at room temperature for a few hours to thicken. You can also make the night before you need it and cover at room temperature. You want it to be spreadable, a similar consistency to peanut butter. It takes a bit of patience, but if you are in a hurry you can refrigerate the ganache to thicken faster.
Caramel Sauce
For the caramel frosting and the caramel drip you need caramel sauce. You can save some time and buy a jar of store-bought caramel sauce, either salted caramel or ice cream topping caramel sauce. To make your own homemade caramel sauce, start by melting the butter and brown sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a rolling boil and cook for a minute stirring continuously. Remove from heat and slowly whisk in the heavy whipping cream. Mix in the espresso powder and vanilla extract. Pour into a bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to use. This will make more caramel sauce than needed for the cake. Refrigerate any extra (it’s good served over ice cream!).
Caramel Buttercream
Beat the softened butter in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar a cup at a time. Add 1/3 cup caramel sauce. Reserve the remaining caramel for decorating the cake. Beat just until incorporated. If your buttercream is too stiff, add heavy cream a tablespoon at a time until it reaches your desired consistency. Add a pinch of salt, to taste. At this point I like to run the mixer on low for 4 or 5 minutes while I’m leveling my cakes to get any air bubbles out so I can get a smooth finish on my cake.
Assembling the Cake
To assemble the chocolate caramel drip cake I like to start with cold cake layers, so the process won’t be so crumbly. Spread a small amount of buttercream on your cake board or cake stand/plate to hold your first layer of cake in place. Using an offset spatula, spread the espresso ganache between your chocolate cake layers. You will use ⅓ of the ganache between each cake layer for a 4 layer cake. If you are making a two layer cake you might not need all the ganache.
Now you want to use a small amount of buttercream to crumb coat your cake. That means frosting a thin layer around the cake to hold in all the crumbs before frosting a thicker layer of buttercream. This is an important step for getting a smooth cake. Use a bench scraper or icing scraper to scrape any excess frosting off and then refrigerate the crumb coated cake for 15-20 minutes or until firm to the touch.
Stir the chocolate sprinkles into the remaining buttercream and frost a thicker layer of buttercream all around the entire cake. Before I start the caramel drips I like to do a test drip to make sure the caramel is the right consistency. I like to do one drip on my bench scraper standing vertically, or a cutting board or even a plate and watch to see how far it drips. You can then adjust if its too thick or too thin before putting it on your cake. Using a spoon and the remaining caramel sauce gently guide your caramel drips around the cake (see video above). You can also use a squeeze bottle to get precise drips, but I generally go for a more organic look with my drip cakes. Then take another spoonful or two of caramel and spread it on the top of the cake. Decorate with more sprinkles and enjoy! The cake can be stored at room temperature for 2 days or refrigerated for up to 4 days. Enjoy at room temperature.
Looking for more cake recipes? Check out my Triple Chocolate Cake and my Mint Chocolate Chip Melting Ice Cream Cone Cake.
Chocolate Caramel Drip Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup dark or semisweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup hot coffee
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tsp instant espresso powder
- 1 1/2 cups chopped chocolate or chocolate chips
- 1 tbsp salted butter
- 1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, softened
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1/3 cup caramel sauce, plus more for decorating (recipe below or sub store-bought)
- 1-2 tbsp heavy cream
- Pinch salt
- 1/3 cup chocolate sprinkles, optional
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) salted butter
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 tsp instant espresso powder
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 and grease (or line with parchment rounds) four 6” cake pans or three 8” pans.
- Place the chocolate chips in a medium bowl. Pour the hot coffee over the chocolate and allow to sit while you prepare the rest of the batter.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugars, cocoa, salt and baking soda. Whisk in the eggs, vanilla, oil and buttermilk. The batter will be thick. You can switch to a rubber spatula or mixing spoon at this point if it’s too thick to whisk.
- Return to your bowl of chocolate and coffee and stir until smooth. Gradually pour the coffee mixture into the batter and mix until fully incorporated. Divide batter evenly between the cake pans. Bake for 33-35 minutes for 6" pans or 25-30 minutes for 8" pans.
- Allow to cool a few minutes in the pan and then carefully, using oven mitts if the pans are still warm, invert each layer onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap tightly and place in the freezer until you’re ready to assemble your cake. I store layers in the freezer for up to a week. See more on making your layers in advance below.
- Heat the heavy cream and espresso powder over medium-low heat until it starts simmering.
- Put the chocolate chips and butter in a bowl and pour the cream over top. Allow to sit for a couple minutes to melt and then whisk until smooth.
- Cover and keep at room temperature for a few hours to thicken. You can also make the night before you need it and cover at room temperature. You want it to be spreadable, a similar consistency to peanut butter. If you are in a hurry you can refrigerate the ganache to thicken faster.
- Melt the butter and brown sugar together in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a rolling boil and then continue cooking for another minute, stirring continuously.
- Remove from heat and slowly add heavy cream, whisking until smooth. Whisk in the espresso powder and vanilla.
- Pour into a bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to use. This will make more caramel sauce than needed for the cake. Refrigerate any extra (it's good served over ice cream!).
- Beat the softened butter in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Slowly add the powdered sugar a cup at a time. Add 1/3 cup caramel sauce. Reserve the remaining caramel for decorating the cake. Beat just until incorporated. If your buttercream is too stiff, add heavy cream a tablespoon at a time until it reaches your desired consistency. Add a pinch of salt, to taste.
- At this point I like to run the mixer on low for 4 or 5 minutes while I'm leveling my cakes to get any air bubbles out so I can get a smooth finish on my cake.
- Once your cakes have thawed and you have your ganache, caramel and buttercream prepared you are ready to assemble.
- Spread a small amount of ganache or buttercream on your cake board or cake stand/plate to hold your first layer of cake in place.
- Using an offset spatula (or a table knife or back of a spoon), spread the espresso ganache between your cake layers. You will use ⅓ of the ganache between each cake layer for a 4 layer cake. If you are making a two layer cake you might not need all the ganache.
- Now you want to use a small amount of buttercream to crumb coat your cake. That means frosting a thin layer around the cake to hold in all the crumbs before frosting a thicker layer of buttercream. Use a bench scraper or icing scraper to scrape any excess frosting off and then refrigerate the crumb coated cake for 15-20 minutes or until firm to the touch.
- If using chocolate sprinkles, stir into the remaining buttercream.
- Next frost a thicker layer of buttercream all around the cake. If you are using sprinkles in your buttercream you will want to smooth slowly and gently with your cake scraper very close to cake.
- Using a spoon and the remaining caramel sauce gently guide your caramel drips around the cake (see video above). Then take another spoonful or two of caramel and spread it on the top of the cake.
- Decorate with more sprinkles and enjoy!
- Cake can be stored at room temperature for 2 days or refrigerated for up to 4 days. Cake is best eaten at room temperature.
Video
Nutrition
2 Comments
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mindyjohnson
Hi Jacy, these would work great as cupcakes! Bake at 350 for 18 minutes.
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Jacy
Have you made these as a cupcake with ganache filling? If so do you have a suggested cook time and temp??