Caramel Layer Cake with Vanilla Bean German Buttercream

German buttercream is my all time favorite buttercream, because it is the perfect balance of sweet and buttery. It's made with a pastry cream base with butter and a little bit of mascarpone beat into it. It is not as stiff as other buttercreams, like American or Swiss meringue, but it stiffens up to the perfect consistency once you decorate the cake and place it in the fridge. Read below for all of my tips on how to make homemade caramel sauce, the perfect cake layers, and german buttercream!

For more caramel recipes, try Salted Caramel Macarons, Caramel Rum Bundt Cake, Salted Caramel Apple Pie, and Caramel Apple Skillet Dump Cake.

Ingredient Notes

• All-Purpose Flour: You'll need a little more than 2 ½ cups of flour for the cake.
• Granulated Sugar: You only need about 1 cup of sugar for the cake, as the caramel sauce will also sweeten it.
• Baking Powder: You'll need 2 ½ teaspoon of baking powder to give each cake layer the perfect amount of rise.
• Unsalted Butter: This recipe uses the reverse creaming method (butter is added to the dry ingredients, which inhibits gluten development), so you'll want your butter to be room temperature, but on the cooler side.
• Vanilla Paste or Extract: I finally got my hands on some Heilala vanilla paste, which has a much more prominent vanilla flavor and leaves those beautiful specks throughout the buttercream! If you do not have vanilla paste, vanilla extract will work just fine. 
• Homemade Caramel Sauce: For my recipe you'll need granulated sugar, salt, cream of tartar, water, unsalted butter, heavy cream, and vanilla. 
• Whole Milk: Always use whole milk for the best flavor in baked goods.
• Plain Whole Milk Yogurt: Similar to milk, yogurt provides the best flavor when it is full fat.
• Eggs: You'll need three whole eggs for the cake, and 4 egg yolks for the pastry cream used in the german buttercream. 
• Cornstarch: Used to help thicken up the pastry cream.
• Mascarpone: I add about ¼ cup of mascarpone to the buttercream to whiten the color, but this is optional.

See recipe card for full information on ingredients and individual quantities.

Step by Step Instructions

Here are step by step photos and instructions on how to make this caramel layer cake recipe! For the full ingredient list and method, see the recipe card at the end of this post.

STEP 1: Make the buttercream. Start by making the pastry cream over the stovetop, then chilling overnight in the fridge. Once fully chilled, beat the pastry cream for about 10 minutes on low speed until it warms up to about 70 degrees. Add the butter, a few cubes at a time, and beat on medium speed. If it looks curdled at all, continue beating on low speed until smooth. Add the mascarpone, vanilla paste, and salt, and beat until fully incorporated.

STEP 2: Make the cake. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl combine the caramel sauce, yogurt, milk, and vanilla. Cut up the butter into small cubes and add to the dry ingredients. Mix on low speed until it resembles wet sand. Add half of the wet ingredients to the dry, then scrape down the bowl. Add the rest of the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Lastly, beat in the eggs until fully combined. Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 32-38 minutes.  

Expert Baking Tips

• To break up the elements, make the caramel sauce and pastry cream a day or two before you need them. You could also make the cake layers beforehand and freeze them until you're ready to assemble the cake. 
• For the pastry cream, it can be difficult to tell when milk is simmering, so a good rule of thumb is to simply bring it to about 195-200 degrees F. 
• To ensure completely flat cake layers use cake strips on the outside of your pans. I like these Wilton Cake Strips! Cake strips ensure that the cake bakes evenly, rather than the outside of the cake baking faster than the center, which makes the cake rise more in the center. If you bake cakes often, these are a very good investment! You can also make DIY ones by wrapping wet paper towels with aluminum foil and wrapping them around the cake pans.

All of the recipes on this blog are carefully developed with gram measurements so you can easily recreate them in your own kitchen with success. Volume measurements are extremely inaccurate and leave room for significant errors. Not all measuring cups are made equally, so your one cup of flour will be different from my one cup of flour. By providing precise measurements in grams (aside from minor ingredients, which are given in tsp/tbsp), you can make these recipes accurately and with less cleanup! All you need is this kitchen scale. 

If this still isn't enough to convince you, I have provided volume measurements in the recipe card. If you are interested in understanding the conversions, this is the best conversion chart.

But trust me, once you try baking in grams you'll never turn back!

Happy baking! x