Salted Caramel Apple Cider Donut Cake

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How about a delicious autumn cake recipe? I had a vision a couple of weeks ago for a cake made with layers of apple cider donut batter, covered in a caramel drizzle, and topped with caramel apples. I love how it turned out! This cake is ultimately a bit too sweet for me, but it’s oh so good and such a fun recipe! My family loved it. I believe that you will fall in love with the caramel apple flavor, as well!

This cake is made from an apple cider donut cake inspired batter, which is made into three delightful layers. The homemade donut cake is then smothered in delicious salted caramel sauce and caramel mascarpone frosting.

I just love autumn baking don’t you? I think this cake gives off such a cute fall vibe, especially decorated with adorable beeswax birthday candles.

As you can see, there is a LOT going on with this cake. It is almost sickeningly sweet! I loved using an apple cider donut batter for the cake layers. It made for a pretty unique flavor. It was the perfect sweet treat for the start of autumn and a birthday celebration.

I hope that you enjoy this seasonal recipe and fall dessert idea! In case you missed it, I shared the recipe for Caramel Apples last week, which you can use to decorate the top of this cake. It’s super easy and fun!

xoxo Kayla

Salted Caramel Apple Cider Donut Cake

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Yield: 8

Author: Kayla Lobermeier

Prep time: 1 HourCook time: 35 MinTotal time: 1 H & 35 M

Ingredients

Apple Cider Donut Cake:

• 3 cups (720 ml) apple cider
• 1/2 cup (116 g) salted butter, melted
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cup (136 g) light brown sugar, packed
• 2/3 cup (133 g) granulated sugar
• 1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk
• 2 tsp (10 ml) vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups 325 g) all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp (9 g) baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp ground cardamom

Salted Caramel Sauce:

• 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
• 2 tbsp (30 ml) water
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy cream
• 3 tbsp (44 g) salted butter
• 1 tsp flaky sea salt

Caramel Mascarpone Frosting:

• 3/4 cup (87 g) salted butter, softened (1 1/2 sticks)
• 4 oz (113 g) mascarpone
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) caramel sauce
• 6 cups (708 g) powdered sugar
• 2 tbsp (30 ml) heavy cream or milk
• Sliced caramel apples, for decorating
• Flaky sea salt, for decorating

Instructions

To make the Apple Cider Donut Cake:

1. Heat the apple cider over the stove and simmer until reduced to about 2/3 cup, about 15-20 minutes. Let the reduced cider cool to room temperature.
2. Preheat the oven to 350° F (177° C). Grease and flour three 9-inch cake pans and set them aside.
3. In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the cooled cider, melted butter, eggs, and sugars until the sugar has dissolved. Add the buttermilk and vanilla and stir until combined.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cardamom. Add the flour mixture to the liquid ingredients and stir until just combined.
5. Divide the batter evenly between the cake pans and bake the cakes for 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes before moving them to a wire cooling rack. Let the cakes cool to room temperature before decorating.

To make the Salted Caramel Sauce:

1. Next, make the caramel sauce. In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Heat the saucepan over medium heat and whisk the sugar constantly until it dissolves slightly and comes to a boil. Boil the sugar for about 10 minutes without stirring unless it begins to scorch.
2. When the sugar has turned a golden brown color, remove it from heat, or at about 250° F. Pour the cream into the hot sugar and mix. Continue to stir until it is soft and syrupy. When the cream is fully combined with the sugar, add the butter and continue to whip until it smooth. Add the flaky sea salt and stir until it dissolves. Let the caramel sauce cool to room temperature.

To make the Caramel Mascarpone Frosting:

1. Meanwhile, make the frosting. In a large bowl, whip the butter and mascarpone together until smooth. Slowly begin adding the powdered sugar until the frosting becomes too thick. Add 1/4 cup (60 ml) of the caramel sauce you just made to the frosting and the heavy cream. Continue to whisk and add more powdered sugar until it becomes thick and can stand well on its own.

To assemble the cake:

1. When the cakes have cooled, it is time to decorate the cake. Even out the layers of cake by slicing off a bit of the domed tops to make them flat. This is best done with a serrated knife. Scoop a small mound of frosting onto the top of one layer of cake and spread it out to the edges. I like to use a piping bag for this because I can control the amount of frosting and spread it more evenly. Drizzle about 1-2 tbsp of caramel sauce on top of the spread frosting. Place a second layer of cake on top and repeat with the frosting and the caramel sauce. Add the third layer of cake to the top. Spread the frosting onto the top of the final layer of cake and spread it down and around the sides of the cake.
2. You may want to frost the cake in two layers of frosting. Simply spread on the first thin layer and put the cake in the fridge for about 15 minutes. Then spread the next layer of frosting. Pour about 1/4-1/3 cup of caramel sauce over the top of the frosted cake and spread it to the edge, letting it drip down the sides. Top with more frosting and slices of caramel apples. Sprinkle the top of the cake with flaky sea salt.

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