Yesterday I shared with you about my Mama’s Chocolate Marble Squares. Well, I had lots of emails and requests for the recipe for the caramel icing to go along with it.
Have I ever told you that you are definitely my kind of people?
You most certainly are! There is nothing like fresh, homemade caramel icing to make the world go ’round.
Cause I really and truly think that it does.
Good caramel icing is an act of love. You truly put your heart and soul into making good southern caramel icing.
My Grandmother Verdie would stand at her stove for what seemed like hours swirling her pan to get the perfect “color” on her sugar. Her hands wrought with arthritis, she held the cast iron dutch oven as tightly as possible as she kept the rhythm of the caramel in her heavy pan. She never used a mixer to make her caramel icing, I always was amazed that she didn’t. The time it had taken her to swirl her pan earlier seemed like seconds compared to watching her beat the icing by hand.
When I married, I learned that my mother-in-law also had a special recipe for a cake topped with southern caramel icing. She’d learned to make it from an aunt of my father-in-law’s when she married into the family. She’d talk about how Aunt T would beat her icing by hand so that it would be just right. While her recipe was slightly different, Aunt T’s and my Grandmother’s method were still the same.
When Little Buddy turned one, I decided it was high time that I made a caramel cake myself. We were living with my husband’s parents as we were building our house at the time. We’d invited all of our family to a dinner to celebrate the big day. I’d worked for weeks planning the menu, creating the perfect invitations, finding just the right color of light blue placemats to match a speck of blue in my mother-in-law’s rug, and thinking about this cake.
It had to be perfect.
The icing had to taste just like the caramel icing from when I was a little girl carefully watching my Grandmother.
I set out to make the icing all by myself. I was determined not to call Grandmother Verdie to help me. The arthritis had even further ravaged her hands by now, but I knew she wouldn’t let that stop her from trying to make it for me.
After three attempts, I finally had a caramel icing I could spread on Little Buddy’s birthday cake. I felt like I had accomplished the world. I’d repeated the dance I’d watched so many times before, swirl and stir, swirl and stir, swirl and stir until I finally found just the right rhythm.
Here’s how I make it.
Southern Caramel Icing
Ingredients
- 2 cups (396 g) sugar
- 1 cup (227 g) buttermilk
- 1/2 cup (92 g) Crisco
- 1/2 cup (113 g) butter
- 1 teaspoon (6 g) baking soda
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients in a 3-4 quart cast iron dutch oven and place over medium heat.
- Swirl pan to keep ingredients moving in the pan.
- Cook to softball stage 235º – 245º on a candy thermometer or when tested in a cup of cold water.
- Remove from heat and beat with a wooden spoon until creamy and ready to spread. If using mixer, once your icing has reached the softball stage, whip the icing until it holds to the whisk when you stop the mixer.
- This is a perfect icing for Southern Caramel Cake
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family does.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
What size pot do you recommend using to make a double batch?
When you use Crisco – are you using liquid or solid?
Hi Anne,
I use solid for this recipe. Thanks!
Any substitute for crisco? Can I just use all butter?
Krystyna, I haven’t tried making this with all butter so I’m not sure how it will turn out.
How long would you say you cook for and how long should I stir for? I don’t have a candy thermometer and not sure what soft ball stage is. Making for aunt in law birthday on Thanksgiving so nervous 🙂
It will take about 40 minutes total cooking time when cooked over medium heat. Soft ball stage is when the mixture has thickened and when you drop a small amount of it in a bowl of cold water, it will form a small ball. You will beat it until the frosting is smooth and easy to spread on the cake. Hope you enjoy!
I substituted coconut oil instead of the crisco. The liquids separated and it’s super liquidy how is this supposed to be an icing texture?
MC Laney, substituting coconut oil for the solid Crisco shortening in the recipe would cause the icing to be “super liquidy”. This is a recipe I would not make with oil. Hope this helps!
Made this over the weekend for a birthday-it was a huge hit. The little bit of extra effort for the icing is so worth it and really it is not that much extra
Isn’t this icing amazing, Dawn?! I’m so happy to hear that you enjoy it! xo
Robyn is this Crisco oil or shortening and did I miss the vanilla?
It is Crisco shortening, Debra. I don’t use vanilla in this recipe. Hope you enjoy!
Can I make the cake in a glass 9X13 cake pan?
Thank you! This will be my goto Caramel frosting recipe. I admit I had the KA on standby but there was something wildly therapeutic and gratifying about using every bit of my right arm to beat this sugar into submission. The only thing I had to do was add a little drop of hot water to thin it out.
*only enough for a 2 layer cake or cupcakes*
For those of you who are having trouble, I found if you are not using cast iron, the softball stage takes a little longer to reach. Using a non-stick Dutch oven, cook and stir until the sugar becomes that wonderful caramel brown and then remove from heat. Then you can use your wooden spoon or mixer to finish the rest. Excellent!
I’m so glad you love this caramel frosting recipe, Lauren! xo
Do i have to used a cast iron pan ?
what is crisco?
It is a brand of shortening. Thanks!
Just tried your caramel icing and it turned out perfectly. It tastes great – not too sweet just perfect.
Thanks so much, Ramona! I’m so happy you enjoy it – it’s such a delicious icing!
Do you think this cake could be cooked in a 13 x 9 inch sheet pan and for how long would you recommend cooking it ?
Will this ice a three layer cake?
Hi Nancy,
I double this recipe when I make my three layer Southern Caramel Cake and frost with this icing. If you take a look at this cake on my site, it has the double recipe of this icing. Thanks so much! Enjoy – it’s a family favorite! xo