Southern Caramel Icing
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
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 can i use instead of crisco?
I have to admit that when I started making this icing I would never in a million years have thought it would turn into caramel. 🙂 I’ve never made a cooked icing before, but it turned into a wonderful candy-like caramel. Thank you for sharing! And I did use an electric mixer; my arms weren’t up for whipping it by hand.
Do I throw all the ingredients into a pot and mix? Or do I put everything in one by one?
Just follow the instructions in the recipe, Areielle. Mix all ingredients in a 3-4 quart cast iron dutch oven and place over medium heat as listed in Step 1. Hope you enjoy!
Can brown sugar be a substitute?
I’ve never made this with brown sugar, Cassandra, so I can’t tell you how it would work.
I used your caramel recipe as a base but tweaked it. I used evaporated milk (as my mom did), added vanilla and only used butter. The 40 minute cook time was just right. Icing came out perfectly. Just let it cool before frosting cake.
Can I use two Sticks of butter instead of 1/2 cup crisco and 1/2 cup butter?
I haven’t tried making this with all butter so I’m not sure how it will turn out, Louann.
Can you tell me what makes this Carmel flavored? The cake just sounds like a yellow cake and does the cooking process make the icing Carmel flavored? Thank you
Donna, when you cook the sugar, butter, and other ingredients in this icing, it becomes caramel flavored. I hope you enjoy!
I’ve made this recipe a few times and LOVE it!! I’m in the mood for a maple flavor, have you tried making the frosting with maple syrup? Maybe replace half the sugar with syrup? Will that mess up the consistency?
Jackie, I haven’t tried making this caramel icing with maple syrup and am not sure how it would work. You could try adding maple flavoring with the vanilla if you wish.
Robyn,
I have never made a homemade icing before. Do I need to use salted or unsalted butter?
Thanks!!
I use salted butter, Anna.
Hi Robyn,
Firstly can I please say that your BEST EVER CHOCOLATE CAKE is exactly that !!!! So I’ve looked up your recipes to find a caramel cake to cook for our sons birthday on Sunday but we live in Australia and I do not know what crisco is or what to substitute it with ? Please help if possible. Kindest Regards Cherie
Cherie, Crisco is a solid vegetable shortening. I think Copha may be the closest you have to it in Australia. I hope your son has a very happy birthday.