Salted Caramel Frosting

4.84 from 54 ratings

Salted Caramel Frosting

This salted caramel frosting is simply the best! It's packed with rich and buttery caramel flavor, along with a flourish of salt that takes it to the next level.

Prep Time15

Cook Time5

Total Time20

Course: Frosting & Fillings

Cuisine: American

Servings: 7

Calories: 1042kcal

Author: Chelsey White

Ingredients

Caramel Sauce

1/2 cup granulated sugar 100g
3 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature 42g
2 Tbsp heavy whipping cream, room temperature 30g
1/4 tsp fine salt 1g

Salted Caramel Frosting

2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature 434g
7 cups powdered sugar 907g or a 2 lb. bag
1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste 4g
1 tsp fine salt 6g
1/3 cup caramel sauce - recipe above 108g

Instructions

Make the caramel sauce first. It needs time to cool before it's mixed into the buttercream. If you add the warm caramel to your frosting, you will melt the butter and end up with runny frosting. Turn the stove to medium heat and place a small saucepan on the element.
Gradually add in 1/2 cup sugar, 2 Tbsp at a time. Wait until the sugar is mostly melted, then add in the next bit of sugar.
As the sugar melts it will slowly deepen in color.
Stir occasionally until the sugar is fully dissolved and has become an amber color, then turn off the heat.
Mix in 3 Tbsp of butter, 1 Tbsp at a time. Then stir in 2 Tbsp of heavy cream and 1/4 tsp salt. The mixture will be thin but will thicken as it cools.
Pour into a separate container then place in the fridge to cool to room temperature. This caramel can be made in advance and stored in the fridge for up to a month. If you made the caramel in advance and it's fully chilled at this point, heat it in the microwave in short 15 second intervals until it's a more workable consistency.
As the caramel cools, make the caramel buttercream frosting.
Beat 2 cups of butter on a medium speed for 30 seconds with a paddle or whisk attachment until smooth. Mix in 1 tsp of vanilla and 1 tsp of salt on a low speed.
Gradually mix in 7 cups of powdered sugar on a low speed. Halfway through add in 1/3 cup of caramel sauce, which will help thin the frosting and make it easier to mix.
Beat the buttercream on low until the ingredients are fully incorporated and the desired consistency is reached. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
If the frosting seems too thick, add in additional heavy cream (1 tsp at a time). If the frosting is too thin, add in more powdered sugar (quarter of a cup at a time). If your frosting looks broken, add in more room-temperature butter, 1 Tbsp at a time until it comes back together.
Stir the frosting by hand with a rubber spatula once it's made for a minute or two to make the frosting super smooth.
Either cover the frosting flush with plastic wrap to prevent crusting or place it in a piping bag fit with your favorite frosting tip. This buttercream can sit at room temperature for a day, be stored in the fridge for up to a month in an airtight container or stored in the freezer for 3 months.

Video

Notes

This recipe makes about 7 cups of frosting.

Paddle Attachment vs. Whisk Attachment

Either a paddle or whisk attachment can be used to make this frosting. I like to use my paddle attachment when making frosting for a cake, to minimize the amount of air that is incorporated into the frosting. This makes silky smooth frosting, which is easier to smooth onto cakes.

I use my whisk attachment when making frosting for cupcakes, which I like to be light and fluffy! I like to incorporate air into frosting for cupcakes, because I usually pipe massive swirls onto each cupcake.

Leftover Caramel

The caramel sauce recipe will yield about 3/4 of a cup of caramel, but you will only need 1/3 cup for this salted caramel buttercream. It's hard to make that small of a batch though, so I prefer to make enough to have some left over for topping ice cream or cupcakes!

I like to pour my extra caramel in a squirt bottle (for drizzling over cakes), but a mason jar or Tupperware container would work great too.

This caramel will keep for several weeks in the fridge. I usually store it in a plastic bottle (and pop it into the microwave to reheat it), but an airtight container would work great!

How Much Buttercream Do You Need?

I usually make 1 batch of frosting to stack and frost a seven- or eight-inch cake. One batch of frosting can be used to frost about 3 dozen (36) cupcakes with large swirls.

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