Triple Butterscotch Cake

If you love anything butterscotch (like I do!), then this recipe is for you. Butterscotch cake. Butterscotch buttercream. Butterscotch sauce. Yes, butterscotch's trademark salty-sweet-creamy flavor is everywhere. The rich and impressive looking layer cake is perfect for a birthday party, holiday celebrations, or a dinner party when you want to end with dessert that will be talked about for weeks.

Prep Time 35

Cook Time 40

Servings (See Notes)

5 from 14 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Equipment

9-inch cardboard cake rounds and parchment rounds (optional--see Equipment section in the post)
stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or handheld electric mixer
3 9 inch cake pans
offset spatula and/or icing smoothers

Ingredients

Butterscotch Cake Layers

3½ cups all-purpose flour
2½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (8 ounces)
½ cup canola, vegetable, or safflower oil
2½ cups dark brown sugar, lightly packed
5 large eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoon bourbon or dark rum
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup whole milk
½ cup full-fat sour cream
1 cup lightly toasted chopped pecans

Butterscotch Frosting

2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature (1 pound)
2 cups dark brown sugar, lightly packed
1 cup heavy cream
¾ teaspoon salt
1 -2 tablespoon bourbon or dark rum
2-2½ cups confectioners' sugar

Butterscotch Sauce

¾ cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
6 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoon light corn syrup (optional, see Notes)
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup heavy cream
Extra chopped pecans for decoration (optional)

Would you like to save this?

We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!

Instructions

Prepare the Cake Layers

Preheat the oven to 325F degrees. Spray three 9-inch cake pans with nonstick baking spray and then line them with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer), beat the butter with the brown sugar and oil until very light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Beat in the bourbon and the vanilla.
WIth the mixer on low speed add the flour mixture to the batter in two additions, adding the milk after the first addition and the sour cream after the second addition. Mix until the ingredients are well combined and the batter is smooth. Mix in the chopped pecans.
Divide the cake batter among the baking pans (I measured about 3-¼ to 3-½ cups each.) Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the centers emerges clean or with just a few moist crumbs attached. Cool the layers in their pans for 10 minutes, and then invert them onto cooling racks or cake boards to cool completely.

Prepare the Buttercream

Melt 8 tablespoons (one stick) of the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat, swirling occasionally, until it turns deep golden brown and fragrant, about 6 minutes. Add the brown sugar, cream, and salt, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly, and cook for 3 minutes longer.
Transfer the mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and beat it at high speed until the bowl feels cool to the touch, 8-10 minutes. Beat in the bourbon or rum.
With the mixer on medium speed, add remaining butter, one tablespoon at a time, beating until incorporated. Continue to beat the mixture until it is smooth and creamy. Add enough confectioner's sugar to the mixture to achieve a thick and spreadable consistency.

Make Butterscotch Sauce

Place the brown sugar, butter, corn syrup, and salt in a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the sugar dissolves and there is no graininess left in the texture.
Bring the mixture to a boil and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently (about 210-215℉ on an instant read thermometer). Remove the mixture from the heat and mix in the cream. Return the saucepan to the heat and cook for 2 minutes more, until smooth and slightly thickened; let cool to lukewarm.

Decorate Your Cake

Place one of the cake layers on a cake plate or a cake drum. If the top is rounded, you can use a serrated knife or a leveler to flatter the layers, but the layers should bake up fairly flat. Spread the layer with some of the butterscotch frosting and then drizzle the frosting with a thin layer or butterscotch sauce. Spread the sauce evenly over the buttercream with a knife or an offset spatula.
Place second cake layer on top of the first and repeat with the frosting and the sauce. Top with the third cake layer.
Coat the entire cake with a thin layer of the frosting(top and sides.) This is your "crumb coat", which will seal in any loose crumbs before adding your final coat of frosting. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
Add a second thicker layer of buttercream to the top and sides of the cake. Use an icing smoother or an offset spatula to smooth the top and sides (if you have them.) Chill 15 minutes.
Create the decorative butterscotch "drizzle": Using a small spoon, drop small pools of the lukewarm butterscotch sauce around the perimeter of the cake, as shown in my Step By Step Photos in the post. Use the back of your spoon to gently nudge the sauce down the side of the cake making a drip design. Try to create varying lengths in the drips.
Fill in the center top of the cake with a thin layer of remaining butterscotch sauce, smoothing with the back of the spoon or an offset spatula. Use any remaining frosting to pipe decoratively around the top of the cake, then sprinkle with chopped pecans. Chill until about 30 minutes prior to serving.

Video

Notes

If you don't like to use corn syrup, you can replace it with honey or omit it altogether. Another option is to add a generous pinch of cream of tartar along with the brown sugar and butter, as this also helps to prevent the formation of sugar crystals.
Store leftover cake in the refrigerator, tightly covered, for 3-4 days.
This is a very rich cake, so I recommend starting with smaller slices. You can get about 25 servings if you cut the cake in a grid vs. traditional triangular slices, similar to portions that you would get at a wedding.

Nutrition

Did You Make This Recipe?Please leave a comment below or pin it to your Pinterest account!