Salted Caramel Cupcakes with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting

November 7, 2012
You'll love these Salted Caramel Cupcakes with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting, loaded with rich caramel flavor in both the cupcakes and frosting, then sprinkled with a little touch of sea salt for that beloved sweet-salty combination. Seriously, what's not to love?
Salted Caramel Cupcakes with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting Image

I guess we could call these cupcakes double caramel cupcakes if we'd like.  Because they're loaded up with rich caramel flavor in both the cupcakes and the frosting, delivering rich and delicious caramel flavor in every bite.

And when you then add on a sprinkling of sea salt to finish them off? -- Mmmmm, you get that wonderful sweet-and-salty combination we love.

Now, I have a confession to make. These Salted Caramel Cupcakes have actually been sitting in my "queue" for quite a while, just waiting for me to get around to sharing them with you.  I actually made these beauties, along with super-fun Neapolitan Cupcakes, this summer for a bridal shower a friend of mine was hosting.

They're loaded up with rich caramel flavor in both the cupcakes and the frosting, delivering rich and delicious caramel flavor in every bite.

When my friend asked if I'd make cupcakes for the event, of course I said yes.  I mean, an excuse to bake?  I'm all over that.

And I loved that my friend gave me complete creative license to choose the cupcake flavors.  I asked her like a million times, I swear -- Are you sure you don't care what flavors I make?  She truly didn't care, and I just love being handed wide-open creative license like that.

So I immediately turned to these Salted Caramel Cupcakes. Pretty drool-worthy, if I do say so myself.  And just the perfect sweet treat for such a sweet event as a bridal shower. 

Making Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting image

The cupcakes themselves get their caramel flavor from dark brown sugar used in their batter.  Sure, you could use light brown sugar instead of dark -- but it wouldn't create the richer caramel-like flavor that dark brown sugar creates.

The caramel cream cheese frosting is flavored with caramel ice cream topping.  I've also worked with caramel frosting recipes made with melted caramel candies, and believe me, caramel ice cream topping is way easier to work with.  With the convenience of jarred ice cream topping, a batch of this caramel frosting can be easily whipped up in a flash.

Admittedly, the caramel frosting is on the sweet side.  But that sweetness pairs beautifully with a sprinkling of sea salt on top.

Sprinkling Salted Caramel Cupcakes with Sea Salt Image

A piece of caramel candy perched on top makes for a perfect little finishing touch to garnish these tasty caramel cupcakes.

Not only does the caramel candy garnish look adorable, it clearly signals the cupcakes' flavor, too.

Garnishing Salted Caramel Cupcakes with Caramel Candy Image

So if you're a caramel lover, give these Salted Caramel Cupcakes a try.  They're loaded with rich caramel flavor in both the cupcakes and frosting, then sprinkled with a little touch of sea salt to deliver up that sweet-salty combination we love.

And I'm happy to say these little beauties became the belle of the bridal shower ball. Well, aside from the bride-to-be of course!

Check out these other super tasty cupcake recipes:
Salted Caramel Cupcakes Image
Thank you for stopping by The Kitchen is My Playground. We'd love to have you back soon!

salted caramel cupcakes, caramel cupcakes, caramel cupcakes recipe
Cupcakes
American
Yield: 24 cupcakes
Salted Caramel Cupcakes with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting

Salted Caramel Cupcakes with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting

You'll love these Salted Caramel Cupcakes with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting, loaded with rich caramel flavor in both the cupcakes and frosting, then sprinkled with a little touch of sea salt for that beloved sweet-salty combination. Seriously, what's not to love?
Prep time: 45 MinCook time: 20 MinTotal time: 1 H & 4 M

Ingredients

Caramel Cupcakes:
  • 1/2 c. (1 stick) butter, softened
  • 4 oz. cream cheese, softened
  • 1 1/4 c. granulated sugar
  • 3/4 c. dark brown sugar
  • 1 T. canola oil
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 3 c. all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1 c. buttermilk
Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting & Garnish:
  • 8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 c. caramel ice cream topping
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/8 tsp. salt or fine sea salt
  • 6 c. confectioners’ sugar
  • 12 caramel candies, unwrapped & cut in half (I use Kraft caramels)
  • Additional sea salt for sprinkling

Instructions

Caramel Cupcakes:
  1. Line 24 muffin cups with paper cupcake liners. Set aside.
  2. Using an electric mixer, cream together butter, cream cheese, sugar, brown sugar, and oil until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
  3. Add vanilla, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; mix until well combined.
  4. Beginning and ending with flour, add flour alternately with buttermilk, mixing between each addition.
  5. Distribute batter evenly between the 24 muffin cups. Bake at 350℉ for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  6. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting & Garnish:
  1. Beat butter and cream cheese in bowl of an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy, about 1 minute.
  2. Add vanilla extract, caramel ice cream topping, and salt; reduce mixer speed to low and mix for a few seconds until just combined.
  3. Add confectioners' sugar, about 2 cups at a time, beating on low speed for a few seconds between each addition. Increase mixer speed to medium and beat for about 20 to 30 seconds until smooth.
  4. Use to frost cupcakes.
  5. Garnish with a caramel candy half, and sprinkle with a bit of sea salt.
Created using The Recipes Generator


Salted Caramel Cupcakes ~ Loaded with rich caramel flavor in both the cupcakes & frosting, then sprinkled with a little touch of sea salt for that sweet-salty combination we love. #saltedcaramel #caramelcupcakes #saltedcaramelcupcakes www.thekitchenismyplayground.com

This post is linked with Weekend PotluckMeal Plan Monday.

23 comments

  1. Lovely cupcakes. I like caramel flavour, and these must be very delicious.

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  2. These look amazing! I just love a little touch of salt with my sweets. I'm not much of a pie person so these are definitely going to be on my Thanksgiving dessert table. Thanks so much for sharing this!

    ~Lynn

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  3. I just clicked over from the Weekend Potluck to check out these beauties. This is soooo up my alley, love it!

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  4. those look amazing.... i convinced my husband to order the salted caramel mocha at Starbucks this morning >> now, to make THESE!!!

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  5. Oh,YUM! I loooooove sweet and salty! Maybe I need to dream up an 'event' in which I need you to make these for....
    ;)

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  6. Yum yum yum! Look so pretty and would love to try them, really lovely job.

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  7. These look great! Please come by and post on our blog party! Thank you! Please help spread the word!

    http://artbyasm.blogspot.com/search/label/Blog%20Party

    Warmest Regards,
    Annamaria

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  8. You had me at Salted Caramel...I could just dive into a bowl of that fluffy good frosting!! These look great! Creative baking licenses are the best:-)

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  9. You never mentioned when to add the salt? Isn't the "salty caramel" frosting supposed to include salt? How much? Other recipes say to add up to 1 1/4 tsp. thanks

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    Replies
    1. I don't add salt actually INTO the frosting ... sea salt is sprinkled on top of the frosting after the cupcakes are frosted. It's in step 5 of the 'For the Cupcakes' section of the recipe. However, if you prefer to mix salt into the frosting itself, by all means go for it.

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  10. I made these for a group of friends and they were a huge hit and SO yummy! Thank you for sharing the recipe and tips.

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  11. Could caramel ice cream topping be used in place of the Kraft caramels in the frosting?

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    Replies
    1. Since caramel ice cream topping is so much more liquid-y than melted caramel, I'm not sure it would give enough 'body' to the frosting. You could certainly give it a try, though ... If you do, I suggest just adding a tiny bit at a time. Enjoy!

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  12. Just made these for my Make and Take group yesterday - heavenly! What tip did you use to pipe the frosting?

    Thanks!

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    Replies
    1. So glad you enjoyed them, Jean! I use jumbo tips to pipe my frosting ... I've never seen them in a 'regular' store, but they're available by mail order from Bake it Pretty. Here's the link: http://www.bakeitpretty.com/jumbo-pastry-tip-closed-star-style/ LOVE, LOVE, LOVE them!

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  13. I found this delicious looking recipe on Pinterest, and decided it a try. Unfortunately, they were not a hit. The cake was too dense, and sorta dry; they reminded me more of a muffin. The cake was not very sweet, and the icing did not have much of a caramel taste, at all. Maybe more caramels could be used. They were ok, but not very memorable. Being that these were a test run for wedding cupcakes, I am very glad to have tried them out before hand.

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    Replies
    1. The 1st time I made them I had the same results. The second time I added another 1/2 cup of buttermilk and about a cup of almond milk. I just added until the batter consistency was similar to other batters I use. It came out much better.

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  14. I followed the instructions and came out delicious. thanks for the wonderful recipes.

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  15. What DO U Men When U Say 1 T Oil ?????????

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  16. I am absolutely drooling over here.Thanks so much for sharing with us over at the You're the Star Blog Hop. We hope to see you again soon!

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  17. I'm a sucker for salted caramel. These sound divine! #BloggersPitStop

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  18. Salted caramel is one of my favorite flavors! Lovely cup cakes what a treat.
    Happy Fiesta Friday :)

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  19. Your wonderful recipe is being featured this week, over at the You're the STAR link party. Thank you again for sharing with us and we hope to see you again soon!

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