The Best Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting
Sweet, salty, and delicious. This yummy homemade The Best Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting is always a crowd-pleaser and is easier to make than you might think!
I don’t know who first thought of adding a little bit of salt to caramel but they are a genius and we want to give them a big Two Sisters high five. We’ve followed their lead and added a touch of salt to this The Best Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting and wow is it delicious. This one is always a crowd-pleaser at a party or a family gathering. Enjoy!
How to Make
Step 1: Start by making an easy homemade caramel sauce. Add brown sugar, butter, and milk to a medium saucepan.
Step 2: On low heat, stir the ingredients until the butter is melted and everything is combined. Don’t rush through this step or your caramel sauce might turn out grainy, which in turn means your frosting will be grainy. Stir often and then once all the butter is completely melted, set a timer and stir continuously for at least 1 minute.
Step 3: Increase the heat to medium but do not stir the caramel mixture.
Step 4: Cook for 3-6 minutes. If you have a candy thermometer, cook the sauce until it reaches 230 degrees. If not, cook until bubbles form across the entire surface of the sauce and the mixture turns the color of amber. For us, that is usually around 3 minutes. The length of cooking time depends on how big or small your pan is. If you are using a small pan, the mixture might take up to 6 minutes to reach this state. In a bigger pan, it might only be around 3 – 3 1/2 minutes.
Steps 5-6: Remove the caramel mixture from the heat and transfer it to a heat-resistant bowl or a glass measuring cup. Cool the caramel sauce to room temperature. The Caramel Sauce will thicken as it cools and it might be a little grainy. This is fine.
Step 7: Once the caramel mixture has cooled, add it to a mixing bowl with the powdered sugar.
Step 8: Mix in the Sea Salt. Sea Salt and Table Salt have different flavors, if you are using Table Salt you should add less salt than if you are using Sea Salt. The Sea Salt flavor will develop over time so be careful about adding too much!
Step 9: Gradually mix the caramel sauce with the powdered sugar until the frosting is combined and is the desired consistency. Add milk, a teaspoon at a time, if the frosting is too thick.
How to Serve
How much frosting will you need? That always depends on how thick or thin you apply the frosting or how much decorating you do but here are a couple of guidelines. Our recipe should make enough Homemade Salted Caramel Icing to cover a 9″ x 13″ sheet cake, or to be a filling layer on an 8″ cake. If you are making cupcakes, you should be able to frost 10-12 cupcakes if you apply the frosting with a knife. If you swirl on the frosting with a pastry bag as we have done here, you should be able to frost 8-9 cupcakes depending on the size of the swirl. If you want to frost an entire 8″ cake, you will need to make a double batch of this frosting.
Expert Tips and FAQ’s
Frosting stored in an air-tight container in the refrigerator should be good for up to a week. If you carefully wrap the frosting in order to avoid freezer burn, the frosting should be fine in the freezer for 3-4 months.
Yes. Because it is a thin frosting it will hold up best in the refrigerator. We store the baked goods frosted with this Salted Caramel Frosting in the refrigerator but then remove them from the refrigerator a couple of hours before we will serve them so the frosting comes back up to room temperature (which is how it tastes best.)
Add another teaspoon of milk and mix again. Continue to add the milk, a teaspoon at a time, until the frosting is the consistency that you like it
Temperature plays a big part in the consistency of frosting. A thin frosting could mean that the butter has gotten overworked and is too melted. The first thing to do is refrigerate the frosting for an hour and then check to see if the frosting has set back up again. If not, the next step is to add more powdered sugar or cornstarch. Start with either 1/2 cup of Powdered Sugar or 1 tablespoon of Cornstarch. Mix again and see if the consistency is better.
Other Frosting Recipes You Will Love
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The Best Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting
Sweet, salty and delicious. This yummy homemade The Best Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting is always a crowd-pleaser and is easier to make then you might think!
Ingredients
- 1 cup Brown Sugar (packed)
- 1/2 cup Butter, cubed (We use Salted Sweet Cream Butter)
- 1/4 cup Milk
- 2 1/2 cups Powdered Sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt (or 1/8 teaspoon Table Salt)
Instructions
- Start by making an easy homemade caramel sauce. Add brown sugar, butter, and milk to a medium saucepan.
- On low heat, stir the ingredients until the butter is melted and everything is combined. Don't rush through this step or your caramel sauce might turn out grainy, which in turn means your frosting will be grainy. Stir often and then once all the butter is completely melted, set a timer and stir continuously for at least 1 minute.
- Increase the heat to medium but do not stir the caramel mixture.
- Cook for 3-6 minutes. If you have a candy thermometer, cook the sauce until it reaches 230 degrees. If not, cook until bubbles form across the entire surface of the sauce and the mixture turns the color of amber. For us, that is usually around 3 minutes. The length of cooking time depends on how big or small your pan is. If you are using a small pan, the mixture might take up to 6 minutes to reach this state. In a bigger pan, it might only be around 3 – 3 1/2 minutes.
- Remove the caramel mixture from the heat and transfer it to a heat-resistant bowl or a glass measuring cup. Cool the caramel sauce to room temperature. The Caramel Sauce will thicken as it cools and it might be a little grainy. This is fine.
- Once the caramel mixture has cooled, add it to a mixing bowl with the powdered sugar.
- Mix in the Sea Salt. Sea Salt and Table Salt have different flavors, if you are using Table Salt you should add less salt than if you are using Sea Salt. The Sea Salt flavor will develop over time so be careful about adding too much!
- Gradually mix the caramel sauce with the powdered sugar until the frosting is combined and is the desired consistency. Add milk, a teaspoon at a time, if the frosting is too thick.
Notes
How much frosting will you need?
That always depends on how thick or thin you apply the frosting or how much decorating you do but here are a couple of guidelines. Our recipe should make enough Homemade Caramel Icing to cover a 9″ x 13″ sheet cake, or to be a filling layer on an 8″ cake.  If you are making cupcakes, you should be able to frost 10-12 cupcakes if you apply the frosting with a knife.  If you swirl on the frosting with a pastry bag as we have done here, you should be able to frost 8-9 cupcakes depending on the size of the swirl. If you want to frost an entire 8″ cake, you will need to make a double batch of this frosting.
Did you Make this Recipe? Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @twosisterscrafting on Instagram so we can see it!
