The Easiest Homemade Butterscotch Cake Recipe

This Homemade Butterscotch Cake is so easy to make! It’s ultra moist and soft and smothered in the most delicious cream cheese frosting and butterscotch sauce. This easy butterscotch layered cake is a great flavor for the holidays or any time of year!

WHAT INGREDIENTS DO I NEED TO MAKE HOMEMADE BUTTERSCOTCH CAKE?

This cake calls for oil and greek yogurt which adds moisture for a fluffy and soft cake texture. Don’t skip on the dark brown sugar because that is what gives this cake a butterscotch flavor!

Butterscotch is essentially caramel but with the addition of dark brown sugar. And Dark Brown sugar is brown sugar with additional molasses. The molasses gives the recipe a deep caramel and butterscotch flavor.

Make sure you add these ingredients to your grocery list!

• All-purpose flour
• Brown Sugar
• Dark Brown sugar
• Eggs
• Whole Milk
• Greek Yogurt
• Oil (Canola, Vegetable, Olive, or Grapeseed)
• Unsalted Butter
• Baking Powder
• Baking Soda
• Vanilla Extract

Ingredients to make the Butterscotch Sauce and Frosting:

Butterscotch Sauce

• heavy cream
• brown sugar
• dark brown sugar
•  unsalted butter
• corn syrup
• salt
• vanilla extract

Cream Cheese Frosting

• unsalted butter 
• cream cheese 
• powdered sugar
• butterscotch sauce

HOW DO I MAKE BUTTERSCOTCH CAKE FROM SCRATCH?

This butterscotch cake is so simple to make from scratch and doesn’t require a stand mixer. Read through each step before you start baking!

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F degrees. Line 3 6” cake pans or 2 8” cake pans with parchment rounds, spray with oil and lightly dust with flour. Set aside
2. In a medium bowl- combine all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and whisk to combine.
3. In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or in a medium bowl and whisk- combine oil, dark brown sugar and light brown sugar and mix/whisk until combined.
4. Add eggs one at a time, mixing until each egg is incorporated before adding the next egg. Add the milk and mix on medium speed for 30 seconds or until combined. Add the Greek Yogurt and mix until combined.
5. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix on medium for 30 seconds- careful to not over mix the batter. Stop the mixer when a few ribbons of flour are visible and finish by folding the batter with a spatula and scrapping the sides of the bowl.
6. Evenly distribute the cake batter into each prepared cake pan and bake for 25- 35 minutes for 6” cake or 30-40 min for 8” cake. Check cakes by inserting a toothpick in the center. If it comes out clean or with a few crumbs- cakes are done!
7. Place on a cooling rack for 10 minutes in the pan before turning the cake pan upside down to release the cake to completely cool.
8. Prepare the butterscotch sauce and frosting

HOW TO MAKE THE CAKE AND FROSTING AHEAD OF TIME

If you are planning ahead or just don’t have the time to bake and frost the cake within a day of serving, then follow the baking timelines below!

• If making the cake more than 2 days before you plan on serving: Bake the cake layers and allow to cool completely on a cooling rack. Wrap each layer of the cake in plastic wrap (twice) then foil and place in a freezer ziplock bag. Store flat in the freezer. The cake can be made 3 weeks in advance.
• Take cake out of the freezer the day before you serve and assemble and frost cake within 24 hours.
• Making the butterscotch sauce in advance: The Butterscotch Sauce can be made 7 days in advance and stored in an air tight container in the refrigerator. When you are ready to use, warm in the microwave for 10-15 seconds or until it’s a spreadable consistency.

HOW TO STORE THE BUTTERSCOTCH CAKE

The Cream cheese frosting on this homemade butterscotch cake does need to be refrigerated. The cake can sit at room temperature for 2-3 hours. Caution: cream cheese frosting doesn’t hold up well in warm temperatures and should be refrigerated if serving in a warm climate or summer months and served immediately.

Placing cake in the refrigerator can actually pull out moisture and also pick up any odors that are present from other food. If placing in the refrigerator, it is recommended to store in a cake box or cake storage container. Another alternative is to add toothpicks in the top of the cake and cover with plastic wrap.

The cake is best served at room temperatures- take the cake out of the refrigerator up to 1 hour before serving.

The cake can also be cut into individual pieces and wrapped in plastic wrap, then foil and placed in a freezer ziplock bag for quicker thawing.

HOW TO ASSEMBLE A LAYERED CAKE

Assembling a layered cake doesn’t have to be complicated or require any special equipment. We have several short Reel Videos on IG that show you how to assemble a layered cake! Check them out here:

How to Frost, Fill and Crumb Coat a Cake

3 Tips for Getting a Perfectly Level Cake

Follow these steps to easily assemble the butterscotch cake layers:

• If any of the cake layers are domed on top, use a serrated knife to cut off the top to even the cake layers before stacking.
• Using an 8″ or 10″ cake board, add a small amount of frosting to act as glue for the first cake layer to stick to the board. Add one layer of cake.
• Using a giant cookie/ice cream scooper, add 2-3 heaping scoops of frosting, about 3/4 cup- 1 cup. Evenly spread across the cake. Drizzle the butterscotch sauce on top of the frosting and spread. Add the second layer of cake and repeat process. For the final cake layer, turn the cake topside down.
• Apply a thin layer of frosting around the entire cake. This is the crumb coat and does not need to look perfect. Place in the freezer for 10 minutes. This will set the frosting and lock in the crumbs so they do not show up on the final frosting.
• Once the cake has chilled, add another layer of cream cheese frosting and drizzle the top of the cake with the butterscotch sauce.

DECORATING YOUR BUTTERSCOTCH CAKE

The butterscotch cake absolutely needs a butterscotch glaze drizzle! Slightly warm up the butterscotch sauce and generously pour a drizzle all over the top. Using a knife, gently push the sauce over the edge and allow it to drip down the side of the cake.

You can also drizzle on top of the cake and using the back of a spoon, create texture and swirls.

See video below!

Frosting Naked Cake with Caramel Drip

OTHER CAKE RECIPES TO TRY

Chai Bundt Cake with Maple Glaze

Pumpkin Spice Latte Cake

Chocolate Peppermint Bark Cake

The Easiest Homemade Butterscotch Cake Recipe

This Homemade Butterscotch Cake is so easy to make! It's ultra moist and soft and smothered in the most delicious cream cheese frosting and butterscotch sauce.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Servings 15 people

Equipment

• 2 medium mixing bowls
• Whisk
• 2 8" Cake Pans
• Parchment Paper

Ingredients

  

Butterscotch Cake

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 cup oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup greek yogurt

Butterscotch Sauce

• 1 ½ cup heavy cream
• ½ cup brown sugar
• ½ cup dark brown sugar
• 8 tbl butter
• 5 Tablespoons corn syrup
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 tablespoons vanilla

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1 cup butter
• 8 oz cream cheese
• 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
• ¼ cup of butterscotch sauce

Instructions

 

Butterscotch Cake

• Preheat the oven to 350°F degrees. Line 3 6” cake pans or 2 8” cake pans with parchment rounds, spray with oil and lightly dust with flour. Set aside
• In a medium bowl- combine all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and whisk to combine. Set aside
• In a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment- combine oil, dark brown sugar and light brown sugar and mix until combined.
• Add eggs one at a time, mixing until each egg is incorporated before adding the next egg. Add the milk and mix on medium speed for 30 seconds or until combined. Add the Greek Yogurt and mix until combined.
• Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix on medium for 30 seconds or whisk by hand. Stop the mixer when a few ribbons of flour are visible and finish by folding the batter with a spatula and scrapping the sides of the bowl.
• Evenly distribute the cake batter into each prepared cake pan and bake for 25- 35 minutes for 6” cake or 30-40 min for 8” cake. Check cakes by inserting a toothpick in the center. If it comes out clean or with a few crumbs- cakes are done!
• Place on a cooling rack for 10 minutes in the pan before turning the cake pan upside down to release the cake to completely cool.
• Prepare the butterscotch sauce and frosting

Butterscotch Sauce

• Combine sugars, butter, corn syrup, salt and half of the cream in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil (about 5 minutes). Whisk a few times, once the sugar has dissolved.
• Continue cooking until the color turns deep, dark tan. The sauce will be bubbling and visibly becomes thicker or when a candy thermometer reaches 250 degrees F. (about 5-8 minutes after boiling starts). I rely on my nose and eyes to determine when the caramel is done. When it just starts to smell slightly burnt and is a deep dark brown- its done!
• Take the caramel off the heat and add the remaining cream and vanilla. It will bubble and splatter- be careful during this step! Whisk vigorously until combined and smooth.
• Immediately pour sauce into a heatproof bowl or jar to store. Let sit at room temp to cool before placing in the refrigerator. Reheat to use.

Butterscotch Frosting

• Beat the butter and cream cheese on medium speed for 2-4 minutes or until well combined. Add pinch of salt
• Sift confectioners sugar and add 1 cup at a time. Beat on medium speed until combined before adding additional confectioners sugar. Beat until smooth and spreadable. Add up to 1/4 cup of butterscotch sauce and mix to combine. Test frosting for sweetness- if you want the frosting more sweet, add more confectioners sugar 3 tablespoons at a time.

Assembly

• If any of the cake layers are domed on top, use a serrated knife to cut off the top to even the cake layers before stacking.
• Using an 8″ or 10″ cake board, add a small amount of frosting to act as glue for the first cake layer to stick to the board. Add one layer of cake.
• Using a giant cookie/ice cream scooper, add 2-3 heaping scoops of frosting, about 3/4 cup- 1 cup. Evenly spread across the cake. Drizzle the butterscotch sauce on top of the frosting and spread. Add the second layer of cake and repeat the process. For the final cake layer, turn the cake topside down.
• Apply a thin layer of frosting around the entire cake. This is the crumb coat and does not need to look perfect. Place in the freezer for 10 minutes. This will set the frosting and lock in the crumbs so they do not show up on the final frosting.
• Once the cake has chilled, add another layer of cream cheese frosting and drizzle the top of the cake with the butterscotch sauce.

Notes

 

 

 

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