Salted Caramel Popcorn Cake

If you aren't afraid of a ton of butter, this recipe is for you! I will say, this is by far the most decadent, rich, heart clogging recipe I've posted in a long time, so do what you will with that information. There are three components to this cake - the actual cake itself, the frosting, and the popcorn topping.

The cake is just a standard white cake. Below is the recipe to make that cake from scratch, but feel free to use your favorite box mix as that will work just as well. My only suggestion if you're using cake mix is to add one more egg than the box requires and replace any water with milk. This will make the mix a lot fluffier and taste like you bought it from a bakery! The frosting is very sweet - you're gonna make a caramel for both the frosting and the popcorn so it'll punch you in the face with that caramel flavor. And the popcorn, the best part in my humble opinion, can just be eaten as is without the cake! I just used regular Act II buttered popcorn from a bag right out of the microwave so don't feel like you have to buy plain popcorn for this recipe.

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Servings: 12-16

Prep Time: 1 hr

Total Time: 5 hrs 35 min

INGREDIENTS:

The Cake...

• 1 cup sugar

• 1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

• 2 eggs

• 2 tsp vanilla

• 1 1/2 cups flour

• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 cup milk

The Frosting...

• 1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened

• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream

• Pinch of salt

• 2 tsp vanilla

• 5 cups powdered sugar

The Topping...

• 1 cup butter (2 sticks)

• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar

• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

• Pinch of salt

• 1 bag of popped popcorn (10 cups)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease one 9 inch round cake pan and line the bottom of with parchment paper.

2. Cream the butter and sugar for the cake batter for about 2 minutes. With the mixer on low, beat in the eggs, one at a time, slowly add in the vanilla, flour, and baking powder. Finally, slowly add in the milk until the batter is smooth.

3. Pour the batter into your prepared pan. If you want a taller cake, double the cake recipe and use two cake pans.

4. Bake the cake for 30-40 minutes. Cool completely before assembling (at least 2 hours or overnight).

5. To make the frosting, melt butter on the stove in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Once melted, add the brown sugar, and 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream and bring to a boil. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly so it doesn't burn or boil over.

6. Remove from heat and stir in salt and vanilla until combined.

7. Transfer to a heat-proof mixing bowl. Let cool to room temperature (about 1 hour).

8. Add powdered sugar to the cooled caramel bit by bit until it starts to get crumbly. Add the rest of the heavy whipping cream and mix until creamy. If the consistancy is too liquid for your liking, add more powdered sugar. If it's too dry, add a little more cream. Add more salt to taste.

9. Cut cooled cake in half horizontally so you have two rounds. Place one round on your serving platter. Spread about a 1/4 of the frosting on top of the round and place the second round on top. Frost the rest of the cake and place in the refrigerator for at least an hour to set.

10. For the topping, you'll start similarly to how you made the frosting. Melt butter on the stove in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Once melted, add the brown sugar, and 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream and bring to a boil. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly so it doesn't burn or boil over.

11. Remove from heat and stir in salt. Place popcorn in a large bowl. Add about a cup of the caramel to the popcorn and mix until the popcorn is coated.

12. Pour remaining caramel so it drips down the edges of your cake. Place the caramel popcorn on top of the cake. Enjoy!