Apple Sheet Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting

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This Apple Sheet Cake is perfect for all your fall gatherings.  Topped with a creamy Salted Caramel Frosting, it is the perfect compliment to this delicious cake. 

Apple Sheet Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting
Salted.  Caramel.  

It could quite possibly be the best stuff.  Drizzle on a warm brownie, top a bowl of  creamy vanilla ice cream or put in frosting.
 
Did I just say put in frosting?
 
Oh yes!  
 
This stuff is dangerous, dangerously good that is.  It is the perfect compliment on this Apple Sheet Cake, among many other things.
 
Fall is hands down my favorite time of year.  From the changing of the leaves, Sunday football, to a weekend apple picking I love fall.  
 
With fall comes cozy weekends at home spending time baking with crisp apples and freshly pureed pumpkin.  I can almost smell the sweet aroma in my kitchen just thinking about it.  
 
As soon as the calendar turns to September I am preparing my menu for the season with what I want to bake.  I have a Pinterest board filled with a lot of fall goodies I am anxious to try along with yearly favorites I like to make.  
 
I have had an obsession with sheet cakes lately.  There is something so comfy and effortless about a sheet cake.  A typical sheet cake is baked in a jelly roll pan that usually measures 11″x 17″ with a 1″ rim.  A similar pan or a more common 9″ x 13″ cake pan can be used instead, just adjusting the cooking time, of course.
 
I thought an apple cake would be a great way to kick my fall baking.  In this cake I shred the apples so you get flecks of fresh apple in each bite.  Sure I could topped this with a classic buttercream frosting, but a caramel frosting, and a salted caramel frosting to boot is perfect.  Plus who doesn’t love caramel with apples.  Nothing tastes more like fall than that.  

Apple Sheet Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting

 

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Apple Sheet Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting

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  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 20 minutes
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 12-16 servings

Ingredients

Apple Sheet Cake

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • Pinch of ground cloves
  • Pinch of ground nutmeg
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • 2 cups peeled grated apples (about 3–4 medium apples)

Salted Caramel Frosting

  • 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter
  • 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup half and half
  • Pinch of cream of tartar
  • 3/4 teaspoon fleur de sel or coarse salt
  • 4 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
  • 2 tablespoons milk

Instructions

Apple Sheet Cake

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease and lightly dust with flour a 11″ x 17″ jelly roll pan and set aside.
  2. In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg and set aside.
  3. In a large bowl using an electric mixer cream together butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time mixing after each addition followed by vanilla extract and milk. Stir in grated apples. Gradually add in flour mixture until blended.
  4. Spread batter evenly on prepared pan and bake in preheated oven for 16-20 minutes until cake tester comes out clean when inserted in the middle.
  5. Cool completely.

Salted Caramel Frosting

  1. In a medium saucepan combine butter, brown sugar, half and half, and cream of tartar over medium heat stirring occasionally until butter is melted and sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil and stir frequently for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in salt. Let cool.
  2. Add cooled caramel, reserving 1 tablespoon in a large bowl along with about one cup of confectioners sugar. Stir using an electric mixer medium speed until confectioners sugar is combined. Continue to add in confectioners sugar in about one cup at at time. Stir in milk until creamy.
  3. Spread frosting on cooled cake. Drizzle with reserved caramel.
  4. Serve with an additional sprinkle of fleur de sel (optional).

Notes

Note: This can also be baked in a 9″ x 13″ cake pan for 35 approximately 35 minutes.

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Apple Sheet Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting

 

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29 Comments

  2. I would love a slice!! My mom had a brownie with salted caramel frosting the other day, and on Sunday, wanted to top a spice cake with a caramel frosting. She came up with something similar to this, and it was so good. I love the apple cake – I bet this combo is killer!

    Reply

  15. I love sheet cakes but you don’t see many recipes for them anymore. I recently made Italian meringue salted caramel buttercream and it was insane! Could you also add some diced apple the batter?

    Reply

  17. Ooh, apple and salted caramel. Nice twist on a classic. I’m diving into Autumn flavours now, but I don’t want pumpkin everything. This should do quite nicely. Thanks.

    Reply

  20. I made this cake for a Halloween party. LOVED IT! Loved everything about it. Thank goodness I made the sheet cake because I had left-overs that I put in the freezer and have enjoyed for the past 3 nights! For all of you who say, ” Sounds great” GET TA BAKIN’. You won’t be disappointed.

    Reply

  21. I was so happy to have found this recipe, and it was so easy and the results were soooo good!!! I have used this frosting for a few different things now and it is always such a hit! Both recipes are written in my book of faves and will definitely be used again. Thank you!!!

    Reply

  24. i’ve made this cake 2 times. The first time I found the cake itself a bit salty (then I figured out the recipe asks for “unsalted butter”.. bah!)
    Very tasty with the frosting. The baking time was closer to 30 min for me, but easy to adjust.

    Reply

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