Army Cake with Caramel Icing
Ooooooh this Army Cake with Caramel Icing! The best! Just ask anyone in my family, my husband, our friends, my kids, their friends. This recipe is tried and true and has been loved by so many people over the years. The name Army Cake comes from my mother in law who always called her vanilla sheet cake an “army cake”. Serving sheet cake to a large number of people is obviously so much easier than trying to serve a layer cake!
Not only is it easier to serve, but also easier and quicker to get the cake batter into just one baking pan and into the oven. It bakes up nicely in about 30 minutes. Then, you pour a rich, decadent caramel icing on top of the light, airy vanilla cake after it has cooled. This slightly salty, pourable icing turns out perfect every time and is beyond delicious. Hard to resist this one, any time of year!
One thing to remember is that the original recipe from many years ago starts with an 18.25 ounce box of cake mix. If you haven’t noticed, most cake mixes today are no longer 18.25 ounces. They are anywhere from 13.25 to 15 or 16.25 ounces now. So make sure you purchase two boxes of cake mix so that you can measure out the 18.25 ounces. Use a simple kitchen scale to weigh the cake mix. Trust me in that you need all 18.25 ounces or the cake won’t turn out right. Baking is chemistry!
This yummy Army Cake with Caramel Icing is such an easy way to serve a super delicious dessert to a crowd, large or small. After a casual dinner or Sunday lunch, at a tailgate or a spring party. All year round. Oh and be ready for your guests to ask for seconds!
Army Cake with Caramel Icing
Ingredients
- 18.25 ounces vanilla cake mix will probably need 2 boxes to measure out 18.25 ounces as current cake mix packages vary in weight depending on brand
- 1/4 cup butter melted and cooled slightly
- 2 eggs
- 1¼ cups buttermilk
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Caramel Icing
- 2 sticks salted butter
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2½ cups powdered sugar sifted
- pinch kosher salt
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Make the cake:Preheat oven to 350℉. Butter the bottom of a 13×9 rectangular baking pan and set aside. Beat the cake mix, butter, eggs and buttermilk at low speed of an electric stand mixer until the ingredients are combined. Scrape down the sides and add the vanilla and the almond extracts. Beat for 2 minutes on medium speed until batter is smooth, scraping down sides of the bowl as needed. Pour the batter into prepared baking pan and bake for 25 minutes. Check to see if done by inserting a wooden pick into the middle of the cake. Will come out clean when done. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for about 30 minutes.
- Make the icing:In a medium saucepan, melt the butter together with the brown sugar and cream. Stir well and bring to a boil. Allow to boil for about 2 minutes until all the brown sugar is dissolved and mixture is light tan in color. Stir in the salt and remove from heat. Carefully pour this hot sugar mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer. Add in the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat, using the wire whisk attachment, for about 2 minutes or so. The powdered sugar should be completely incorporated and the texture will be shiny and thick but easily pourable. Pour the icing on top of the cake and use a spatula if necessary to smooth evenly over the whole cake. The icing will set in 20-30 minutes. Enjoy!