BridgetDela, If you search this site for caramel frostings, you will find dozens to choose from. As for the cake, if your FIL is used to box cakes, he's likely to find a from-scratch cake dense. On the other hand, from-scratch cakes taste fresher. If you are not an experienced baker, this might not be the best time to experiment with scratch recipes.

Here's a caramel frosting recipe to get you started:

CARAMEL FROSTING

1 cup (2 sticks) margarine
3 cups sugar
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine margarine and sugar in a large saucepan. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture turns a light brown.

Remove from heat. Stir in milk; carefully bring mixture to boiling; lower heat. Put candy thermometer in mixture.

Cook, stirring gently, to 238 degrees (soft ball stage). Remove from heat; add vanilla; cool to 110 degrees.

Beat with spoon until mixture loses its gloss. This will take about 5 minutes.

Fill and frost cake quickly before mixture stiffens.