Recipe: Yellow Buttercake with Easy Caramel Icing (Sussie's Famous Caramel Cake from Taste of the South)

Dear Marbalet,
Here is the recipe you requested.

SUSSIE'S FAMOUS CARAMEL CAKE

This is the one and only Caramel Cake that received rave reviews in Southern Lady's "Taste of the South" Spring 2005 magazine. Sussie's rich yellow butter cake is baked to perfection, then she adds her famous Caramel icing. She still makes her caramel icing in a cast-iron skillet the way her grandmother did. Then topped with real Southern Pecans.

YELLOW BUTTERCAKE WITH EASY CARAMEL ICING
From: Sussie's Bakery in Marks, Mississippi

1/3 cup shortening
1/3 cup butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
2 1/4 cups sifted cake flour, or 2 1/8 cups sifted all purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp butter flavoring
Easy Caramel Icing (recipe follows)

Garnish: pecan halves and grated orange peel

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour two 9 inch round cake pans or one 9x13 inch cake pan. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together shortening and butter with an electric mixer at medium speed. Gradually add sugar and beat until mixture is light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt.

In a small bowl, combine milk and flavorings.

Add dry ingredients alternately with milk mixture to butter mixture, beginning and ending with dry ingredients, beat well after each addition. Ladle batter into prepared pans, dividing equally.

Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. Let cake layers cool for 10 minutes in pans. Invert onto cooling racks and let cool completely.

Frost cake with Easy Caramel Icing, Garnish with pecan halves and grated orange peel if desired.

EASY CARAMEL ICING:
1 cup butter
2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp baking soda
2 Tbsp white corn syrup
1 pinch salt
1 tsp vanilla extract

In a 3 qt saucepan, combine all ingredients. Cook over low heat on stovetop, stirring until ingredients are dissolved. Continue to stir until mixture reaches desired caramel color. For a thick, spreadable icing, cook mixture until it reaches the soft ball stage, 234 to 240. Less cooking time will produce a thinner, pourable icing that will thicken as it cools.

Remove icing from heat and transfer to a mixing bowl to cool until lukewarm.

Beat with an electric mixer at high speed until icing is thick and creamy. If icing becomes too thick, thin with a small amount of corn syrup or milk.