Chocolate Dulce de Leche Caramel Turtle Cake Recipe

This chocolate dulce de leche caramel turtle cake recipe is SO SO GOOD!  It is decadent and delicious and perfect for a holiday-time treat or any time you want the best turtle cake you’ll ever have!!!

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This chocolate turtle cake is a recipe that started as a recipe from one of Martha Stewart’s cookbooks on cake (<- just read somewhere this past weekend she has 98 cookbooks to her name, whoa). I love Martha Stewart’s Cake cookbook and Ben and I always make a chocolate cake recipe from it.  Side note -you know it’s a good recipe because it always comes out good, even when baking with a toddler (which leaves plenty of room for error!)  I took that inspiration from that cookbook/cake and took it to the next level by adding chocolate and caramel and pecans to turn it into a turtle cake!

She has some really great recipes and the simple chocolate cake is a great starting point.  From there, I made up the most delicious frosting and toppings and put it all together into a chocolate dulce de leche caramel turtle cake.

What are the basic steps for making this cake?

You’ll bake the cakes first:

1. Spray two round cake pans with cooking spray.

2. Cut a circle of parchment paper and line the bottom of the cake pans and set aside.  I like using Gold Touch pans.

3. Preheat oven to 350.

4. In a bowl add flour, baking soda and salt and set aside.

5. In another bowl with a hand or stand mixer, beat butter and granulated and brown sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs and yolk 1 at a time. Beating well after each addition. Add in vanilla extract. Mix sour cream and milk together in a bowl.

6. Now alternating between the flour mixture and sour cream, add in alternating flour and sour cream/milk in batches (I did this in 3-4 additions starting and ending with flour – flour, sour cream/milk, flour, sour cream/milk, flour, sour cream/milk, flour), beating and incorporating in between each addition. Add in melted chocolate and beat again (I melted chocolate in the microwave in 30 second intervals).

7. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean out of the center. Transfer pans to a wire rack to cool for 20 minutes, then turn out cakes onto rack to cool completely.

8. Cut the domed top off cake to make a straight stacking layer.

Then prepare the thick chocolate frosting

1. Microwave chocolate chips (or chunks) in 30 second intervals, stirring in between until melted (mine usually takes 2 minutes). Be careful to stir in between and not overcook. Cut butter into cubes (about 1 tablespoon per cute) and put butter on top of melted chocolate and stir until all the butter is melted.

2. With a hand or stand blender, slowly blend in powdered sugar.

And last comes the assembly:

1. Put bottom cake layer (with domed top cut off) on a cake stand or plate.

2. Spread 1/3 of the frosting on the top of the cut off layer. Add 1/2 cup caramel sauce and 1/2 cup chopped candied pecans.

3. Place the second cake on top. Use the remaining frosting to frost the top and sides of cake. Add remaining pecans and sprinkle around the top. Use the caramel to drizzle around the edges or in a zig zag pattern on top.

4. Slice and enjoy!

And like the homemade chocolate birthday cake and chocolate layer cake, this chocolate cake is made with sour cream.  Sounds funny right?  But there is certainly something to be said about a good chocolate cake made with sour cream (something I’d literally never heard of until I started baking homemade chocolate cakes a few years ago, as an adult).

Not only is this cake decedent, but it’s large.  So I would say it comfortably serves 10-12 people.

Oh and the chocolate dulce de leche caramel turtle cake recipe makes a great chilled cake too.  It’s actually super good if you put it in the fridge so the frosting gets a little cool.  Yum!

Dulce de leche is thick caramel sauce, you could use store bought dulce de leche or a rich goat’s milk caramel, like this one (you can use code SWEETPHI for $1 off that caramel).

Chocolate Dulce de Leche Caramel Turtle Cake Recipe

This layer cake is so decadent and delicious! It includes all of the best flavors of chocolate and caramel and comes together easily for a beautiful chocolate turtle cake.

5 from 3 votes

Print Rate

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes minutes

Cooling time: 1 hour hour

Servings: 10 people

Equipment

• Round Cake Pans (Gold Touch)
• KitchenAid® Artisan Stand Mixer
• Electric hand mixer

Ingredients

Cake

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar packed
• 2 large whole eggs
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups sour cream
• 3/4 cup milk
• 4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate (chips or chunks) melted

Frosting

• 8 oz. dark chocolate melted
• 1 cup butter (2 sticks)
• 3 cups powdered sugar

Toppings

• 1 cup candied pecans *see notes below
• 1 cup dulce de leche or caramel sauce

Instructions

To Make the Cakes

• Spray two round cake pans with cooking spray. 
• Cut a circle of parchment paper and line the bottom of the 9 inch cake pans and set aside. I like using these gold touch pans.
• Preheat oven to 350. 
• In a bowl add flour, baking soda and salt and set aside. 
• In another bowl with a hand or stand mixer, beat butter and granulated and brown sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs and yolk 1 at a time. Beating well after each addition. Add it vanilla extract. Mix sour cream and milk in a bowl.
  
• Now, alternating between the flour mixture and sour cream/milk, add in alternating flour and sour cream/milk in batches (I did this in 3-4 additions starting and ending with flour - flour, sour cream mixture, flour, sour cream mixture, flour, sour cream mixture, flour), beating and incorporating in between each addition. Add in melted chocolate and beat again (I melted chocolate in the microwave in 30 second intervals). 
  
• Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean out of the center. Transfer pans to a wire rack to cool for 20 minutes, then turn out cakes onto rack to cool completely. 
  
• Cut the domed top off cake to make a straight stacking layer.
  

For the Frosting:

• Microwave chocolate chips (or chunks) in 30 second intervals, stirring in between until melted (mine usually takes 2 minutes). Be careful to stir in between and not overcook. Cut butter into cubes (about 1 tablespoon per cute) and put butter on top of melted chocolate and stir until all the butter is melted. 
  
• With a hand or stand blender, slowly blend in powdered sugar. 

To Assemble the Cake:

• Put bottom cake layer (with domed top cut off) on a cake stand or plate. 
• Spread 1/3 of the frosting on the top of the cut off layer. Add 1/2 cup caramel sauce and 1/2 cup chopped candied pecans.
  
• Place the second cake on top. Use the remaining frosting to frost the top and sides of cake. Add remaining pecans and sprinkle around the top. Use the caramel to drizzle around the edges or in a zig zag pattern on top. 
  
• Slice and enjoy

Notes

For candied pecans:  you can home make these or buy them at the store. Trader Joes has great options or you can buy praline nuts at the grocery store.

The nutrition information presented on this site should be considered an estimate as the calculations will change based on the exact products you use in your own kitchen.