Turtle Cake
Super indulgent turtle cake made with my favorite black cocoa cake, frosted with a simple chocolate buttercream and a caramel pecan filling made with homemade salted caramel sauce.
Equipment
- 1 large bowl
- 1 Whisk
- 1 stand mixer or hand mixer
- 1 8x3 inch or three 8 inch pans see blog post for other size options
- 1 offset spatula
- 1 large knife
Ingredients
Black Cocoa Cake
- 240 grams (2 cups) cake flour
- 80 grams (1 cup) black cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 14 grams (1 Tbsp) baking powder
- 350 grams (1 3/4 cup) granulated sugar
- 160 mL (2/3 cup) canola oil or any neutral oil
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 150 grams (2/3 cup) sour cream
- 240 mL (1 cup) hot coffee I use Americano
Salted Caramel Sauce
- 200 grams (1 cup) granulated sugar
- 60 mL (1/4 cup) water
- 82 grams (6 Tbsp) salted butter room temperature
- 120 mL (1/2 cup) heavy whipping cream room temperature
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
Caramel Pecan Filling
- 7.5 oz (about 3/4 cup) caramel
- 168 grams (1.5 cups) pecan halves finely chopped
Chocolate Buttercream
- 340 grams (3 sticks) unsalted butter room temperature
- 480 grams (4 cups) powdered sugar
- 80 grams (1 cup) cocoa powder* I used dutch-processed, natural is fine too
- Tiny pinch of fine sea salt
- 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 180 mL (3/4 cup) heavy cream
Instructions
Black Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350F (I use convection cuz my oven runs really hot at the bottom - conventional is also fine) and grease and line an 8x3 inch or three 8 inch baking pans with baking spray and parchment paper (I prefer one cake pan and slice them into thirds but if you bake three layers, you'll get about 14-15 ounces in each).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt until they’re evenly distributed.240 grams (2 cups) cake flour, 80 grams (1 cup) black cocoa powder, 1/2 tsp fine sea salt, 14 grams (1 Tbsp) baking powder
- In a separate large bowl, whisk the sugar, oil, eggs and sour cream until they’re well combined and smooth.350 grams (1 3/4 cup) granulated sugar, 160 mL (2/3 cup) canola oil, 2 large eggs, 150 grams (2/3 cup) sour cream
- Sift the dry ingredients over the wet and whisk them together, just a little - about halfway or so.
- Pour in the hot coffee and whisk until the batter is completely smooth and all the dry ingredients are combined.240 mL (1 cup) hot coffee
- Scrape the edge of the bowl and give it a good mix. Pour into prepared cake tin(s).
- Bake for 40ish minutes (or 15-20 minutes if baking three separate layers), until the tallest part of the cake, in the center, springs back when you press on it. If you’re hesitant, give it another minute or so.
- Let the cake rest for 10 minutes in the pan, then flip over onto a tea towel and let the cake cool upside down for 30 minutes or so before flipping back over.
- Once it's cooled (make everything else meanwhile), slice the cake in half.
Salted Caramel Sauce
- Begin by preparing the homemade salted caramel sauce. In a medium saucepan, heat the sugar and water over medium heat. Place the lid on the pan and remove it every 2-3 minutes to swirl (NOT stir) the sugar.200 grams (1 cup) granulated sugar, 60 mL (1/4 cup) water
- Once the sugar changes to an amber color, remove it from heat (it will continue cooking because the pan is hot so do this immediately). Stir in the butter and whisk continuously. Once that's combined, stir in the heavy cream and then the salt.82 grams (6 Tbsp) salted butter, 120 mL (1/2 cup) heavy whipping cream
- Once it's all mixed, pour it into a heat safe bowl and stir in the salt. Set it aside and allow it to cool completely (can refrigerate for a little if needed and you can make the buttercream while you wait).1 tsp fine sea salt
Caramel Pecan Filling
- Once the caramel has cooled to room temperature, place the pecans in a pot over medium heat to toast. Stir every couple of minutes until they brown a little and smell nice. Careful not to burn.168 grams (1.5 cups) pecan halves
- Chop the pecans pretty finely - not ground up but pretty small chunks kind of like diced veggies).
- Measure out the caramel (I recommend a scale) into a medium bowl and fold in the chopped pecans.7.5 oz (about 3/4 cup) caramel
Chocolate Buttercream
- Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat the butter for a few minutes, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl halfway through.340 grams (3 sticks) unsalted butter
- Add the powdered sugar, cocoa powder and salt and beat the frosting for another few minutes, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl halfway through.480 grams (4 cups) powdered sugar, 80 grams (1 cup) cocoa powder*, Tiny pinch of fine sea salt
- Add the vanilla and slowly stream in the heavy whipping cream with the mixer going on low speed. Scrape the edges and give it another good mix at medium-high speed to get it all combined and fluffy.2 tsp vanilla bean paste, 180 mL (3/4 cup) heavy cream
Assemble
- Place the frosting in a piping bag fit with a round tip.
- Spread a thin layer of frosting on the first layer of cake and then pipe a border of frosting around the edge - make sure it's a nice thick border to hold the caramel in.
- Fill the border in with a layer of the caramel pecan mixture (I used just under half for each layer, leaving me just a tiny bit for decorating the top). If the cake feels soft/unsteady at this point, refrigerate it for about 15-20 minutes so the buttercream can firm up before stacking the next layer.
- Repeat with the second layer of cake. Refrigerate and then place the third layer on top.
- Refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes minutes, or until it feels sturdy enough to frost the outside.
- Use the rest of the chocolate frosting to frost the outside of the cake and top with any leftover pecan filling and/or extra caramel sauce.
Notes
*Can use a little less cocoa (40g-60g or 1/2 cup-3/4 cup) if you don't want it so dark!
Nutrition
Calories: 765kcalCarbohydrates: 84gProtein: 6gFat: 49gSaturated Fat: 21gPolyunsaturated Fat: 6gMonounsaturated Fat: 19gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 104mgSodium: 365mgPotassium: 255mgFiber: 5gSugar: 66gVitamin A: 1031IUVitamin C: 0.3mgCalcium: 106mgIron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!