Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: The combination of milk chocolate and salted caramel is a match made in confectionary heaven. Every bite tastes like a candy bar!
Texture: The cake is ultra fudgy and sturdy enough to being poked, without being dense or dry. The thick and smooth caramel and light and creamy whipped ganache are just over-the-top goodness in every bite.
Ease: The cake batter is actually made in a pot over the stove, you don’t even need your mixer! And I actually used my hand blender with the whisk attachment to make the whipped ganache. To make things really easy, you can pick up a jar of Trader Joe’s salted caramel too.
Pros: A supremely decadent and delightful dessert.
Cons: Very sweet and rich!
Would I make this again? Absolutely, this one was a crowd pleaser for sure!
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Chocolate Caramel Poke Cake requires no special equipment or artistic decorating skills, which I always love in a cake recipe. Sometimes you just don’t want to worry about assembling, decorating, and and transporting! That’s why this cake would be perfect for a casual potluck, picnic, or just when the craving hits.
The cake itself is a very rich and fudgy cake that can withstand being poked and filled with caramel. The texture is a cross between a cake and a brownie!
It should be cut into squares just before serving. It’s very rich and sweet, so if you wanted to cut into smaller squares for a larger group that would be totally fine.
I absolutely prefer milk chocolate for this Chocolate Caramel Poke Cake inside the whipped ganache frosting. However, if you want to dial back on the sweetness feel free to use semisweet or even dark chocolate chips.
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Chocolate Caramel Poke Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 4 ounces (113 grams) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 1/2 cups (191 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup (25 grams) cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
- 4 ounces (113 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs
For the topping:
- 8 ounces (227 grams) milk chocolate, chopped
- 1/2 cup (125 ml) heavy cream
- 1/2 cup salted caramel,
homemade or store bought - Chocolate chips, for garnish
Instructions
Make the cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a small saucepan, combine the bittersweet chocolate with 1 cup (250ml) water over low heat. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes or until the chocolate melts. Set aside to cool.
- In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the flour and melted chocolate mixture to the bowl, in alternating batches, until everything is just combined.
- Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool for 30 minutes.
Make the topping:
- Meanwhile, place the milk chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Pour the cream into a small saucepan set over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Pour over the chopped chocolate and let stand for 5 to 10 minutes to allow the hot cream to melt the chocolate. Whisk until smooth.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes, or until just firm. Using an electric mixer, beat the mixture until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes.
Finish the cake:
- Once the cake has cooled for 30 minutes, place it on a serving plate. Use the end of a wooden skewer to pierce the cake all over in 1-inch intervals.
- If needed, warm the caramel over the stove or in the microwave to make more pourable. Carefully pour the caramel into each hole. Spread the top with the chocolate topping then sprinkle with chocolate chips. Cut into squares and serve with any remaining caramel.
Photos by Constance Higley.
Enjoy your recipes, however, would like your format to be easier to print in just one page like so many other blogs………any possibilities of arranging this?
Thank you
I too am confused. The video doesn’t mention or show caramel and the recipe only mentions the heating of it up, but it’s not in the recipe.
It does show the caramel! It’s just pretty dark in color.
And yes, the caramel is mentioned in the recipe. Maybe you missed it? Under the ingredients it says “1/2 cup salted caramel, homemade or store-bought (I like Trader Joe’s)” with a link to the homemade recipe, and then in the directions, “If needed, warm the caramel over the stove or in the microwave to make more pourable. Carefully pour the caramel into each hole.”
This looks amazing. I think I’ll try it at our family reunion next week.
Let me know how you like it!
Can this be doubled?
i also am confused, it is like the recipe does not match your description. why would i chill the carmel then to warm it up? this recipe is not correct
I’m not sure what you’re talking about, Cyndi. Did you read the recipe? There is no chilling of caramel…
This looks great but I’m confused. Your introduction says “No creaming butter and sugar together” but one of the steps in making the cake is creaming the butter and sugar together. Your recipe does not match your description (the only thing you use the saucepan for is to melt the chocolate and water.