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Caramel Apple Spice Cake

Caramel apple spice cake with warm cinnamon-spiced golden layers and a tangy caramel cream cheese frosting. Baked until tender, then frosted, drizzled with caramel, and finished with toffee bits for a bakery-style look.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Servings: 12 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For spice cake
  • 2.5 cup flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 0.5 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp allspice
  • 0.5 tsp cloves
  • 0.5 tsp nutmeg
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 1 cup butter
  • 1.5 cup brown sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 2 cup finely diced apples
For caramel cream cheese frosting
  • 16 oz cream cheese
  • 0.5 cup butter
  • 0.33 cup caramel sauce
  • 4 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
Decoration
  • 1 Extra caramel and toffee bits

Equipment

  • 1 stand mixer
  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Make the spice cake layers
  1. Preheat the oven to 350F and grease two 9-inch pans with a thin, even coating so the cakes release cleanly after baking.
  2. Beat butter and brown sugar until creamy, then beat in eggs one at a time followed by the vanilla until the mixture looks smooth and slightly lighter in color.
  3. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and sour cream, mixing just until combined after each addition; fold in the finely diced apples so the batter is evenly speckled.
  4. Divide the batter between the two pans and bake for 50-55 minutes at 350F until the tops are golden and a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs.
  5. Cool the cakes completely in the pans before frosting so the frosting stays thick and doesn’t melt between the layers.
Frost and decorate
  1. Beat the cream cheese frosting components (cream cheese, butter, caramel sauce, powdered sugar, and vanilla) until fluffy and smooth, stopping to scrape the bowl as needed for an even texture.
  2. Frost the layers and the outside of the cake, using a spatula to spread a consistent coating so the layers look neatly stacked.
  3. Drizzle with caramel and scatter toffee bits over the top as a final visual cue, letting the caramel fall in streaks down the sides.

Notes

Pro tip: finely diced apples help distribute moisture evenly—avoid larger chunks so each slice bakes with a tender crumb. Store covered in the refrigerator up to 4 days; freeze frosted layers (up to 2 months) if wrapped airtight. For a lighter option, swap regular caramel sauce for reduced-sugar caramel if desired, keeping the same frosting method.