It’s love at first bite with this Keto Caramel Cake. Just like the classic Southern dessert but with a mere fraction of the carbs.
There are some recipes that just make me absolutely dance with joy. And this Keto Caramel Cake is one of those recipes. With two layers of the tender low carb vanilla cake and a rich glaze of sugar free caramel, it is keto dessert heaven.
And I don’t say that lightly because I make a lot of heavenly keto desserts. I have a sweet tooth and I am not afraid to use it. Nor am I afraid to get in there and attempt to make a keto version of traditional desserts like Southern Caramel Cake. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?
You may have noticed that I take a lot of inspiration from Southern desserts. Recipes like Keto Italian Cream Cake and Keto Kentucky Butter Cake are some of my most popular. And this caramel cake deserves its place among them!
Why you will love this recipe
This recipe features two layers of keto vanilla cake and two batches of my well-loved sugar-free caramel sauce. The only real difference is that the caramel sauce is made to be a little thicker, so it doesn’t ooze right off the cake.
It isn’t difficult to make, but it does take some patience to spread the caramel and allow it to set properly. But once it does, you have the most delectably moist, flavorful cake with an ooey gooey frosting.
And while it looks and tastes like the real deal, it has only 3.9g net carbs per serving!
Reader Reviews
“OMG???????? Speechless. I cannot believe how lush this cake is! The cake batter is superb. I’ve found my favourite go to almond flour cake batter. It so moist. I’ve made three cakes this week using the same cake batter but different flavours. Thank you so much for sharing” — Jennifer
“This is the best tasting low carb cake i have ever made and ive made many since my diagnosis. so buttery delicious with high carb texture. i will be making it again and again. thank you very much.” — Melvin
“This is hands down the most amazing cake I have ever had!! My mom used to make the best caramel cake and I have been craving it but it doesn’t fit into my Keto lifestyle. This was sooooo good!! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Even my non-Keto family love it!” — Patricia
Ingredients you need
- Almond flour: You really do need to use a good finely ground almond flour for this recipe. See the Tips for Success for other options.
- Coconut flour: A little coconut flour gives the cake a lighter, fluffier consistency. It also helps cut down in fat and calories!
- Protein powder: Adding protein powder to keto cakes helps the rise better and hold their shape.
- Sweetener: I use a combination of both Swerve and allulose in the cake and the glaze. See Tips for more info.
- Almond milk: You can also use water or half water/half cream.
- Sugar free caramel sauce: The glaze takes 2 batches of my sugar-free caramel sauce, but you will skip the water because you want it to be thicker.
- Pantry staples: Butter, eggs, baking powder, vanilla extract, and salt
Step by Step Directions
1. Mix the dry ingredients: Whisk together the almond flour, coconut flour, whey protein, baking powder, and salt in a medium sized bowl.
2. Cream the butter: In a large bowl, beat the butter and sweeteners together until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time and scrape down the beaters and bowl as necessary. Beat in the vanilla extract
3. Finish the batter: Add the dry ingredients to the bowl and beat until well combined. Add just enough liquid to thin the batter to a scoopable and easily spreadable consistency.
4. Bake. Divide the batter between two greased 8-inch cake pans lined with parchment paper and spread to the edges. Smooth the tops and bake at 325ºF for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the edges are golden and the tops are firm to the touch.
5. Cool the cakes. Remove and let cool in the pans, then flip out onto a wire rack. Be sure to peel off the parchment paper if it sticks to the cake layers.
6. Make the caramel sauce. Prepare a double batch of the Sugar Free Caramel Sauce but DO NOT add the additional water at the end of the recipe. Be sure to use a large saucepan (at least 3 quarts) as it will bubble up quite a bit. Let the sauce cool down to room temperature. It should be quite thick at this point, but still pourable, and it will continue to thicken as it cools.
7. Assemble the cake. Place one layer of cake on a serving plate and pour about 1/3 of the caramel sauce on top. Carefully spread to the edges with an offset spatula and let sit another 10 to 15 minutes to thicken further.
Place the second layer of cake on top. Pour some of the caramel over the top, letting it drip down the sides, spreading it over the top and sides as you go. Continue until the top and sides are well covered. Alternatively, you can simply let it drip down the sides and not spread it over.
Tips for Success
Make sure you have the butter very well softened and the eggs at room temperature so you don’t end up with a clumps of cold butter throughout your batter!
Protein powder is an important ingredient in this recipe, to help the cake rise better. Should you choose to skip it, I cannot guarantee the results.
The caramel sauce isn’t hard to make but if you find it too thick or too thin, you can still rescue it. For thin caramel sauce, bring it back to a low boil and cook for another 2 minutes or so. You can also whisk in more sweetener. If it becomes overly thick, you can thin it out by adding a little water over low heat.
This Keto Caramel Cake is very rich and luscious. I have written the recipe as 12 servings but it can easily be divided into 16.
Nut-Free Option: If you would prefer a nut-free recipe, try the batter from my Keto Chantilly Cake. You will still want to bake it in two layers so keep your eye on it.
Sweetener Options
I used a mix of Swerve Granular and allulose for the cake and the glaze. For the cake, you can use your favorite sweetener, but keep in mind that using just allulose may cause it to darken quite a bit on the outside.
The glaze works best with the sweeteners listed in the caramel recipe. If you change the ratios and use more Swerve, it may re-crystallize as it cools. I also find that caramel sauce made with just allulose has a slightly sour flavor, so I can’t recommend that either.
Frequently Asked Questions
Keto caramel is made with butter, sweetener, cream, and salt. I recommend a mix of erythritol and allulose for the best consistency and flavor.
You can bake the cake layers and store it in the refrigerator a day or two before assembling and serving. You can also wrap the cake layers in plastic wrap and freeze it. Just thaw completely, then assemble with the caramel sauce.
This keto caramel cake recipe has 7g of carbs and 31g of fiber per serving. That comes to 3.9g net carbs per slice.
More delicious keto caramel recipes
Keto Caramel Cake
Ingredients
- 2 cups (220 g) almond flour
- 1/3 cup (35 g) unflavored whey protein powder
- 1/4 cup (28 g) coconut flour
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup (113.5 g) butter, softened
- 1/3 cup (66.67 g) Swerve Granular
- 1/3 cup (66.67 g) allulose, (or more Swerve)
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup (78.86 ml) almond milk, (or water)
- 2 batches sugar free caramel sauce
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF and grease 2 8-inch round cake pans. Line the bottom of the pans with parchment and grease the parchment as well.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, whey protein, coconut flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and sweeteners together until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time and scrape down the beaters and bowl as necessary. Beat in the vanilla extract
- Add the dry ingredients to the bowl and beat until well combined. Add just enough liquid to thin the batter to a scoopable and easily spreadable consistency.
- Divide the batter between the two cake pans and spread to the edges. Smooth the tops and bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until the edges are golden and the tops are firm to the touch.
- Remove and let cool in the pans, then flip out onto a wire rack. Be sure to peel off the parchment paper if it sticks to the cake layers.
Caramel Glaze
- Prepare a double batch of the Sugar Free Caramel Sauce but DO NOT add the additional water at the end of the recipe. Be sure to use a large saucepan (at least 3 quarts) as it will bubble up quite a bit.
- Let the sauce cool down to room temperature. It should be quite thick at this point, but still pourable, and it will continue to thicken as it cools.
- **If your caramel sauce is too thin, you can bring it back to a simmer and continue to cook it a few more minutes to help it thicken. At this point, you can also whisk in a bit more thickener like xanthan gum or glucomannan.
- Place one layer of cake on a serving plate and pour about 1/3 of the caramel sauce on top. Carefully spread to the edges with an offset spatula and let sit another 10 to 15 minutes to thicken further.
- Place the second layer of cake on top. Pour some of the caramel over the top, letting it drip down the sides, spreading it over the top and sides as you go. Continue until the top and sides are well covered. Alternatively, you can simply let it drip down the sides and not spread it over.
- Refrigerate the cake at least 1 hour to help set the glaze.
Notes
Nutrition
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Loved this cake! It’s kind of funny but I have a carpet cleaner out once a year. I learned a couple of years ago that it always seems to happen on the week of his birthday. So I try to bake him something every year. This was perfect and he absolutely loved it too!
Do you know the bake times if this recipe was baked as cupcakes or as a rectangle in a 13×9 pan?
Sounds Delicious! I was going to make this today however, I don’t have any whey protein powder. is there a substitute?
No substitutes…if you don’t use it, the cake will not rise as nicely.
You speak the truth: so good, I was speechless, all the better to keep on eating this wonderful cake. I made it for my birthday, added an extra 1/4 teaspoon xanthan to the caramel glaze. It was perfectly spreadable, and fabulously rich.
Is it possible to use Monk fruit blend in the cake and glucosamine in the Carmel?
“Monk fruit blend” is typically made with erythritol, which makes it very much like Swerve, so yes. I am not sure glucomannan has the same syrupy effect for caramel sauce but for this frosting I *think* it should work.
How should this cake be stored? In the fridge?
Yes, tightly wrapped up.
Hello can you use monkfruit in place of the bocca sweetner
No, because “monk fruit” usually refers to a sweetener that is mostly erythritol with a tiny bit of monk fruit to make it sweeter. The only good sub is allulose.
Delicious! I used salted caramel in the middle because I love the marriage of sweet and salt, and because I’m a chocolate lover, I made a dark chocolate ganache for the top. My cake didn’t look half as pretty as yours but it’s still going down a treat. Thank you so much, your recipes are always marvellous 🙂
OMG???????? Speechless. I cannot believe how lush this cake is! The cake batter is superb. I’ve found my favourite go to almond flour cake batter. It so moist. I’ve made three cakes this week using the same cake batter but different flavours. Thank you so much for sharing.. My only bad point is that I wished the measurements were in grams.. I live in the UK and I don’t really use cups.
Your wish is my command! I just added the metric conversions. Actually, I have been meaning to do it for a lot of older posts but I find the automatic conversions for almond flour and coconut flour to be off, so I have to do them by hand.
Happy Birthday Carolyn. I too am a Canadian March baby! I am a caramel lover – much more than chocolate. I am excited about this recipe and am going to bake this cake for my birthday. I am sure my diabetic husband and keto me will love it!!
Hey, Carolyn! My whey protein powder has collagen in it, is that okay? Oh and HAPPY BIRTHDAY! ????
I have had this recipe for about a year and finally decided to make this cake two days ago. It is delicious. Thank you so much for this recipe. Caramel cake is my favorite cake and since I have been doing Keto going and buying a slice from time to time has been a weakness. I made this cake with some Vanilla Keto Ice Cream and it is everything that I have been missing from my pre-keto days.
I have one question. If I reduce the amount of Bocha Sweet in the Caramel sauce, will it harden a little? I don’t want it to become brick-like, but I would like for it to harden a bit after it sits.
Again, Great recipe!
Carolyn,this was amazing! I used the Swerve and Allulose combination for the frosting and I halved the cake recipe so that I just had one layer. The cake is so buttery and soft and the caramel was great! Thank you for all of the hard work you pour into your recipes!
Made this recipe, it was delicious but… It had a strong baking powder sting..
Does this cake really need a tablespoon of baking powder? Or is it a mistake??
Are you using baking powder with aluminum? That’s probably the issue…. It’s not a misprint, keto cakes like this need more encouragement to rise properly.