Salted Caramel Apple Snickers Cake

From Half Baked Harvest we have a great harvest cake, it is that time of year.

Prep Time 1 HOUR

Cook Time 45 MINUTES 

Resting time 2 HOURS 15 MINUTES

Total Time4 HOURS

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 3 eggs at room temperature
• 3/4 cup canola oil
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened apple sauce
• 1 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup + 2 tablespoons strong brewed coffee hot (or warm apple cider)

Salted Caramel

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup honey or corn syrup
• 1 cup apple cider
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter
• 1 tablespoon bourbon
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt + flakey salt for sprinkling
• 3 your favorite SMALL apples * I used granny smith and honeycrisp
• 6 twigs or wooden sticks

Snickers Frosting

• 1 cup unsalted butter softened
• 4 ounces cream cheese softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter not the oily kind
• 1/3 cup salted caramel ingredients above
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup salted peanuts chopped + more for garnish

Chocolate Coating

• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate chopped
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Instructions

To make the Cake

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease three 8-inch (or 9 inch) round cake pans. 
• Line with parchment paper, then butter/spray with cooking spray.
• In a medium size bowl combine the flour, sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice and salt. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a hand held mixer) beat together the eggs, canola oil, apple sauce, and vanilla until smooth.
  
• Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients with the mixer on low until there are no longer any clumps of flour. 
• Add the hot coffee and mix until combined. Batter should be pourable, but not super thin.
• Pour the batter among the 3 cake pans and bake 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops are just set and no longer wiggly in the center. Remove and let cool five minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the pan. 
• Grab 3 large flat plates, line them with wax or parchment paper and invert the cakes onto the paper lined plates. 
• Cover and let the cakes cool completely before frosting.

To Make the Caramel + Frosting

• Place sugar, honey and apple cider in a large saucepan. 
• Bring to a boil, boil, without stirring, 9 minutes or until light golden in color. 
• Add the heavy cream, butter, bourbon, and vanilla, slowly stirring into pan. 
• Boil for 10-15 minutes or until a candy thermometer reads 210 degrees F., stirring frequently. 
• Remove the sauce from heat and add the salt. 
• Using a heat proof measuring cup scoop out 1 cup of caramel sauce and allow it to cool. 
• Cover the remaining sauce and set aside until the cake is ready (I just covered my pot and set it aside overnight).
  
• Now make the frosting, add the butter, cream cheese and powdered sugar to the bowl of stand mixer (or use a hand held mixer). 
• Beat together until the butter is light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. 
• Add the peanut butter, 1/3 cup of the cooled caramel sauce and the vanilla, beat, scraping down the sides as needed, another 2 minutes or until there are no streaks. 
• Stir in the chopped peanuts.To Assemble the Cake

• Place 1 layer of cake, flat side up, on a plate or cake stand. 
• Drizzle the cake with a little salted caramel sauce (from the reserved 1 cup, not from the pot of caramel). 
• With a knife or offset spatula, spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer on top, rounded side up, and drizzle with caramel. 
• Spread the frosting evenly on the top. 
• Add the final layer of cake and drizzle with the remaining caramel. 
• Frost the top and sides of the cake. Don't worry about it being too perfect as you will be covering most of it up. 
• Place the cake in fridge.
• To make the chocolate coating. In a microwave safe bowl add the chocolate and cream. 
• Microwave on high for 30 second intervals, stirring between each until melted. 
• Allow the sauce to cool 3-5 minutes, and then pour the sauce onto the middle of the cake and spread to just the sides, allow the sauce to drip down the sides of the cake. 
• Place the cake in the fridge preferably overnight, but at least 1 1/2 hours. 
• You need the chocolate to be completely set and the frosting firm.

To Finish.

• Once the cake is cool, grab that reserved caramel sauce in the pot. 
• Place it back over medium-high heat and bring it to a boil. 
• Boil for 15-20 minutes or until a candy thermometer reads between 220-230 degrees F (I let mine go to 225 and it was perfect). 
• Remove the sauce from the stove and let is cool 15-20 minutes, stirring every so often. 
• Make sure the caramel does not become too stiff. 
• If it stiffens too much you will not be able to dip the apples. 
• While the sauce cools, push the twigs or wooden sticks into the top of the apples. 
• Line a baking sheet with wax paper.
• When the caramel has cooled (it should be a little thicker now, but still pourable), pour about half the caramel over the cake and allow it to fall down the sides of the cake. 
• Working quickly, dip the apples into the remaining caramel and place the in the center of cake. 
• Sprinkle the cake with flakey salt and peanuts. 
• Make room in the fridge for the cake and refrigerate until firm, at least 30 minutes. 
• The caramel should never get completely hard, but should be more of a soft firm. 
• Once the caramel is firm, store the cake in the fridge until ready to serve. 
• Allow the cake to sit 15 minutes at room temp before serving. 
• Please note: that this is a delicate and with all the toppings it is a bit tricky to slice. 
• Your slices will not be perfect.

Notes

*To cut the cake, I recommend removing the apples and then carefully slicing the cake. 

This is a messy cake guys, the slices will not be perfect. *If you prefer, you do not have to add the caramel apples to the cake. 

It does make the cake a little hard to cut, so you can either skip them or serve them on the side of the cake. *It is important to use small, light apples. 

If you use large apples, the cake has a greater chance of caving in.