Twix Cake

This Twix cake is made up of caramel chocolate cake layers that are baked on a shortbread crust, filled with caramel, and then frosted with a caramel shortbread buttercream frosting. This cake is mind blowing and so delicious!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, English

Prep Time 2

Cook Time 1

Assembly Time 1 15

Total Time 4 15

Servings servings

Calories 1441kcal

Author Whitney Wright

Ingredients

Shortbread Crust

1 cup unsalted butter cold and cubed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

Chocolate Cake

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs room temperature
1 cup buttermilk room temperature
1 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons caramel extract optional
1 cup hot water

Caramel Shortbread (for the shortbread portion of the buttercream):

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt

Caramel Shortbread Buttercream (for the buttercream):

4 cups unsalted butter slightly soft but still cold
3/4 cup thick caramel (I like to use Sanders dessert topping)
2 cups shortbread crumbs
10 cups powdered sugar sifted
1/3-1/2 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons caramel extract optional
pinch salt

Instructions

Shortbread Crust Instructions

Preheat oven to 325º F.
Prepare three 8-inch round cake pans by spraying with nonstick spray and lining the bottom with parchment paper.
In a medium-sized mixing bowl combine sugar, flour, and salt. Using forks or a pastry cutter, cut in the cold, cubed butter until the pieces of butter are no larger than the size of a pea.
Divide mixture evenly into the prepared cake pans. Press firmly and evenly into the pans using the bottom of a glass or clean hands.
Bake for 11-13 minutes or until edges are golden brown and centers are just starting to get some golden color.
Remove from oven to cool slightly but leave the oven at 325º F to bake the cake layers.

Chocolate Cake Instructions

In a medium bowl whisk the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment mix the eggs, buttermilk, vegetable oil, vanilla, caramel extract (if using) until combined.
Add the dry ingredients to the stand mixer and mix until combined. Pour in the hot water and mix on medium speed until combined.
Divide batter evenly between the cake pans and bake for 28-34 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs but no wet batter.
Remove cakes from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Remove from the cake pans and allow cakes to cool on a cooling rack until completely cool.

Caramel Shortbread Buttercream (for the shortbread)

Preheat the oven to 325° F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
In a medium-sized mixing bowl combine sugar, flour, and salt. Using forks or a pastry cutter, cut in the cold, cubed butter until the pieces of butter are no larger than the size of a pea.
Press the mixture firmly and evenly into the center of the baking sheet. Press or roll out with a rolling pin until it’s about ¼ inch thick.
Bake for 11-13 minutes or until edges are golden brown and center is starting to get some golden color. Let cool completely.
Once cool, break the shortbread into pieces and process in a food processor until it resembles fine sand. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days, or frozen for up to 4 weeks.

Caramel Shortbread Buttercream (for the buttercream):

Beat butter and salt until smooth and light in texture and color. Add the caramel and shortbread crumbs and beat until the mixture is homogenous.
Add the powdered sugar, a couple cups at a time, mixing between each addition. Add heavy cream, vanilla, and caramel extract (if using) as the mixture starts to get really thick.
Once all of the ingredients have been added, beat on high for 2-3 minutes.
This can be made a few days in advance and stored in the refrigerator. Set the buttercream out to come to room temperature a few hours before assembling the cake. Once the frosting has softened, beat in a stand mixer until smooth and spreadable.

Assembly

Place a cake layer, crust side down, on a cake board or stand that has a small dollop of buttercream on it. This will help keep the cake from sliding around as you assemble it.
Spread a thin layer of buttercream evenly over the top of the cake layer.
Pipe a rim of buttercream around the top edge of the cake layer to create a dam, and add about 2/3 cup caramel inside the buttercream dam. Be sure to not overfill the cake as it will seep out when you add the next layer and make the cake unstable and difficult to finish icing.
Repeat steps 2 and 3 with the second layer of cake, placing it on top of the first layer.
Place the third cake layer on top and crumb coat the entire cake in a thin layer of buttercream. Refrigerate or freeze for a few minutes, until the buttercream is cold and no longer soft.
Add the final layer of frosting around the entire cake.
We decorated the cake with a caramel drip. To do this we warmed up the extra caramel from the filling for just a few seconds in the microwave, put it in a piping bag and added the drip around the sides of the cake. We then filled in the top with caramel as well. We also used a Wilton 1M piping tip to create swirls topped with pieces of Twix candy bars.

Notes

This is a big batch of buttercream. It will make enough for the buttercream swirls on top of the cake, plus a little extra.

Because it’s such a big batch of buttercream, I recommend making half of the buttercream at a time unless you have a mixer with a large capacity. I have a 5 quart stand mixer and the whole batch just barely fit and was a little hard to mix well.
You can make a smaller batch of buttercream that will just be enough to frost the cake without any decorations using these measurements:
- 3 cups butter
- ½ cup caramel
- 1 ½ cups shortbread crumbs
- 7 ½ cups powdered sugar
- ¼-1/3 cup heavy cream
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon caramel extract
- Pinch of salt

You can make each element of this cake ahead of time and store in the fridge or freezer. For more information on storing and freezing cakes, check out my How to Store and Freeze Cakes guide!

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