• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Skip to content

Preppy Kitchen logo

  • About
    • Meet John
    • Press
  • Recipes
    • Desserts
    • Breakfast
    • Main Dishes
    • Side Dishes
    • Breads
    • Soups
    • Salads
    • Casseroles
    • Instant Pot
    • Appetizers
    • Drinks
    • Holiday
  • Cookbook
  • Shop
  • Contact
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • About
  • Press
  • All Recipes
  • Cookbook
  • Shop
  • Contact
  • Follow us on

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » Desserts » Cakes » Dulce de Leche Cake

    Dulce de Leche Cake

    Published: April 25, 2017 · Modified: Jun 25, 2019 by John Kanell

    This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

    Dulce de Leche Cake
    3000 shares
    • Share
    • Reddit
    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
    Dulce de Leche Shard Cake

    I LOVE sweetened, condensed milk. It’s what gives ‘German chocolate cake’ that extra-special-something. If I want to treat myself (essentially, any “day” ending in “y” hehe) I’ll add a spoonful of it to my coffee. It helps me enjoy the morning just a little bit more. If you didn’t know…

    What is Dulce de Leche?

    Dulce de Leche is made by heating condensed milk. It’s creamy, sweet and perfect for a cake filling! I was short on time so I bought the ready-made stuff. It was delish.  I used the sugar glass shards to decorate the cake are sooooo dramatic, I love them! It was especially exciting to make them, as it was the FIRST time I’ve ever made hard crack candy without suffering horrible burns! So hot… Be careful. Don’t be clumsy… like me ?  Enjoy!??? Can I just say this decoration scheme would work with so many cakes. I can totally see a lemon or orange cake with these amber shards too. 

    Fill the centers with dulce de leche. You can pipe with a large round tip or just use a spatula.

    How do you make dulce de Leche?

    • If you can’t find it at your local market dulce de leche can be made by cooking sweetened condensed milk.
    • Place can (with label removed) in a large pot covered with 2 inches of water and bring to a boil.
    • Reduce to a simmer and cook for 2 hours. 3 if you would like a darker caramel.

    Cover with buttercream and smooth with an offset spatula and or a bench scraper.

    I LOVE how dramatic this cake looks in direct lighting. All the shards sticking out cast a beautiful amber light.

    If you’ve tried this cake then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
    A phioto showing a dulce de leche cake on a pink cake stand with a piece being removed. The cake is covered in sugar shards
    Print
    4.95 from 17 votes

    Dulce de Leche Cake

    A moist vanilla cake filled with silky dulce de leche and covered in show stopping sugar shards.
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American, Mexican
    Prep Time 1 hour
    Cook Time 30 minutes
    Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
    Servings 12 people
    Calories 273kcal
    Author John Kanell

    Ingredients

    For the Cake

    • 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
    • 2 cups sugar
    • 1/2 tsp baking soda
    • 2 tsp baking powder
    • 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter room temperature
    • 6 egg whites
    • 1 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
    • 1 cup plain yogurt whole milk
    • 1 cup whole milk
    • 3 tbsp bourbon

    For the Buttercream

    • 1 cup butter
    • 5 cups confectioners' sugar
    • 2 pinches kosher salt
    • 3 tbsp bourbon you can use vanilla instead if preferred

    For the filling

    • 26 oz dulce de leche

    For the Shards

    • 3½ cups white granulated sugar
    • 2 cups water
    • 1 cup light corn syrup
    • ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

    Instructions

    For the Sugar Shards

    • Line 2 edged baking sheets with tin foil.
    • Add all the ingredients into a medium saucepan over medium heat, stir and bring to a boil.
    • Set a candy thermometer over the edge of the pan and continue cooking at medium heat until the mixture reaches 300F. This takes about an hour so be patient.
    • Remove from heat and slowly pour onto the lined pans. Allow to cool for about 20 minutes then crack the sugar with a wooden spoon until you have pieces at the desired size.

    For the Cake

    • Butter and flour 3 eight inch pans. I use cake strips on my pans for more even baking as well. Preheat oven to 340F
    • Sift the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
    • Beat the butter until light and fluffy, add the eggs, one at a time while mixing then add in the rest of the wet ingredients and mix until combined. Don't worry if the mixture isn't totally homogenous.
    • Add the wet to the dry and mix until just combined. Use a spatula to give the bowl a scrape and a final mix.
    • Divide the mixture evenly into the cake pans
    • Bake at 340 for about 30-35 minutes or until the centers are springy to the touch.

    For the Buttercream

    • Beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add the confectioners' sugar, salt and bourbon and mix.

    For the Assembly

    • Pipe a circle of buttercream around the edge of the first layer. Fill center with dulce de leche and place next layer on top. Repeat.
    • Cover outside with buttercream and smooth.
    • Place sugar shards on the outside and serve.

    Video

    Notes

    If you can't find dulce de leche just boil a can of sweetened condensed milk in a pot with an inch of water for about an hour. 
    To get FLAT layers that are moist inside and out try using cake strips! You can buy a set on the shop page or make your own from foil and paper towels at home. I made a whole blog post on it so check it out if you’re interested!

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1piece | Calories: 273kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 7.4g | Fat: 10.6g | Saturated Fat: 5.8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2.2g | Cholesterol: 74.3mg | Sodium: 224mg | Potassium: 89mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 30g | Vitamin A: 385IU | Vitamin C: 0.5mg | Calcium: 166mg | Iron: 0.7mg
    *Nutrition Disclaimer
    Have you Tried this Recipe? Tag me Today!Mention @preppykitchen and tag #preppykitchen!
    « Caprese Salad
    Watermelon Canapés »

    Primary Sidebar

    Welcome to Preppy Kitchen!

    Thanks for stopping by! I’m John Kanell, a husband, dad to twins Lachlan and George, Los Angeles native, and an avid baker and cooker of all things delicious thanks to a life long education from my mother. This blog is where I share all of my kitchen creations!

    Search

    Follow Us On

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

    Preppy Kitchen Newsletter

    Sign up to receive recipes, recommendations and tips straight to your inbox!

    As Seen On

    As seen on Elle Décor, People, Food Network and more

    Top recipes This Month

    • A stack of peanut butter cookies on a small wooden board

      Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe

    • An Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookie next to a glass of milk

      Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

    • Lemon bars dusted with powdered sugar on a green and white plate.

      Lemon Bars

    • A group of pink macarons on a serving tray next to flowers

      Macaron Recipe

    • photo of moist Vanilla Cupcakes in pink paper wrappers

      Moist Vanilla Cupcake Recipe

    • A vanilla milkshake, a strawberry milkshake, and a chocolate milkshake with toppings on top with sprinkles around the table.

      How to Make a Milkshake

    • A strawberry cupcake with half a strawberry on top of the pink frosting. More cupcakes and milk in the background.

      Strawberry Cupcakes

    • A slice of lemon cake on a plate in front of a cake stand holding the rest of the cake.

      Lemon Cake

    • A cake stand with a slice of red velvet cake cut out and placed on a plate in front.

      Red Velvet Cake

    • A photo of a vanilla cupcake on a cupcake stand with vanilla buttercream frosting beautifully piped on top.

      Buttercream Frosting

    Footer

    As Seen On:

    Elle Décor, People, Country Living, Better Homes & Gardens, Food Network, Woman's Day, forkly, Yummly, the Bump, Buzz Feed, Home and Family and New York magazine.

    The Brand

    • About John
    • Press

    Preppy Kitchen Logo

    Dessert Recipes

    • Cakes
    • Cookies
    • Cupcakes
    • Pies
    • All Desserts

    Main Course Recipes

    • Main Dishes
    • Side Dishes
    • Casseroles
    • InstantPot
    • Soups
    • Salads

    COPYRIGHT © 2015 - 2020 PREPPY KITCHEN | PRIVACY POLICY

    3000 shares