Holy. Cow. I think the reason the Caramel Cake is missing is that it gets eaten before anyone has a chance to make a sighting. I'm a Northerner, so I don't have the recipe for you. But I have Southern friends, so I'm going to forward this post on to them to see if anyone has a clue to get your chase going. You just have to promise to share it once you find and/or perfect it, OK?

Have you seen this recipe? It looks like it would work--the cream is a good indicator. Some recipes use evaporated milk instead of cream, so which one to use depends on how much of a "from scratch" cook your mom was. http://southernfood.about.com/od/cakerecipes/r/r81130k.htm

Thanks Rick! I'll check it out.

HI Bev, I have a fabulous blackberry jam cake my grandmother made with a terrific caramel frosting. Its so easy to make and really great. Caramel Frosting: 1lb. light brown sugar 1/2 pint whipping cream Bring to a boil and cook to SLIGHT soft ball. remove from heat and add 2 TBSP butter and 1tsp. vanilla. Beat until spreadable. Enjoy! Nancy

Hi, Bev. There is an awesome, authentically Southern (I'm from GA, so I would know!) caramel cake recipe in Southern Living's Five Star Recipe Collection, which I have. The frosting appears darker than the one in your photo, but it is really dense. No "soft ball'' stage involved, but close monitoring while heavy stirring a must -- and you have to be quick to get it on the cake before it hardens. But it's worth the effort! Happy to fax you the recipe card if you want. Charlene

Thanks Charlene! E-mail me your direct e-mail to tellsus@kitchenscoop.com and I'll email you the fax number! I'm planning to blog my way through all the recipes (may take years but it's a worthy goal doncha think?!)

I think this post might be really useful: http://community.southernliving.com/showthread.php?t=2931 It seems like to make it really authentic you need to use a cast iron skillet for the frosting. I've never had this particular cake (not being from the south), but it seems like a good one to know how to make!

Here's my family's recipe for "Never Fail Caramel Icing." My great-aunt and then her daughter always brought a cake with this icing on it to our family reunions. My aunt passed the recipe onto my sister who gave it to me. My daddy always wanted a cake with this icing and pecans in the icing for his birthday. I have never had trouble with it as long as I followed the directions precisely. Enjoy! Edith in North Carolina NEVER-FAIL CARAMEL ICING Anne Boland Robinson and Edith Arey Womble Boland 2 boxes light brown sugar ½ lb. butter or margarine 15 T. evaporated milk (16 T. = 1 cup) 1/4 tsp. Salt 2 tsp. vanilla 1 tsp. baking powder Blend sugar, milk and salt thoroughly in a heavy metal pot or the top of a double boiler. Add butter or margarine and bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes after mixture comes to a rolling boil. Remove from heat and stir in the baking powder and vanilla. Put in a pan or sink of cold water and beat until it reaches spreading consistency. If mixture gets too hard, add 1 tsp. water and repeat if necessary. Keep hand on spoon at all times!

Have you checked out the Cake Mix Doctor cookbook? There's a caramel cake recipe and frosting recipe in it. All the recipes I've ever tried from Anne Byrn's books have been fabulous and easy. Might be worth a look.