Old Fashioned Irish Oatmeal Cake with Caramel Pecan Frosting

This Old Fashioned Irish Oatmeal Cake with Caramel Pecan Frosting is another heavenly cake of Irish origin that is a super easy dessert treat for St. Patrick's Day and certainly any day of the year.

You need no excuse to enjoy such a tasty cake topped with a smooth and creamy caramel!

The cake itself is a light and fluffy cake that is spiced beautifully with cinnamon and nutmeg. It is made perfect when topped with our easy stovetop caramel frosting.

Add the ease of mixing it all up and baking in a single layer in your 9 x 13 pan, and you have a crowd-pleasing dessert whipped up in no time.

🥘 Ingredients

Old Fashioned Irish Oatmeal Cake

• 1 cup Old Fashioned Oats
• 1 ¼ cup boiling Water
• ½ cup Butter (1 stick at room temperature)
• 1 cup Sugar
• 1 cup light Brown Sugar (packed)
• 2 large Eggs
• ½ tablespoon Vanilla Extract
• 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground Nutmeg
• 1 ½ cups All-Purpose Flour

Caramel Pecan Frosting

• ½ cup Butter
• ½ cup light Brown Sugar (packed)
• 1 14 oz can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
• ½ tablespoon Vanilla Extract

*Be sure to see the free printable recipe card below for ingredients, exact amounts & instructions with tips!*

🔪 How To Make Irish Oatmeal Cake

1. In a small mixing bowl, combine the old-fashioned oats with boiling water. Allow to sit for 15-20 minutes before making your cake.
2. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and generously coat your 9 x 13 baking pan with butter or non-stick cooking spray.
3. In a large mixing bowl, cream together your butter with both white and light brown sugar. Pour your vanilla extract into eggs, mix, then add to the soaked oatmeal and combine.
4. Add the baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg (plus optional salt), then combine. Add the flour and mix until thoroughly incorporated.
5. Add the wet ingredients to your flour mixture and mix just until all of the flour has been incorporated. Transfer to your coated 9 x 13 pan and place on the middle rack of your preheated oven.
6. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of your oatmeal cake comes out clean (or with a crumb or two on it, but not wet or 'gooey').
7. Allow the cake to cool in the pan while you make the frosting.

How To Make Caramel Pecan Frosting

1. In a medium saucepan, melt your butter at medium heat. Add the light brown sugar, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla. Stir to combine and until all of the brown sugar has melted.
2. Whisk frequently while the caramel mixture heats up, then constantly while cooking. Reduce heat as needed to keep your caramel at a low (soft) boil and just barely bubbling.
3. Continue to whisk for 5-10 minutes, or until your caramel has thickened and darkened to a golden light brown caramel coloring. It will be soft, creamy, and still pourable (although very thick).
4. Transfer your caramel mixture to a cool bowl, stir in crushed pecans (reserve some for topping your cake, if desired), and allow it to cool for 10-15 minutes (but still slightly warm) before spreading it over your cake.
5. Finish with additional crushed pecans, if desired.

💭 Angela's Pro Tips & Recipe Notes

• Flexible Nut Options: Feel free to use any nuts you like or skip them altogether.
• Nut Allergy Consideration: Even without pecans, this cake remains absolutely delicious, making it safe and enjoyable for those with nut allergies.
• Substituting Nuts: Whether you're a fan of walnuts, almonds, or any other nuts, feel free to substitute them in the recipe for equally delightful outcomes.

☘️ More Irish Recipes!

• Irish Lamb Stew
• Irish Apple Cake
• Traditional Irish Soda Bread
• Irish Soda Bread Pudding
• Irish Barmbrack
• Apple Blackberry Crumble

😊 Desserts with Oatmeal

• Oatmeal Molasses Raisin Cookies (aka WWII Cookies)
• Peanut Butter Oatmeal No-Bake Cookies
• Apple Oatmeal Muffins
• Chocolate Oatmeal No Bake Cookies (without peanut butter)
• Banana Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

📖 Recipe Card

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5 from 16 reviews

Old Fashioned Irish Oatmeal Cake with Caramel Pecan Frosting

This Old Fashioned Irish Oatmeal Cake with Caramel Pecan Frosting is another heavenly cake of Irish origin that is a super easy dessert treat for St. Patrick's Day and certainly any day of the year.

Author | Angela Latimer

Servings: 15 servings

Calories: 322kcal

Prep 10 minutes minutes

Cooking 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

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Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

1x2x3x

Old Fashioned Irish Oatmeal Cake

• ▢ 1 cup old fashioned oats
• ▢ 1 ¼ cup boiling water
• ▢ ½ cup butter (1 stick, at room temperature)
• ▢ 1 cup sugar
• ▢ 1 cup light brown sugar (packed)
• ▢ 2 large eggs
• ▢ ½ tablespoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ▢ 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

Caramel Pecan Frosting

• ▢ ½ cup butter
• ▢ ½ cup light brown sugar (packed)
• ▢ 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
• ▢ ½ tablespoon vanilla extract

(Note: 2x or 3x only changes the ingredient list)

Help Us Out!If you love a recipe, be sure to come back and share your ratings. This helps future users, and allows me to continue sharing free recipes! Angela

Instructions

 

Old Fashioned Irish Oatmeal Cake

• In a small mixing bowl, combine the old fashioned oats with boiling water. Allow to sit for 15-20 minutes before making your cake.
  
• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and generously coat your 9 x 13 baking pan with butter or non-stick cooking spray.
  
• In a large mixing bowl, cream together your butter with both white and light brown sugar. Pour your vanilla extract into eggs, mix, then add to the soaked oatmeal and combine.
  
• Add the baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg (plus optional salt) then combine. Add the flour and mix until thoroughly incorporated.
• Add the wet ingredients to your flour mixture and mix just until all of the flour has been incorporated. Transfer to your coated 9 x 13 pan and place on the middle rack of your preheated oven.
  
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of your oatmeal cake comes out clean (or with a crumb or two on it, but not wet or 'gooey'). Allow cake to cool in the pan while you make the frosting.
  

Caramel Pecan Frosting

• In a medium saucepan, melt your butter at medium heat. Add the light brown sugar, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla. Stir to combine and until all of the brown sugar has melted.
  
• Whisk frequently while the caramel mixture heats up, then constantly while cooking. Reduce heat as needed to keep your caramel at a low (soft) boil, and just barely bubbling.
  
• Continue to whisk for 5-10 minutes, or until your caramel has thickened and darkened to a golden light brown caramel coloring. It will be soft, creamy, and still pourable (although very thick).
  
• Transfer your caramel mixture to a cool bowl, stir in crushed pecans (reserve some for topping your cake, if desired) and allow to cool 10-15 minutes (but still slightly warm) before spreading over your cake. Finish with additional crushed pecans, if desired.
  

Nutrition

Calories: 322kcal (16%) | Carbohydrates: 48g (16%) | Protein: 3g (6%) | Fat: 13g (20%) | Saturated Fat: 8g (50%) | Cholesterol: 57mg (19%) | Sodium: 209mg (9%) | Potassium: 71mg (2%) | Sugar: 34g (38%) | Vitamin A: 415IU (8%) | Calcium: 32mg (3%) | Iron: 1.1mg (6%)

Did you try this recipe? Rate it below!I can’t wait to see your results! Mention @bake_it_with_love or tag #bake_it_with_love!

Course 9x13 Cakes, Cake Recipes, St. Patrick's Day

Cuisine Irish