Caramel Churro With Vanilla Ice Cream Recipe

Preheat and prepare pans

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Lightly grease twelve mini bundt or 6-8 small bundt cavities with butter or nonstick spray and dust very lightly with flour, tapping out excess.

Mix dry ingredients

Whisk together 2 cups all-purpose flour, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, 2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp fine sea salt, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, and 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg in a medium bowl until evenly blended.

Mix wet ingredients

In a separate bowl, whisk 2 large eggs lightly. Add 1/2 cup melted cooled unsalted butter, 3/4 cup whole milk, and 1 tsp vanilla extract; whisk until combined.

Combine batter

Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour in the wet mixture. Stir gently with a spatula or wooden spoon until just combined and no large streaks of flour remain. Do not overmix.

Fill pans with batter and dulce de leche

Spoon about 1 tablespoon of batter into the bottom of each mini bundt cavity. Add about 1 teaspoon dulce de leche to the center of each (reserve remaining dulce de leche). Top with more batter until each cavity is roughly 3/4 full (about 2-3 tablespoons total batter per cavity depending on pan). Smooth tops lightly.

Bake

Bake in the preheated oven for 12–16 minutes for mini bundts (longer for larger bundts, 18–24 minutes) or until cakes are golden, a toothpick inserted near but not into the caramel center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, and tops spring back gently when pressed.

Cool

Allow cakes to cool in the pan for 8–10 minutes. Run a thin knife around the edges to loosen and invert onto a wire rack to cool completely (about 30 minutes) before finishing.

Make streusel

While cakes bake, combine 1/2 cup flour, 1/3 cup light brown sugar, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, and 1/8 tsp salt in a small bowl. Add 3 tablespoons cold cubed unsalted butter and, using a pastry cutter or two forks, cut the butter into the dry mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces.

Bake optional streusel crisps

Spread streusel on a small rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment and bake at 350°F (175°C) for 8–10 minutes until fragrant and slightly crisp, stirring once halfway. Cool to room temperature; it will crisp up more as it cools.

Optional sugar-cinnamon coating

If you want the exterior churro effect, combine 1/4 cup granulated sugar and 1 tsp ground cinnamon in a shallow bowl. While the mini bundts are still slightly warm (but not hot), brush each lightly with the 2 tablespoons melted butter, then roll or sprinkle evenly with the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Assemble caramel center (if needed)

If any caramel oozed out during baking and you have reserved dulce de leche, warm the remaining dulce de leche slightly (10–15 seconds in microwave) until spreadable and spoon a little into any cake cavities or drizzle over the top of each cake so each has a noticeable caramel component.

Top with streusel

Sprinkle the cooled cinnamon streusel over each mini bundt cake, pressing lightly so some crumbs adhere. For a contrast in texture, place a pinch of streusel directly over the caramel-filled center when possible.

Plate with ice cream

Place one mini churro bundt on each serving plate and add one scoop of cold vanilla ice cream alongside. Optionally drizzle 1 teaspoon warmed dulce de leche over the ice cream and cake for extra caramel flavor.

Serve

Serve immediately so the ice cream remains cold while the cake is warm to slightly room temperature. For best texture, enjoy within 15 minutes of plating.