Gooey Butter Cake is an easy make-ahead breakfast Danish or dessert recipe with decadent, luxurious texture. This St. Louis classic is made in minutes with a cake mix to provide a foundation for an amazing gooey filling you’ll crave again and again!
This is one of the best cakes I have ever made! My family loved it. Will definitely try the brown butter version next time for variety.
★★★★★
– christine –
St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake has been served for years both as a breakfast danish and as dessert. Sweet, rich and oh so good! It can be made from scratch or with a box of yellow cake mix as we’re doing today.
The best way to describe Gooey Butter Cake is to think of three amazing layers – a thick bottom layer made from cake batter. Next is a delightfully light cream cheese and sugar layer and a then a thin, flaky crunchy layer that forms on top when it’s baked. It’s heavenly!
If you like this Gooey Butter Cake recipe, try some of my other delicious cake creations like my peanut butter cake, orange pound cake, or Biscoff cake.
Why You’ll Love It
Shortcut Recipe – Made with cake mix and pantry ingredients.
Make Ahead – It’s even better the second day!
Decadent – Rich and flavorful, for breakfast, brunch and dessert!
Gooey Butter Cake
Gooey Butter Cake may have been made famous by Paula Dean, but it originated in St. Louis. It was first made in the 1930’s in error by a baker who reversed the proportions of butter and flour.
Gooey butter, intended for danishes and stollens was smeared on top. It instantly became a hit!
You can find it at just about every bakery in St. Louis including Park Avenue Coffee (73 flavors), Russell’s, McArthur’s, Missouri Baking Company, Hartford Coffee Company, The Mudhouse, Yolklore, Boundary, and at all the grocery stores.
You’ll also find it on a lot of restaurant menus served warm for dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or frozen custard. I can’t wait for you to try it!
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Yellow Cake Mix – Golden recipe yellow cake mix is the best for this recipe.
- Butter – Salted butter is my preference to balance out the sweetness of this cake.
- Eggs – Size large.
- Cream Cheese – I use full fat, but you can use reduced if you’d prefer.
- Powdered Sugar – Also known as confectioners sugar or icing sugar, this gives the cake its amazing consistency and is perfect for sprinkling on top! You can make powdered sugar if you don’t have any on hand!
Variations
- chocolate chips
- blueberries
- blackberry
- lemon juice and or lemon zest
- espresso powder
- toasted coconut
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Specifically, it’s a St. Louis thing! All cakes are sweet, and most are decadently moist, but this one takes it to a whole new level.
In a Philadelphia butter cake, there is no cream cheese. Furthermore, the base of the Philly butter cake uses yeast, unlike the St. Louis version!
More Ooey Gooey Recipes
Gooey Butter Cake
Ingredients
Layer 2
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 4 cups powdered sugar (1 pound bag)
- 1 egg size large
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325℉ and grease a 9×13" pan.
- Mix cake mix, butter and eggs until thick and smooth.
- Spread and press mixture in pan (with the back of a spatula or your hands).
- Mix the remaining ingredients on low until smooth. Pour over cake mixture. Sprinkle powdered sugar on top to garnish.
- Bake 45 minutes, leaving it slightly gooey. You'll notice a slight crust on top rather than a jelly texture.
- Garnish with sprinkles of powdered sugar, cool and serve.
Julie’s Tips
- Grease your pan so that the cake doesn’t stick. This is the best baking spray.
- Bake in whatever dish you have on hand – 9×11, 9×13, 9×9 etc. Adjust bake time as needed.
- It’s done when a crust has formed on the top, yet the cake is slightly gooey and jiggles a bit when you shake the dish.
- Make it ahead or bake and enjoy warm.
Variations
Add any of the following to customize your gooey butter cake.- chocolate chips
- blueberries
- blackberry
- lemon juice and or lemon zest
- espresso powder
- toasted coconut
Storage Notes
- Room Temperature – Store gooey butter cake covered in an air tight container for up to two days at room temp.
- Refrigerate – The cake will last up to a week in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Freeze – You can also freeze the cake for up to a month by wrapping it in plastic wrap or in a large freezer bag.
Estimated nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is not guaranteed.
Exactly the gooey delight I remember from my childhood. Grew up an hour south of St. Louis. Thanks for sharing!!
I misplaced my original recipe for gooey butter cake. This recipe sounded similar, and I am so glad I found this. This was by far the best gooey butter cake I have ever made. It turned out absolutely perfect!
I like to let the cake layer rest if I am not in a hurry. For some reason, putting on layer 2 after a 45 minute or so rest allows it to be less crumbly than when I do the entire cake in one pass. I also save my powered sugar garnish for last tho avoid the crackly crust I often get if I let the cake bake with powdered sugar put on in advance.
As a St Louian, I’m forced to say that this recipe isn’t “authentic.” But as a lover of great desserts, I will say this is the BEST version of gooey butter cake I’ve ever tasted! It is rich, buttery, slightly tangy from the cream cheese, and ridiculously delicious. Last time I made this, I divided the full recipe into two 8×8″ pans: I kept one, and gifted the other. And they turned out perfect 🙂
Hi Stacy!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it- you’ll have to try my Scratch Gooey Butter Cake next.
Have a great week,
Julie
As a member of the St. Louis diaspora, I have to. say that this is as good as it gets absent doing one from scratch. Also, it’s better with Duncan Hines Yellow Cake Mix than other brands (except Aldi for some reason). Use Land of Lakes unsalted butter and Kraft cream cheese; anything else pales in taste.
Hi fellow Saint Louisan! I have a recipe for it Gooey Butter Cake with Golden Yellow Cake mix, too! Thanks for chiming in! Quality ingredients always make a difference, but especially now when some butters have adding water to them.
Made many St Louis Butter Cakes from a variety of recipes, including yeast recipes that dont use a cake mix. This is the best recipe using cake mix Ive made. 👍👍👍👍👍