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gooey butter cake variation

Gooey Butter Cake Recipe & Variations

I can remember eating Gooey Butter Cake since I was a child, and it's always been one of my favorites! It's a favorite for indulging, but it's also an easy go-to dessert recipe that's made with pantry staples. Lately, I've been experimenting with different cake mix combinations, and I've come up with all sorts of yummy Gooey Butter Cake variations! Let's start with the basic Gooey Butter Cake recipe which by the way is actually more of a bar cookie.
Servings 24
Author Kristl Story, TheBudgetDiet.com

Ingredients

  • 1 box yellow cake mix
  • 1 stick butter melted
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 8 oz. cream cheese softened
  • 1 box powdered sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350.
  2. Mix together cake mix, melted butter, 1 egg and water until combined.
  3. Press into a 9 x 13 greased pan.
  4. Mix together softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, 2 eggs and vanilla until smooth.
  5. Pour over cake mixture.
  6. Bake 35 - 40 minutes at 350 or until lightly browned.

Recipe Notes

Gooey Butter Cake variations - let me count the ways I love Gooey Butter Cake! 1. Lemon Gooey Butter Cake - use lemon cake mix and add the zest of 1 lemon and juice to the cream cheese mixture. (Optional: for Lemon-Coconut Gooey Butter Cake, press 1 cup of coconut into the cake mix layer before topping with the cream cheese mixture). 2. German Chocolate Gooey Butter Cake - use German chocolate cake mix, press 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1 cup chopped pecans and 1 cup coconut into the cake mix layer before topping with the cream cheese mixture. 3. Chocolate Chip Gooey Butter Cake - use yellow cake mix, press 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips into the cake mix layer before topping with the cream cheese mixture. 4. Spice Cake Gooey Butter - use spice cake mix, press 1 cup chopped pecans (optional) into the cake mix layer before topping with cream cheese mixture. 5. Butter Pecan Gooey Butter Cake - use butter pecan cake mix, press 1 cup chopped pecans and 1 cup of butterscotch chips into the cake mix layer before topping with cream cheese mixture. 6. Mint Chocolate Chip Gooey Butter Cake - use chocolate cake mix, press in 1 cup of mint chocolate chips into the cake mix before topping with the cream cheese mixture. The cake mix and press-in options are endless! Please share your favorite version of Gooey Butter Cake!