Paula Deen Mississippi Mud Cake

Paula Deen Mississippi Mud Cake is a rich chocolate sheet cake topped with melted marshmallows and warm pecan fudge icing. It takes 40 minutes start to finish and feeds 15. This is the kind of cake that shows up at every church supper and potluck across the South. There is never a crumb left on the pan.

The marshmallow layer is everything. Paula pours the icing while it is still hot, right over a blanket of mini marshmallows on the warm cake. The heat melts them into that sticky, gooey pull between the chocolate and the fudge topping. Skip this step or let the icing cool, and the texture falls flat.

Make the icing while the cake bakes so both are warm at the same time. Once assembled, let the cake cool completely before you cut it, or the marshmallows will pull apart and make a mess. Store covered at room temperature for up to three days.

Paula Deen Mississippi Mud Cake

0.0 from 0 votes

Course: DessertCuisine: American, SouthernDifficulty: Easy

Servings

15

servings

Prep time

15

minutes

Cooking time

25

minutes

Calories

590

kcal

A dense, fudgy chocolate sheet cake baked in a 13 by 9 pan, covered with a melted marshmallow layer, and finished with a warm cocoa and pecan icing poured right on top.

Ingredients

• 2 cups sugar
  

• 1/2 teaspoon salt
  

• 2 cups all purpose flour
  

• 2 sticks divided, 1 softened unsalted butter
  

• 1/2 cup Vegetable oil
  

• 1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons, divided cocoa
  

• 1/4 cup water
  

• 2 eggs
  

• 1 teaspoon baking soda
  

• 1/2 cup buttermilk
  

• 3 teaspoons divided vanilla extract
  

• 1 bag miniature marshmallows
  

• 6 tablespoons milk
  

• 1 (1 lb) box confectioner's sugar
  

• 1 cup chopped (or walnuts) pecans

Directions

• Preheat and prep: Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Grease and flour a 13 by 9-inch baking pan.
• Mix the batter: Combine the sugar, salt and flour in a large mixing bowl. Bring one stick butter, oil, 1/2 cup cocoa and 1/4 cup water to a boil in a saucepan. Add to the flour mixture.
• Add wet ingredients and bake: Beat together the eggs, baking soda, buttermilk and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Add to the chocolate mixture, mix well, and pour into the prepared pan. Bake for 25 minutes.
• Make icing and assemble: While the cake is baking, make the icing by melting 1 stick softened butter in the 3 tablespoons cocoa and milk over low heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, then remove from the heat. Stir in the confectioner's sugar. Slowly mix in the nuts and the 1 teaspoon vanilla. Take the cake from the oven, and when it cools a bit cover it with miniature marshmallows. Pour the warm icing over the cake and the marshmallows. Cool the cake before serving.

Tools for this recipe

• Pyrex 9x13 glass baking dish, Cuisinart MultiClad Pro 3-quart saucepan, Pyrex 3-piece glass mixing bowl set, Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon vanilla extract, 8 oz. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

FAQs

Can I use walnuts instead of pecans?

Paula actually lists both options in the recipe. Walnuts work just as well and hold up the same way in the warm icing. The flavor is a little milder, but the texture stays crunchy.

How long does Mississippi Mud Cake last?

Covered at room temperature, it keeps for about three days. After that the marshmallows start to dry out and lose their pull. You can refrigerate it for up to five days, but bring it to room temperature before serving so the icing softens back up.

Can I make this cake the night before?

You can. Assemble it completely, let it cool, and cover it tightly with foil. The marshmallows hold up fine overnight. Just leave it at room temperature rather than refrigerating, so the icing stays soft.

What if the marshmallows do not fully melt?

That usually means the cake cooled too much before you added them. Put the marshmallows on right when the cake comes out of the oven, then pour the hot icing over immediately. The heat from both the cake and the icing should melt them into a gooey layer.

Can I use regular marshmallows instead of miniature ones?

You can, but cut them into halves or quarters first. Full-sized marshmallows do not melt evenly under the icing, and you end up with big pockets of unmelted marshmallow and gaps with no coverage.