Paula Deen Double Chocolate Ooey Gooey Butter Cake

Paula Deen Double Chocolate Ooey Gooey Butter Cake starts with a chocolate cake mix crust and a cocoa cream cheese filling. It bakes in about 50 minutes and feeds 8. Every piece comes out rich, fudgy, and barely set in the middle. This is the dessert that ends a potluck early.

The cocoa powder in the filling is what separates this from the original. Paula adds 3 tablespoons on top of the chocolate cake mix base, so the filling tastes like brownie batter instead of cheesecake. Skimp on it and the chocolate falls flat. Use the full amount.

Soften the cream cheese all the way before mixing or the filling stays lumpy. Pull the cake when the center still jiggles. It firms up as it cools, and overbaking kills the gooey texture. Cut it after 30 minutes on the rack, not before.

Paula Deen Double Chocolate Ooey Gooey Butter Cake

0.0 from 0 votes

Course: DessertCuisine: American, SouthernDifficulty: Easy

Servings

8

servings

Prep time

25

minutes

Cooking time

50

minutes

Calories

950

kcal

A fudgy, barely set chocolate cake made by pressing a chocolate cake mix crust into a 13x9 pan, then topping it with a beaten cream cheese and cocoa powder filling loaded with powdered sugar, butter, and chopped nuts.

Ingredients

• 2 sticks Butter, melted and divided, plus more for greasing pan
  

• 1 (18.25 oz) package chocolate cake mix
  

• 3 eggs, divided
  

• 1 (8-oz) package cream cheese, softened
  

• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder (up to 4)
  

• 1 (16-oz) box powdered sugar
  

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  

• 1 cup nuts, chopped

Directions

• Preheat and prep: Preheat oven to 350º. Lightly butter a 13 by 9-inch baking pan.
• Mix crust and filling: In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, 1 egg and 8 tablespoons (1 stick) melted butter, and stir until well blended. Pat mixture into prepared pan and set aside. In a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the remaining 2 eggs and the cocoa powder. Lower the speed of the mixer, and add the powdered sugar. Continue beating until ingredients are well mixed. Slowly add the remaining 8 tablespoons (1 stick) of melted butter, and the vanilla, continuing to beat the mixture until smooth. Stir in nuts with a rubber spatula. Spread filling over cake mixture in pan.
• Bake and cool: Bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Be careful not to overcook the cake; the center should still be a little gooey when finished baking. Let cake partially cool on a wire rack before cutting into pieces.

Tools for this recipe

• KitchenAid Artisan 5-quart stand mixer, Pyrex 9x13 glass baking dish, Checkered Chef cooling racks, Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon vanilla extract, 8 oz. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

FAQs

Can I leave out the nuts?

Yes. The nuts add crunch but the cake holds together fine without them. If anyone has allergies, just skip them. The filling and crust carry all the chocolate flavor on their own.

How do I know when it's done if the center is supposed to be gooey?

The edges should be set and slightly pulled away from the pan. The center will jiggle when you shake the pan, almost like Jell-O. If a toothpick comes out clean, you went too far. Pull it at 40 minutes and check.

How long does this keep, and should I refrigerate it?

Cover it tightly and refrigerate because of the cream cheese. It keeps about 4 days in the fridge. The texture gets denser cold, so let slices sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving.

Can I make this the night before?

It actually tastes better the next day once the filling sets up fully overnight. Bake it, let it cool completely, then cover and refrigerate. The flavors settle and the gooey center firms to the right consistency.

What happens if I use more than 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder?

Paula says up to 4 tablespoons works. Going higher can dry out the filling and make it bitter. Stick to 3 or 4 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa. Dutch-process cocoa gives a darker color but natural cocoa has a sharper chocolate taste.