St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake
intro
A beloved St. Louis regional classic: a firm, buttery cake base topped with a soft, sweet, gooey cream cheese layer, finished with a dusting of powdered sugar.
Ingredients
Steps
Preheat Oven and Line Pan
Preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F) with a rack positioned in the middle. Line a 23cm (9-inch) square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving 5cm (2-inch) overhang on two opposite sides to easily lift the finished cake out later. Lightly grease any exposed pan edges not covered by parchment with a thin smear of butter.
Make the Crust Dough
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together 180g (1 ½ cups) all-purpose flour, 100g (½ cup) granulated sugar, 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder, and ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt until fully blended. Add 1 lightly beaten large egg and 113g (½ cup / 1 stick) of the cooled, melted unsalted butter, then stir with a rubber spatula until a thick, stiff, uniformly golden dough forms with no remaining dry flour pockets.
Press the Crust Into Pan
Transfer the stiff dough to the lined baking pan. Use clean, slightly dampened fingers to press the dough firmly and evenly across the entire pan bottom, creating a flat, compact 6mm (¼-inch) thick base layer with no gaps, thin spots, or raised edges.
Make the Gooey Topping
In a large mixing bowl (or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment), beat 226g (8oz / 1 block) of softened room-temperature full-fat cream cheese on medium-low speed for 2 minutes until completely smooth, with no visible lumps. Add the remaining 2 large room-temperature eggs, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, and the remaining 85g (⅓ cup / ¾ stick) cooled melted butter, then beat on low speed for 1 minute to combine. Gradually add 480g (4 cups) of powdered sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing on low speed just until smooth—do not overmix, as trapped air will cause the topping to crack while baking.
Add the Topping and Bake
Pour the smooth gooey topping evenly over the pressed cake base, and spread it gently with an offset spatula to cover the base completely in an even layer. Place the pan on the middle oven rack and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the edges are deep golden and fully set, but the central 5cm (2-inch) circle of the cake still jiggles softly when you nudge the pan—do not bake longer, as a soft, underbaked center is the signature of this cake, and overbaking will result in a dry, crumbly texture.
Cool the Baked Cake
Remove the baked cake from the oven and set the pan on a wire cooling rack to rest for 1 full hour at room temperature (do not refrigerate the warm cake, as this will make the base tough). Once fully cooled, use the parchment overhang to lift the entire cake out of the pan, dust the top generously with the remaining 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar, then cut into 5cm (2-inch) squares to serve.
Tips
2.Bring eggs, butter, and cream cheese to room temperature before mixing, as cold ingredients cause lumpy topping and lead to uneven, patchy baking.
3.Store leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days; avoid refrigeration, which turns the soft gooey layer dense and tough.
OMG I’ve been craving real gooey butter cake since I moved from St. Louis 3 years ago! Most recipes out there add weird cream cheese that doesn’t taste right, but this one is exactly like the corner bakery back home. Brought it to my office potluck yesterday and people were begging for the recipe before I even left the break room. 10/10 no notes!
I’m literally the worst at baking—like, I burn boxed brownies half the time. This was SO easy to throw together! I was nervous I’d mess up the gooey layer, but it came out perfect on the first try. My roommate ate three slices in one sitting lmao.
Made this for my kids’ post-game snack last weekend and they went crazy for it! It’s sweet enough to feel like a treat but not so rich that the little ones got sugar crashes halfway through practice. I added a tiny dusting of powdered sugar on top like the recipe said and it looked so fancy, no one believed it only took me an hour total to make.
Game changer! I’ve been making a different gooey butter cake recipe for years but this one is way better. The cake base is the perfect amount of chewy, and the gooey top is so buttery it melts in your mouth. I paired it with a little vanilla ice cream last night for dessert and my husband said it’s the best thing I’ve ever baked.
Quick question—has anyone tried making this with a 1:1 gluten free flour blend? My sister has celiac and I want to make this for her birthday next week, but I don’t want to waste ingredients if it won’t turn out right!
This is a staple at every family holiday dinner at our house! My grandma used to make a version of this, but her recipe was scribbled on an index card that got lost when we moved a few years ago. This tastes exactly like hers—my mom teared up when she took the first bite at Easter dinner. Thank you so much for sharing!
Brought this to our neighborhood block party last weekend and it was gone in 10 minutes. Flat out. People were coming back for seconds only to find an empty pan. Pro tip: make two pans if you’re serving a crowd, because one is definitely not enough.
Taste is 10/10, but I will say I baked mine for the full 55 minutes and the edges got a little crispier than I prefer. Next time I’ll probably check it at 45 minutes to make sure the center is still nice and gooey without the edges burning. Still super tasty though, my whole family loved it!
Wait, does this keep well in the fridge? I want to make it on Sunday to have little slices for my work snacks all week, but I don’t want it to get dried out or weird if I store it for a few days.
I was a little skeptical because I’m used to super rich, fudgy desserts from my grandma’s recipe box, but this was so light and buttery and delicious! I added a tiny sprinkle of sea salt on top of the powdered sugar and it cut the sweetness perfectly, 10/10 would make again.
Made this in my tiny dorm kitchen with a beat-up hand me down mixing bowl and a toaster oven, and it still came out insane. Who says you need fancy equipment to make good desserts? Spent like $8 on ingredients total, and it fed me and my three roommates for two nights. Absolute win.
Has anyone tried mixing chocolate chips into the gooey layer? I’m obsessed with all things chocolate and I’m wondering if that would work, or if it would mess up the texture of the cake.
I’ve been baking for over 40 years and I don’t know why I never tried making gooey butter cake before this. The recipe is so straightforward, no fancy techniques or weird ingredients, and the payoff is huge. Served it at my weekly card night with the guys and they all asked for copies of the recipe. Can’t beat a classic.
I’m hosting my first ever dinner party next weekend and I’m so stressed about dessert! This looks easy enough to pull off even with my million other to-do list items, but can I make it a day ahead? I don’t want to be stuck baking when guests are arriving.
Has anyone tested this with dairy free butter? My kid has a dairy allergy and I’m always looking for easy, kid-friendly desserts that don’t require a million special ingredients.
Made this over the weekend on our camping trip in a cast iron Dutch oven over the campfire and it was insane. I was worried it wouldn’t cook right over the fire, but I kept the coals low and it came out perfectly gooey. All the other campers at our site kept wandering over to ask what smelled so good. Total crowd pleaser even off the grid!
SO good. I made this for my book club meeting and we ended up eating half the pan while we were supposed to be discussing our book. No regrets. It’s so rich that a little square is totally satisfying, but it’s so good you’ll want to eat two (or three, no judgment).
This is my new go-to for every holiday cookie swap and bake sale! It cuts into perfect little squares, travels so well, and it’s way more unique than the standard chocolate chip cookies everyone else brings. I’ve already won two neighborhood bake-offs with this recipe, no joke.
I love that this uses simple pantry staples! I didn’t have to run to the specialty grocery store for any weird ingredients, I already had everything in my cabinet. It’s such a nice change from those fancy viral recipes that require 20 different things you’ll never use again. Tastes like old-fashioned, homemade goodness, just like my great-aunt used to make.
I don’t do a ton of baking, I’m usually the guy manning the grill at cookouts, but I decided to give this a shot for my wife’s birthday and she absolutely loved it. She said it was better than the $40 bakery cake we got last year. Who knew? I might have to start baking more often if it gets this kind of reaction.