Cook the Book: Paula Deen's Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cakes
[Photograph: Robyn Lee]
Gooey butter cakes are to the Deen family what shrimp is to Bubba Gump. All you need is a boxed cake mix (any flavor) and fruit or other toppings for the gooeyness—from there, just go to town.
"You can make pineapple gooeys, carrot gooeys, peanut butter gooeys (like a Reese's gooey, ya know?), chocolate chip gooeys, banana gooeys, strawberry gooeys, sweet potato gooeys..."
Over the weekend I got to meet Paula Deen's son Jamie, and when I mentioned the gooey butter cakes, he broke into some kind of sermon. (I swear there were more listed.) The Deen family rotates the gooey butter cakes—sometimes they even throw an "ooey" before the "gooey"—at their restaurant, Lady & Sons, in Savannah, Georgia. It's kind of like soup du jour, except gooey du jour.
This is the only Paula Deen recipe I've ever made and every year I do, I think, really? Two sticks of butter? And a whole box of powdered sugar? And four eggs? And a brick of cream cheese? Yes, just go for it all. They're pretty decadent but only relatively speaking for Paula (there's no mayo or deep-frying involved). One little square is powerful—definitely more intense than pumpkin pie. And when you get tired of the pumpkin, just sub in another form of gooey.
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Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cakes
Adapted from The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook.
Ingredients
For cake:
1 (18 1/4-ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 egg
8 tablespoons butter, melted
For filling:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 tablespoons butter, melted
1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
Procedure
1. Preheat oven to 350 °F.
2. Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 by 9-inch baking pan.
3. To make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter, and beat together. Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Make sure not to overbake as the center should be a little gooey.
4. Serve with fresh whipped cream.
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36 Comments:
My boyfriend's mom made this last year.... I could have died and gone to heaven - but I'm lactose intolerant, so I just died and went to the bathroom, instead. Seriously, though..... this is one of those insano things everyone should make once [and fast for a week after].
sakuraa at 2:36PM on 10/13/09
Anyone think it would be possible to halve the powdered sugar content? that's just scary, albeit delicious sounding!
valeriam at 2:52PM on 10/13/09
I made the original Ooey Gooey Butter Cake once... it was soooo goooood... You have to learn to discipline yourself to cut really tiny slices... but then you eat about 8 of those tiny slices and it all spirals downhill from there... :)
katherinegb at 2:56PM on 10/13/09
@valeriam: Yes! This was the first year I finally 3/4thed the powdered sugar and it was more enjoyable. As in, I didn't feel like napping for the rest of the day to recover. Plus with the whole box of powdered sugar, the pumpkin taste starts to fade. Which is not acceptable.
Erin Zimmer at 3:00PM on 10/13/09
They look pretty impressive.
It would be sure to be a topic of conversation whenever served.
Side note:
Yet another attempt by Paula Deen to contribute to North America's struggle with obesity though LOL
hungrychristel at 3:15PM on 10/13/09
See, those don't look very good to me. I'm all about some fall desserts, but that seems excessive in a bad way. I can't say for sure because I've never made these ooey gooey things, but based on the recipe and the picture it looks like it'd be sickeningly sweet. Am I wrong?
PumpkinBear at 3:36PM on 10/13/09
@pumpkinBear: yep they look way too sweet for me!
hungrychristel at 4:08PM on 10/13/09
I once tasted this recipe made by Paula Deen herself. She might have licked her plate and fingers. I licked my plate and fingers. They're the best, and instant friend-winners/man-seducers.
sblatteis at 4:20PM on 10/13/09
I'm going to do this tonight, but instead of yellow cake, I'll use a box of spice cake mix, or gingerbread cake mix.
sloppydelicious at 4:55PM on 10/13/09
Wow I wish I had cream cheese in the fridge right now. Thank god for my arteries I don't.
LizLemon at 5:01PM on 10/13/09
That doesn't look all that great to me, and if a recipe from Sandra Lee was posted here using a boxed cake mix, every responder would hammer her, but I guess Paula Deen gets a pass. Why is that?
dmcavanagh at 6:02PM on 10/13/09
Because this recipe actually tastes good.
Sandra Lee often doesn't meet that criteria.
charlesr19 at 8:36PM on 10/13/09
Gooey butter cake is an old St. Louis standard, almost never made at home. We've got a couple of new places doing it in multiple flavors, including one with the wonderful name of Gooey Louie's. Basically, it was always something that came from the many little German bakeries that once existed in residential neighborhoods. For me, I preferred the variation that put the topping on a yeast dough rather than a cakey bottom; it seemed to cut the richness. You will never hear me use the words "It's too rich for me", to be sure, but GBC is not one of my big faves. We never had it in restaurants until the last few years, but now you can occasionally find it. One serves it with a tall, slim glass of very cold milk, the proper accompaniment.
lemons at 9:01PM on 10/13/09
@dmcavanagh--thanks for saying what I was thinking. There seems to be a strange shift towards boxed stuff on SE as of late.
HeartofGlass at 6:32AM on 10/14/09
I made this before. Delicious!!! A real crowd pleaser!!
lucylucy at 10:04AM on 10/14/09
No pass from me either...those are gross. And I looooove me some pumpkin.
Why butter in the pumpkin mixture? That seems weird. And the whole box of sugar. Gag. I don't even use a whole box to make frosting.
Ew.
jenh718 at 11:10AM on 10/14/09
My brother made these at Thanksgiving during Paula's first year on FN; he overcooked them (shock) and they were really rich. I would've wanted to try a different gooey.
Lvn4life at 11:40AM on 10/14/09
So I'm not in the states, and I'm wondering about the 16oz box of powdered sugar, which a package size that doesn't seem to be available where I am... is that 16oz by weight or by volume?
justin386 at 11:53AM on 10/14/09
I just made the pumpkin gooey the other day. It is very, very decadent. Ironically, I had found it in this cookbook which she gave out at her recent tv taping of MomLogic.
Boscompb at 1:01PM on 10/14/09
I prefer peanut butter ooy gooey. I also love dump cake. They are the only two things I make using a cake mix. Tacky? Yes. Good? Delicious.
NOLA_Pam at 1:15PM on 10/14/09
I brought these in today for the office's October birthday celebration (along with the food processor carrot cake recipe from Cook's Illustrated) and they were a big hit. A ton of my coworkers requested the recipe.
I didn't manage to find any ginger or spice cake mix, so I used plain yellow cake.
One of my coworkers and I were discussing the cake part. Although I liked the recipe overall, I'm not a huge fan of the cloying vanilla flavor in box yellow cake mixes. He suggested trying to make a shortbread next time. I'm still interested in trying out a ginger or spice cake mix, but am unsure if that would be overkill. ?
sloppydelicious at 4:31PM on 10/14/09
pumpkin risotto with duck confit
barb at 12:19PM on 10/15/09
I don't know, the picture doesn't look very appetizing?
chlamers at 6:41PM on 10/16/09
I veganized this recipe and made it more healthy by subbing yogurt for the cream cheese. It's absolutely delicious, and best when made with devil's food cake and banana subbed in for the eggs!
Looking forward to enjoying it this winter....if the pumpkin shortage doesn't continue.....
toasteebagel at 7:30PM on 10/16/09
That's 16 ounces by weight, for the powdered sugar.
lemons at 10:11AM on 10/17/09
If I put this in 2 8x8 pans, how long do you think the baking time would be? 30 minutes? It looks like a good candidate for a cake walk, but in the half-size.
susanova at 9:28AM on 10/19/09
I'm sorry, but this woman is going to kill us. Been to her restaurant in Savanah and really enjoyed it. The fried chicken and the greens are to die for. I must have eaten 1200-1500 fat grams in one meal. And this recipe-- 16 tablespoons of butter and a BOX of sugar! I'm sure it tastes wonderful but just reading the recipe, I think I gained 5 pounds. Dave
old chef at 9:46AM on 10/19/09
I have made the pumpkin gooey butter cake many times...although I prefer some of the other flavors that I have made. Has anyone ever made the gooey butter cookies. they are great and everyone loves them.
polly302 at 12:00PM on 10/19/09
@susanova: Ooh, I've never split up the batter like that but that sounds like a reasonable amount of time. Report back!
Erin Zimmer at 12:14PM on 10/19/09
I made regular ones this weekend. I used 3/4 of the amount of suggested sugar and I bet you could use even 1/2 the amount and they would still be very decadent.
bobbob at 12:53PM on 10/19/09
What I really loved was the following two Google Ads between the recipe and the comments:
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Hee hee pretty context-sensitive! Google knows you'll need these!
DAFOXFL at 4:34PM on 10/19/09
How would you substitute the other items you could make this with? Like say peanut butter or strawberries and bananas? Are there alternate recipes lurking around here somewhere? I am not a huge pumpkin fan, but these sound wonderful.
ieatgoodfood at 5:24PM on 10/20/09
I've made this twice - once last year, with a whole year to recover, then again this past weekend. My family is over the moon with this recipe, but I will admit the cake layer is truly too sweet for adult tastes.
The pumpkin layer is delicious, light and creamy, but if you serve small pieces you can get away with it. (unless you go back for more.)
moibec at 7:05PM on 10/20/09
not that i am defending this recipe because i don't even like pumpkin, but i will say i made the barefoot contessa coconut cupcakes last weekend and they were just as bad in terms of contents -- OVER a box of powdered sugar (including the frosting), a box and a half of cream cheese, two bags of sweetened coconut, and nearly two boxes of butter if i recall. delicious if you forget what's inside! ;)
megannesta at 5:50PM on 10/21/09
Guys, you all act like a pack of wolves! So many negative people! You find something to trash and take it to a whole new level! This is a cake......a cake for crying out loud. It's 9" x 13"...........that's not 8"x8".........think about the ratios. Many recipes have that much sugar & butter and even chocolate in them. But you all get on board the "trash the cook" train like Jim Jones followers. I don't use many Paula Deen recipes either, but obviously, she's become an icon due to all her fans. Too bad no one cares what you think or want your recipes, the Lady is rich and you aren't........infact, when she reads mean comments like some of yours, she laughs all the way to her Savannah bank! You're probably sitting there adding your 2 cents while eating takeout burgers with 1500 calories half of which is fat, large sizing your spuds, and washing it down with a tall shake! Food snobs you are!
jackie2830 at 6:56AM on 10/22/09
@ieatgoodfood: This breaks down the measurements for many gooey substitutions. For a peanut butter gooey, for example, you'd use a chocolate cake mix for the "crust" part and a cup of peanut butter for the gooey. Everything can be gooey cake-ified!
Erin Zimmer at 1:36PM on 10/22/09