This St. Louis-style gooey butter cake is the kind of dessert you try once and then can’t get out of your head. Depending on which part you bite into, it’s crumbly, chewy, gooey, and always sweet.
Appearance isn’t everything when it comes to gooey butter cake. It’s not big and flawless like layered cakes. It doesn’t have a perfectly ruffled crust like cake. And it’s certainly not cute as a button, like macarons. Instead, the peak has beige peaks and valleys. Though humble it’s sticky, intensely sweet, super buttery and insanely delicious – I find it impossible to have just one square (yes, that’s a challenge).
This is a traditional St. Louis-style gooey butter cake. That means it has two layers. The bottom layer is a sweet yeast cake and the top layer is an ultra-buttery batter that doesn’t fully set during baking — it turns into an almost custard-like filling. Prepare yourself for a treat that will soon become a staple in your household.
Unproven origins, happy result
One rumor has it that the gooey butter cake is the happy accident of a 1940s St. Louis-based pastry chef, Johnny Hoffman. He accidentally mixed up the proportions of a coffee cake recipe, resulting in a super gooey cake.
The gooey butter cake became a phenomenon across St. Louis — people lined up at the city’s bakeries to get a piece of the cake. Even today there are bakeries that only serve gooey butter cakes. Family and friends fight for the best. Is it the crisp, blondie-esque edges? Or the sticky middle? My vote is for the middle!
Many variations have been created over the years, including a shortcut with a box cake mix and a cream cheese topping—equally sweet and gooey, but I prefer this combination of yeast dough and buttery topping.
Tips for sticky success
- The sweet yeast dough is pressed into a casserole dish. It takes about 2 to 2 1/2 hours for the dough to rise and double in size, but there’s no time to put together an otherwise easy recipe. I make a small mark on my baking pan about 1/2 inch above the top of the batter – a black sharpie on the outside. The dough has risen properly when it puffs up to the mark.
- Another way to tell if the dough has risen properly? Just touch! The dough will go from firm to soft as it rises. It feels squishy and stays indented when you poke it with a finger.
- Even if you have concerns about using corn syrup, do not substitute another ingredient or leave it out. Corn syrup is key for premium stickiness.
- Yeast doughs are usually kneaded with a hook attachment on a food processor (or by hand), but not here. A paddle attachment is all you need and enough to ensure the mix comes together.
- The dough is covered in the topping, making it difficult to know when it’s done baking. Luckily, you can tell by looking at the top edges – they should be golden brown and easily pull away from the bowl. The center wobbles when you move the bowl back and forth.
More sheet cake recipes
- Texas layer cake
- Banana Sheet Cake
- Grandma’s zucchini pie
- Apple Snack Cake
- Snickerdoodle coffee cake
Sticky butter cake
ingredients
For the yeast dough
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6 tablespoon warm whole milk
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2 teaspoons (7G) active dry yeast
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6 tablespoons (85G) unsalted butterat room temperature plus more for the casserole dish
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1/4 cup (50G) sugar
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3/4 teaspoon Salt
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1 big eggat room temperature
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1 2/3 cups (213G) all purpose flour
For the buttery topping
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1/3 Cup light corn syrup
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3 tablespoon whole milkat room temperature
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1 tablespoon vanilla extract
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1 3/4 cups (350G) sugar
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12 tablespoons (170G) unsalted butterat room temperature
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3/4 teaspoon Salt
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2 Big Eggsat room temperature
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1 1/3 cup (170G) all purpose flour
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powdered sugarfor dusting
method
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Prepare the casserole dish:
Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with butter. put it aside
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Prepare yeast dough:
In a small bowl, mix the warm milk and yeast and let sit for about 5 minutes. The yeast should be bubbling to the top, indicating that it is active and good to use.
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Meanwhile, cream the butter and sugar:
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, sugar and salt on medium-high speed, about 4 minutes. Add the egg and beat until combined. Turn off the blender and use a rubber spatula to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to ensure all the ingredients are incorporated.
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Add yeast and flour:
With the mixer running on low, add the flour in three batches, alternating with the yeast mixture, beginning and ending with the flour. Continue beating the ingredients together for about 4 minutes.
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Let the dough rise:
Press the dough into the prepared baking pan, making sure it reaches the rim. Cover the pan with a clean tea towel and let the dough rise at room temperature for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until doubled in size. I do not recommend letting the dough rise in the fridge overnight.
It will be a very thin layer of dough when you spread it out. It will bake quickly and pick up the butter topping.
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Preheat oven to 350°F.
Do this about 15 minutes before the dough has risen.
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Make the butter topping:
In a medium bowl, stir together the corn syrup, milk, and vanilla until smooth. put it aside
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, sugar and salt on medium-high speed, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition until combined. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour in three additions, alternating with the corn syrup mixture, starting and ending with the flour, until combined.
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Spoon sticky topping over batter:
Pour the batter onto the yeast dough and spread evenly to the edges with the back of the spoon.
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Bake the cake:
Bake the cake until lightly golden brown on top, wobbly in the center and edges are set and have pulled away from the pan, 35 to 40 minutes. The cake will firm up and firm up as it cools, so it’s okay if the center wobbles a bit. If you bake it until the center is set and set, the cake is overcooked.
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Cool and serve:
Let the cake cool completely on a wire rack, about 1 hour. Dust the top of the cake with powdered sugar and cut into squares to serve. Serve at room temperature.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. Resist the urge to put them in the fridge. It’s getting too tight. If you keep it in the fridge, bring it to room temperature before serving.
Did you like the recipe? Let’s star down!
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 1362 | calories |
| 125g | Fat |
| 60g | carbohydrates |
| 6g | protein |
