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Equal parts sweet and tangy, this gooey lemon butter cake is decadently delicious. Made with a buttery lemon cake base and a tangy cream cheese topping, this gooey butter cake is like sunshine for your tastebuds!
Gooey Lemon Butter Cake
Equal parts sweet and tangy, this ooey gooey lemon butter cake is decadently delicious. Made with a buttery lemon cake base and a tangy cream cheese topping, this gooey butter cake is like sunshine for your tastebuds!
Ingredients for gooey lemon butter cake
Gooey butter cakes consist of two parts: a buttery, dense cake base and a gooey cream cheese topping. The combination of the two will set your taste buds into a frenzy. We took the shortcut here and used a cake mix as the dry ingredients for the base to make things easier. The best part? You only need 8 ingredients to whip up this decadent cake!
Here’s your shopping list:
Unsalted butter
Cream cheese
Eggs
Cake mix
Vanilla extract
Lemon extract
Lemons
Powdered Sugar
How to store this gooey lemon butter cake
This gooey lemon butter cake is best stored tightly covered in the fridge. Because the cake is, well…gooey (hehe) it’s best stored in a single layer so that the top of the cake doesn’t stick
Don’t love lemon? You can easily tweak this recipe!
We love the lemon addition to this gooey butter cake because it helps to offset the sweetness, but if lemon isn’t your thing you can easily tweak this recipe. You can just omit the lemon altogether and have a classic gooey butter cake on your hands or you can swap the lemon out for a different flavor. Another citrus like lemon or orange would be a fun twist, or you could omit the zest and use almond extract in place of the lemon extract! The base of this cake is very forgiving so feel free to play around with it!
Equal parts sweet and tangy, this gooey lemon butter cake is decadently delicious. Made with a buttery lemon cake base and a tangy cream cheese topping, this gooey butter cake is like sunshine for your tastebuds!
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line an 9 x 13-inch baking pan with parchment paper on all sides (page 000). Set aside.
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the melted butter, egg, cake mix, vanilla extract, lemon extract, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Mix together until combined and no streaks of the cake mix remain, about 1 minute.
Use a silicone spatula to scrape the batter into the prepared pan, spreading to the edges and evening out the top. Set aside.
Next, make the gooey lemon layer. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (you can just wipe out the bowl you just used!), combine the cream cheese, eggs, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, lemon extract, and lemon zest. Beat on low speed, gradually increasing to medium until smooth and fully combined, about 2 minutes.
Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan on top of the lemon cake, using the silicone spatula to spread the mixture all the way to the edges.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until the edges are light golden brown and the center of the cake jiggles, but feels mostly set (think of it like a cheesecake!). Place the pan on a cooling rack and allow the gooey lemon butter cake to cool completely in the pan.
Once fully cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired, slice and serve! If not serving right away, store tightly wrapped in the fridge until read to serve!
