Comments on: St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake

By: Samantha

Samantha — Mon, 23 Jul 2012 12:36:59 +0000

st. louis gooey butter cake does not contain yeast, but it does use cream cheese.

By: beryl

beryl — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:46:53 +0000

Ha! You had a paddle attachment the whole time? That’s pretty funny…
Definitely write back, I wanna know if it worked! I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you

By: francesca

francesca — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:21:47 +0000

Hello Beryl!

I gave the recipe a second try last night. I had no idea what a “paddle attachment” even looked like, I imagined an actual paddle, like a rubber spatula thing. I Googled “paddle attachment,” saw what it was and thought, “Hey! I DO have something like that!”

So, I mixed up a new batch very scientifically last night. I made two separate yeast-water-milk mixtures and chose the frothiest one. I carefully followed all instructions and let the dough rise for the maximum 3 hours under an airtight ReynoldsWrap seal in a classic Pyrex 9×13 dish. I even let it rise in my dryer (as in clothes dryer!), which I’d heat up lightly periodically, since my apartment is problmatically chilly. I carefully mixed and timed and orchestrated everything.

And so… the Gooey Frankencake is sitting here with me in my cube at work. The potluck is tonight. Only time will tell! I’ll write back to share my experience! And thanks for the advice!

By: Beryl

Beryl — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 05:39:46 +0000

H Francesca, I’m not sure what happened to make your cake layer dry… I have a couple thoughts which you may be able to dismiss, depending. The first thing I wondered about was the size of your pan – was it a 9×13? If it was smaller, it would make for a thicker layer of dough which would stay drier because the wet batter wouldn’t penetrate as well (I know that because I actually tried making it in a smaller pan with thicker dough after making the original NYT recipe ….. made a drier cake)
Second, did you remember to keep the dough covered when it rose? If not, the dough will form a bit of a crust as it rises which will a) Keep it from rising enough, making for a tougher bread/cake layer and b) Keep it from absorbing as much of the wet batter.

Sooo, without a paddle attachment… I don’t know… hands? It would take a while… You’re going for a texture, so you can use your hands, or a stir for a long time with a wooden spoon – you want it to pull together into a sort of silky smooth ball, not be raggedy and loose.

The last thing I would say is just to make sure it’s not over cooked… I know you said you didn’t over cook, so that probably isn’t the problem, but just in case… it should be pretty wet coming out of the oven, like MUCH wetter then any regular cake… if it’s not nerve rattlingly underdone looking, it might be over done…

By: francesca

francesca — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:47:58 +0000

Hello! I came across your site via Google and was hoping you could give me a tip or two, since you are clearly a more experienced cook / baker than I am.

I made the Gooey Butter Cake last weekend and was a little disappointed. My cake (bottom layer) came out really dry and I’m not sure what happened! I placed my concoction on the rack farthest away from the heat source in the oven and I didn’t overbake, either.

One thing that could be the problem was that I don’t have a mixer with a paddle attachment. Would you recommend mixing the yeast dough with my hands instead?? I’d love to make this for my office Thanksgiving potluck but I must do it justice.

Any advice you can give would be GREATLY appreciated! Thanks!

By: Beryl

Beryl — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:10:46 +0000

Yeah, it was really good, worth a shot. This weekend I’m going to make it again but try it in cupcake tins with cranberries on top, see if we can make it a little more festive and thanksgiving-y. If it works, we’ll update the post…

By: Connie

Connie — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 16:59:15 +0000

I saw this in the NY Times and was wondering about it. I’m glad it turned out well. Gooey butter cake is a childhood favorite (I’m originally from St. Louis) and I wanted a good recipe, yay!

By: Memoria

Memoria — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 03:46:36 +0000

Wow. This is an interesting cake. I’m bookmarking this one. Lovely photos.