Gooey Butter Cake

 I was reading a book and one of the main characters kept on baking butter cake for everyone. Of course I had to look into it and see what a butter cake is! It appears to be a midwestern delicacy. While you can make the cake batter from scratch, there is no shame in using a cake mix. Way easier! There are some variations you could try instead of the original cake. You could do some of the following combos or make your own: spice cake with pumpkin pie filling, lemon cake with lemon extract, cherry pie filling and whipped cream, etc. The possibilities are endless. So here's the original recipe. It's super moist and absolutely delicious! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Layer 1:

-1 (15.25 oz) package yellow cake mix

-1 large egg

-1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted

Layer 2:

-8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature

-2 large eggs

-1 tsp vanilla extract

-1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted

-2 cups powdered sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Coat the bottom and sides of 9x13 baking dish with baking spray, the one with flour and butter. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together the ingredients from the first layer. Once well combined, pat the mixture on the bottom of the prepared pan.

Beat the cream cheese in your electric mixer until smooth. Add remaining ingredients from layer 2. Once well mixed, pour over the first layer in the prepared pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes. The center of the cake should still be a little gooey.

Cool completely before cutting into pieces. Enjoy! YUM!