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This cake? Yeah, I know. Itโs kind ofย ridiculous.
But it also just kind of happened.
Like I have no ย idea how I came up with this.
Ok, well I do. I was brainstorming and brainstorming some more (I brainstorm A LOT! Actually, I brainstorm so much that by the end of the day my brain normally hurts) when I came across a picture of a traditional vanilla Gooey Butter Cake. See, before I saw this picture I had no idea what gooey butter cake was. Obviously, the name intrigued me.
Really, who does not love the words gooey, butter and cake?
All in the same sentence too. That should probably be illegal.
Sometimes my brainstorming can get me into trouble.
Example? Youโre looking at it.
For some reason I had Oreos floating around in my brain. Seriously, all I wanted to do was make something containing Oreos. I think it was because I have yet to post an Oreo recipe on this blog.
Wait! What am I saying! Umm, I made the most deliciousย Homemade Peanut Butter Oreos. They were incredible! Shoot, I totally should have made those and stuffed them into this cake!
Next time.ย For sure.
So here was my thought process:
Gooey Butter Cake + Oreos = Good
Chocolate Gooey Butter Cake + Oreos = Better
Chocolate Gooey Butter Cake + Oreos + Extra Chopped Oreos and a semi-hard Chocolate Peanut Butter top layer = Ridiculous
Really guys, the picture say it all. These are fudgey on the bottom, gooey in the middle and crunchy on top. It is a whole lot of awesomeness!
Gooey Chocolate Oreo Crunch Butter Cake
Ingredients
Cake Crust
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup stick butter, melted, 1/2
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup milk
Gooey Chocolate Filling
- 1 ounce package cream cheese, softened, 8-
- 2 eggs
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 cup stick butter, melted, 1/2
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Oreo Layer
- 25 oreos, divided (I used double stuffed)
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon heaping creamy peanut butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 13 by 9-inch baking pan.
- In a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, melted butter and egg. Stir until well blended and then mix in the milk. (This can also be done by hand). Pat the mixture into a prepared pan and set aside.
- In a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the remaining 2 eggs, and the cocoa powder. Lower the speed of the mixer, and add the powdered sugar. Continue beating until ingredients are well mixed. Slowly add the remaining 1 stick of melted butter, and the vanilla, continuing to beat the mixture until smooth. Spread the filling over the cake mixture in the pan. Press 18 whole Oreos into the filling (the filling will begin to spill over the oreos, but it probably will not completely cover the oreos). Bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Be careful not to overcook the cake. The center should still be a little giggly when finished baking. Let sit five minutes.
- While the cake is sitting chop the remaining Oreos into pieces and melt the chocolate chips and peanut butter together (I use the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until melted).
- Once you melted the peanut butter and chocolate, evenly the distribute the chopped Oreos all over the top of the cake. Pour the melted chocolate mixture over top, spreading with a spatula. Make sure chocolate gets down into the Oreo crevices, as it is the โglueโ that holds the top to the bottom (do the best you can, but the chocolate will probably not reach all the way to the very edge of the cake). Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving.
- Let bars sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before cutting. Try and cut them carfully, but beware that the tops might crack a little.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Crunch!
ย
Shared with:ย Time to Sparkle,ย Lil Luna,ย Chef In Training,ย Buns In my Oven,ย Foodie Friday Friends,ย Tidy Mom,ย Taste and Tell,ย Cheerios and Lattes,ย Somewhat Simple,ย Mom on Timeout,ย I Heart Nap Time,ย Fine Craft Guide,ย The Country Cook,ย Whipperberry,ย Chef In Training,ย Thursdayโs Treasures,ย A Pinch Of Joy,ย Whats Cooking With Ruthie,ย Watch Out Martha,ย Nap Time Creations
I’ve never made anything from Half-Baked that I didn’t love, so this was a first! The crust was so dry that it detracted from the rest of the chocolate deliciousness. The rest was wonderful, but I even undercooked it (as suggested) at 35 minutes, and the chalkiness of the bottom still overshadowed the overarching taste. I think using a box brownie mix (gasp!) on the bottom might work better
Hi Suzanne,
I appreciate you trying this cake and sharing your feedback. Very sorry to hear you didn’t love it!
Have a great Sunday!
I have loved all your recipes Iโve ever made except this time. Cake was very dry. Butter quantity was confusing. Baked for 35 minutes instead of 50 and it was still overbaked. It would have been wonderful if the cake was nice and moist.
Hi Janice,
Thanks for trying this cake and sharing your feedback, I’m so sorry to hear it was not enjoyed!
I want to make this for my son’s bday but my nephew is allergic to Peanuts. How would you recommend altering the top layer to omit peanut butter?
Hi Ashley,
How about using sunbutter in place of the peanut butter? That should work well for you! Let me know if you have any other questions! xx
Hey Tieghan!!
Have you made this recently? Considering it for a potluck but wasnโt sure about that sugar to cocoa ratio.
Hi Allison,
I’ve not made this one in awhile, but all of the measurements are correct:) Let me know if you give it a try! I hope you love the recipe! xx
How much butter and cream cheese?
Hi there,
This recipe calls for 1 stick of butter and 8 ounces of cream cheese. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
The filling and topping were amazing but the crust was actually kind of bitter? I’m pretty sure I followed the recipe to the T, so I don’t know what happened. Could it be that the amounts for the sugar and cocoa powder are switched around? 3/4 cup cocoa powder seems like a lot…not that I thought about that while I was making it! It still got mostly eaten at the potluck I took it to but I do wonder!
Did you use sweetened or unsweetened cocoa powder?
Hi Sara! I used unsweetened cocoa powder! I hope you enjoy these!! (: