The first thing I think of when someone mentions St. Louis is The Gateway Arch, but the second would surely be Gooey Butter Cake. A regional favorite with multiple stories surrounding its origin, Gooey Butter Cake is a thin, dense, rich coffee cake invented by German bakers in South St. Louis.
The original version has a thick, cakey crust with a butter topping, while the variation has a cake mix crust topped with cream cheese, butter and loads of confectioners' sugar. Not being from St. Louis, I haven't been able to determine which version is more popular. Since the German bakers of the 1930s and '40s were not using cake mix, I'm pretty sure the version without cream cheese is closer to the real thing.
This recipe was given to me by Beverly Jones who developed recipes for some very notable Boston based cookbook authors. One cookbook she worked on, and which happens to have this recipe in it, was Rosie's Bakery Chocolate-Packed Jam-Filled Butter-Rich No-Holds-Barred Cookie Book
Gooey Butter Cake Bars Texture & Flavor
Not having a frame of reference for Gooey Butter Cake, I can only tell you that these are different than anything I've tried. After being thoroughly chilled, they have a dense bottom layer and a smooth, thick, sticky topping. Their flavor is very buttery with a hint of vanilla. I made mine with store brand butter, but I think they'd be even with European style. I'll definitely be making these again. And I'll probably make a half batch of Magic Cookie Bars too, to use up the condensed milk!
Recipe
Gooey Butter Cake Bar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (130 grams)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened (114 grams)
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100 grams)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
Filling
- 1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, softened (170 grams)
- 1 pinch salt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
- ⅓ cup light corn syrup
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour (45 grams)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.Line a 9 inch square metal baking pan with foil and spray foil with cooking spray or rub with butter and line with parchment paper.
- Sift flour, salt and baking soda together into a small bowl. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla together with an electric mixer. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula. Stir in the egg and beat until smooth.
- Add the flour mixture and stir until well blended.
- With flour on your fingers, press the dough into the bottom of the pan and set aside while you prepare the filling.
- Beat the butter, salt and vanilla with the mixer until light and fluffy. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula.
- Using lowest speed of mixer, beat in condensed milk. Beat for about 15 seconds. Scrape bowl and beat in the corn syrup. Add the egg and beat for 1 ½ minutes on medium-high speed until the mixture is light and fluffy again. Scrape the bowl. With the mixer on medium-low speed, add the flour and beat until mixed, 30 seconds (I just stirred it in).
- Pour the filling evenly over the base. Bake on the center rack of the oven until the edges appear set but the center is still jiggly, 25 to 27 minutes. Let cool to room temperature; then refrigerate until set, about 4 hours. Cut into 2 ¼-by-1 ½-inch bars with a sharp thin knife, dipping it in hot water and wiping it clean before each new cut.
Laura says
I have been curious about these for a while, and determined to try without cake mix. Yum!
Emily says
I just moved to St. Louis! I'm excited to try some gooey butter cake while I'm here. There's even a gooey butter cake bakery here. These look amazing!
Martha in KS says
I thought Paula Deen created Gooey Butter Cakes. Glad to know they came from the Show Me state. I'll try your version soon.
Anna says
Nancy, I was worried these would be too rich, but they were neither greasy nor too sweet. They had the texture of a good cheeswcake bar, but instead of tart cream cheese, the predominate flavors were butter and vanilla.
Nancy says
I've made the version with the cake mix and cream cheese. Treebeard's, a popular Cajun restaurant here, sells them. My husband used to tell me about them, and when I was living in NY he sent me the recipe -- I could not believe how rich they were! But they are good! Your version looks really good, too!
Erin @ The Spiffy Cookie says
I am not sure I knew they were from St. Louis. Glad someone invented them!
Holiday Baker Man says
Never heard of these before. I need to try this out!