A Delicious Dessert Recipe

When a friend first gave me this recipe, it was attributed to Paula Deen. Not sure on that, but I just wanted to put that out there to give credit to whom credit was due.

The recipe I have calls this Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake. The above picture is the pumpkin version.

While this dessert is loaded with butter and eggs and sugar, it makes a large quantity of rich, cheesecake-type 'bites' for a party or gathering. I cut the 9x13 pan into about 30 rectangles (6 rows sliced into five portions) and generally serve each portion in a paper cupcake liner.

Most of the variations have been made for and given 'two thumbs up' by my Awana club teens for the past few Wednesdays. (We've not yet tried the chocolate cherry or pineapple versions).

Ingredients:

Cake Layer:
1 (18 1/4 oz.) package yellow cake mix
1 egg
8 Tbs. butter (use the real thing!), melted

Filling:
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese (I use the light version and have never looked back)
1 (15 oz.) canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 Tbs. butter, melted
1 (16 oz.) box powdered sugar
2-3 teaspoons Pumpkin Pie Spice mixture

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

For the cake layer:
combine cake mix, egg and butter, mix well with an electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 9x13 pan.

To make the filling:
In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla and butter and beat together.

Add the powdered sugar, pumpkin pie spices and mix well.

Pour mixture over cake batter layer and bake for 40-50 minutes. If you want the dessert gooey, the middle should wiggle. If you like it more like a cheesecake, the midle should be almost firm to the touch. I prefer the latter as it cuts into smaller bars better.

Serve with fresh whipped cream if desired. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Variations:

For a Pineapple Gooey Cake, substitute a drained (20 oz.) can of crushed pineapple for the pumpkin in the cream cheese filling and eliminate the pumpkin pie spices.

For a Banana Gooey Cake, prepare cream cheese filling as directed, beating in two ripe bananas instead of the canned pumpkin, and adding a bit of cinnamon and nutmeg in place of the pumpkin pie spices.

For Strawberry-Banana Gooey Cake, make as for Banana Gooey Cake, except substitute a strawberry cake mix in place of the yellow cake mix.

For Peanut Butter Gooey Cake, use a chocolate cake mix for the bottom layer, and add 1 cup creamy peanut butter to the cream cheese filling in place of the pumpkin and pumpkin pie spices.

A strawberry cake mix can be substituted for the chocolate to make a Peanut Butter & Jelly Gooey Cake.

Canned pie cherries, rinsed and pureed (about 1 cup worth) can be mixed into the cream cheese mixture in place of peanut butter for a Chocolate-Cherry Gooey Cake version. The rest can be used for garnish on the whip cream.

The pumpkin one will be served in place of traditional pumpkin pie in our house this Thanksgiving.

So that these buttery, sugar-laden treats don't hang around too long at my house, I usually put the lefover 'bars' on cupcake liners, arrange a few of them in a clear plastic or decorated chinese carry-out box and give them away along with a note which says "refrigerate leftovers" and has a list of ingredients.



Happy Baking!