Lemon Ooey Gooey Butter Cake
Lemon Ooey Gooey Butter Cake starts with a lemon cake mix, but you'd never guess it once you taste it. Fresh lemon zest and juice give the cake a from-scratch flavor, with barely any extra work.
Gosh I love a gooey butter cake! This Lemon Ooey Gooey Butter Cake joins classic gooey butter cake and chocolate gooey butter cake as an easy dessert that starts with a box of cake mix, but tastes entirely homemade.
The top bakes up soft and gooey, the bottom stays sturdy enough to slice, and the whole thing has a citrusy sweet-tart flavor that kept me coming back for another square. I loved it with a dollop of whipped cream on top.
Here are my top tips for making the cake:
- Remember to soften the cream cheese before you start.
- The middle should jiggle slightly when you remove them from the oven. This will firm up as the cake cools.
- Wait until the cake is completely cool to cut it.
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Cake Ingredients
- The base of the recipe is a lemon cake mix. Cake mixes used to be 18 ounces, and some brands have reduced the quantity to 13.25 ounces now! Duncan Hines will get you the closest among the popular brands, with 15.25 ounces. I used Duncan Hines Perfectly Moist Lemon Supreme cake mix.
- We’ll use both the zest and juice of a lemon to amp up the lemon flavor even more.
- I recommend using full-fat cream cheese for the gooey-est result.
How to Make Lemon Ooey Gooey Butter Cake
- Whisk one egg in a bowl, then mix in the melted butter and cake mix with a fork.
- Press the mixture into a greased 13×9-inch pan.
- In the same bowl, beat cream cheese, remaining 2 eggs, lemon zest and juice, and powdered sugar with a hand mixer until smooth.
- Pour the cream cheese mixture over the cake mix mixture in the pan.
- Bake for about 40 minutes at 350°F. The center should still jiggle a bit when you remove it from the oven.
- Let cool and slice. Top with a dollop of whipped cream.
Storing and Serving
Gooey butter cake is best stored in the refrigerator. It’ll keep the longest that way. You can serve it straight from the fridge, at room temperature, or warmed slightly. It’ll have maximum gooey-ness at room temperature or warmed, but you really can’t go wrong.
I really liked a dollop of whipped cream on top. Citrus + cream go really well together (think creamsicle-like flavor, but lemon).
If you’d like to garnish it a bit, a thin quartered slice of lemon is really pretty on top.
📖 Recipe
Lemon Ooey Gooey Butter Cake
Ingredients
- 3 eggs divided
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 box lemon cake mix
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- Zest and juice of one medium lemon
- 3½ cups powdered sugar plus more for sprinkling over the top
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Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 13×9-inch baking dish.
- Whisk 1 egg in a large bowl. Stir in ½ cup unsalted butter and 1 box lemon cake mix (dry) in with a fork.
- Press the mixture into the greased baking dish.
- In the same bowl, beat 8 oz cream cheese, remaining 2 eggs, Zest and juice of one medium lemon, and 3½ cups powdered sugar with a hand mixer until smooth.
- Pour over the batter in the pan.
- Bake for 38-42 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden brown. The middle should jiggle just a little when you gently shake the pan.
- Allow to cool completely, then cut into squares and top with a dollop of whipped cream.
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