Chocolate Ooey Gooey Cake is a delicious and decadent chocolate cake that is made with the help of a cake mix and a few simple ingredients for a chocolate treat you can enjoy in no time! The thin top layer of delicate chocolate flakiness resting precariously over the ooey-gooey molten cocoa-flavored lava lusciousness is pretty darn amazing. After making my Ooey Gooey Butter Cake, I knew I had to make it in chocolate!
Ingredients & Substitutions
GOOP: I prefer to prepare my cake pans with GOOP, or homemade pan release, but you could also spray the pan with nonstick cooking spray and line it with parchment paper.
Chocolate Cake Mix: There is no shame in using a box of chocolate cake mix! You will still end up with a cake that will satisfy even the biggest chocolate lovers!
Butter: Use unsalted butter for the best results in this cake.
Cream Cheese: Be sure to set out your cream cheese an hour or two before making the cake; when it’s at room temperature, it blends more easily with other ingredients and helps the cake have a better texture after baking.
Cocoa Powder: Look for high-quality unsweetened cocoa powder. You could substitute Dutch-processed cocoa powder if that is what you have on hand.
Can I Use a Different Sized Pan?
I recommend baking this Chocolate Ooey Gooey Cake in a 9×3-inch round cake pan or 9×3 springform pan to achieve a cake with a very gooey center and thicker edges, which is how I prefer it. However, if you don’t have these types of pans, you can still use a 9×13-inch pan, but the cake will be thinner than what you see in my pictures. You can also use a 9×9-inch or 8×8-inch square pan. Just ensure that your oven is calibrated correctly to avoid hot spots that could cause uneven baking. (Hint: Use bake strips around your pan!)
‘Magic’ Chocolate Ooey-Gooey Cake
Want to know a trick to make this a ‘Magic’ Ooey Gooey Cake? You simply mix all the ingredients in one bowl, pour the batter into the prepared pan, and then bake. There is no layer separation, but the flavor and texture are still amazing!
Variations to Chocolate Ooey Gooey Cake
You are not limited by the flavors in this recipe! Try adapting the Ooey Gooey cake recipe to create any flavor combination. Here are a few of my favorite modifications:
- Use vanilla cake in the base and lemon extract for the cream cheese topping.
- Add coffee extract in the base and cherry flavoring to the cream cheese layer.
- Try lemon in the base and lemon zest in the topping.
- Add fruit to the top to help cut the sweetness.
- Try adding chocolate chips to the base and/or the cream cheese layer.
- Add chopped pecans to the base layer.
How to Store Chocolate Ooey Gooey Cake
To store chocolate ooey gooey cake, first, let the cake cool to room temperature. Next, wrap the cake tightly in plastic wrap and aluminum foil. It can be stored at room temperature for up to 2 days. For a longer shelf-life, store it in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days, letting it come to room temperature before serving. You can also freeze the cake for up to 3 months. If freezing it, let the cake thaw in the refrigerator overnight before serving. The texture may change slightly after freezing and thawing, but the cake will still be delicious!
Ooey Gooey Desserts
Chocolate Ooey Gooey Cake
Ingredients
- 1 box (15.25 ounces) chocolate cake mix
- 3 large eggs, one egg for bottom cake layer, then two eggs for filling layer, room temperature
- 1 cup (2 sticks / 227 g) unsalted butter, melted, divided
- 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
- ¼ cup (31 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 16 ounces confectioners' sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×3-inch round cake pan; then, line the pan with parchment paper. (You could also use GOOP*, a homemade pan release.)
- In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, 1 egg (reserving the other 2 eggs for later), and 1 stick of melted butter. Stir until well blended.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared pan, gently patting it down, and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed (or using a hand-held mixer), beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the remaining 2 eggs and the cocoa powder.
- Reducing the mixer to low speed, add the confectioners' sugar. Slowly add the remaining stick of melted butter. Add vanilla and continue to beat the mixture until smooth.
- Pour the filling into the pan, over the cake mixture. Bake for 40-50 minutes, being careful not to overbake the cake. The center should still be a little gooey when finished baking.
- Let the cake partially cool on a wire rack before cutting and serving.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Thank you for making my recipe! You took pictures, right? Well go ahead and post them on Instagram! Be sure to mention me @iambaker and use the hashtag #YouAreBaker.
I made this exactly as written except I cooked it in a 9 X 13 pan at 325 for 45 minutes. They were perfect and absolutely delicious! Thank you!
Thank you for sharing what you did with the recipe! I plan to try it this way. 🙂
I just made it and can’t wait to try it. However, I was wondering, can it be frozen after it’s been cooked
Super easy and was really delicious! I think I baked a tad too long. I didn’t think it looked done enough! Still very yummy! TY
I have made this twice but each time it taste bitter what am I doing wrong. I knows it’s good because a lady at church brought one and it was delicious
My grandson and I made this exactly as written, with one little exception. I thought I had cocoa powder and didn’t. So we used chocolate syrup, and a 9 x 13 pan. Just got it out of the oven and it smells WONDERFUL! HOPE IT’S GOOD! WE’RE BOUGHT TO DIVE IN! 😁
I followed the instructions to a T but it was a total failure. The cream cheese mixture was runny and looked like the cake batter did before I popped it into the, 350* oven for 50 minutes, oven. But, I did wonder about the amount of powder sugar used. I measured it to the exact weight on a kitchen scale. It sure seemed like an excessive amount. Your version looked scrumptious in the picture but mine looked more like a chocolate melt down. I was disappointed because I made it to impress a fellow (and his mom) w my culinary skills. I mlssed the mark somewhere down the line.
To die for, I loved it! I put a few but in one spot and it was so good. I’ll put nuts in next time.
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This looks sooo good
I’m gonna make this for Valentine’s Day, which also happens to be my husband’s birthday, in a heart shaped pan. Thanks! I’ve made the vanilla version my whole life, and I’m excited to have a chocolate version now.
Incredibly decadent dessert!!!