Looking for a show-stopping holiday dessert recipe? This Peppermint Bark Gooey Butter Cake is a sweet, minty twist on a classic, ideal for Christmas brunch or a festive holiday celebration.
Gooey Butter Cake is a St. Louis delight. We eat it on all types of special occasions for dessert and even breakfast. But this peppermint bark inspired gooey butter cake is extra special. It’s perfect for the holiday season for everything from holiday parties to Christmas day brunch.
If you aren’t familiar with Gooey Butter Cake, it is rich and sweet, making it the perfect decadent treat for the holidays. Gooey butter cake is traditionally made using yellow cake mix, cream cheese, butter, and a couple of eggs. It features a soft, cakey bottom, a sweet gooey center, and a crispy top. You can also flavor it with a variety of different combinations – like this Lemon Blueberry Gooey Butter Cake.
To make this Christmas Gooey Butter Cake extra festive, I flavored it like traditional peppermint bark. Starting with a moist and rich chocolate cake layer, this is then topped with a gooey layer flavored with vanilla bean and peppermint extract. After baking, I topped this Peppermint Bark Gooey Butter Cake with crushed candy canes for a little extra crunch and peppermint flavor.
How Do You Make Peppermint Bark Gooey Butter Cake?
While it looks impressive, this Peppermint Gooey Butter Cake is actually really easy and quick to make. The recipe starts with a box cake mix and just 7 other simple ingredients. It takes just a few minutes to prepare and put in the oven, especially using a stand mixer.
To make this Gooey Butter Cake recipe:
- Make the crust: To make the first layer of this gooey butter cake, you mix together 1 egg, melted butter, and a package of chocolate cake mix until just combined. I use the paddle attachment of my stand mixer for this, but you can also stir by hand.
- Spread the crust into a buttered/greased baking dish: Next grease a 13 x 9 baking dish, and spread the crust in an even layer. The batter will be thick, so use your fingers or a rubber spatula to press gently into an even layer, using care not to pack it down too tightly.
- Prep the gooey topping layer: In the same large mixing bowl (or the bowl of your mixer), add the softened cream cheese, two additional eggs, peppermint extract, and vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract). Using the whisk attachment of your mixer (or a hand mixer), beat until smooth and creamy. Add in powdered sugar 1 cup at a time and continue to mix. Pour the filling/topping evenly over the crust.
- Bake: Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 40 – 45 minutes until edges and top are lightly golden and center is just set. The filling layer will still be pretty gooey, but it should look set up and not runny.
- Top with Candy Canes: While the cake cooks, crush up the candy canes. Immediately upon taking the Peppermint Bark Gooey Butter out of the oven, you will want to sprinkle the candy canes over the top of the cake. The peppermint bits will slightly melt from the residual heat of the cake, and sink into the light, flaky top.
- Let cool: This is the hardest part, let the cake cool completely to room temperature, before serving. Once cool, sprinkle with a light dusting of extra powdered sugar, then slice and enjoy!
How Can I Serve This Holiday Gooey Butter Cake Recipe?
This Peppermint Bark Gooey Butter Cake would be perfect served with a cup of coffee, warm peppermint or chai tea, or even hot cocoa. Serve it as a decadent dessert or a sweet addition to your festive holiday breakfast or brunch.
Gooey butter cake is most often served at room temperature, but we also like it chilled in the fridge – the choice is up to you.
Looking for More Festive Holiday and Christmas Recipes Like This Peppermint Bark Gooey Butter Cake?
If you are looking for more special sweets and treats to celebrate the holidays, I have you covered with a variety of tasty recipes perfect for everything from holiday parties to a decadent Christmas day brunch.
Some of my favorite holiday treats include:
- Sweet & Salty Chex Mix – A sweet and salty combination, this snack mix is perfect for Christmas parties and snacking throughout the season.
- Spiced Gingerbread Waffles with Maple Icing – These light and fluffy waffles bring the rich flavors of gingerbread cookies, topped with a sweet maple flavored icing.
- Puppy Chow with Peanut Butter Pretzels – A classic puppy chow chex mix recipe made extra special with peanut butter filled pretzels and festive peanut butter M&Ms.
- Easy Cinnamon Sticky Buns with Candied Bacon – These short cut cinnamon rolls are quick and easy to make, perfect for a busy Christmas morning or brunch.
- Frosted Cranberry Margarita – A festive take on a classic margarita, this cocktail is ready to make all of your holiday parties sparkle!
If you make this Peppermint Bark Gooey Butter Cake, don’t forget to comment and rate the recipe below to let me know what you think! You can also share your photos and tag me @NamasteHomeCooking on Facebook or @NamasteHomeCooking on Instagram. I love to hear from you!
Peppermint Bark Gooey Butter Cake
Ingredients
- 1 15.25- ounce box chocolate cake mix
- 3 eggs (divided)
- ½ cup unsalted butter (melted)
- 1 8- ounce package cream cheese (softened)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
- 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 4 cups powdered sugar (plus extra for sprinkling)
- 4 candy canes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment, form bottom layer by mixing together 1 egg, melted butter, and package of chocolate cake mix, mixing until just combined (don't over mix). You can also stir this by hand.
- Spread chocolate cake mixture in an even layer an a greased 13 x 9 inch baking dish. The batter will be thick, so use your fingers or a rubber spatula to press gently into an even layer.
- In the same large mixing bowl (or the bowl of your mixer), add the softened cream cheese, two additional eggs, peppermint extract, and vanilla bean paste. Using the stand mixer or a hand mixer, beat until smooth and combined. Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, and continue to mix.
- Pour the filling/topping over the crust in an even layer.
- Bake in preheated oven for 40 - 45 minutes until edges and top are lightly golden and center is just set. The filling layer will still be pretty gooey when finished, but it should look set up and not runny.
- While the cake bakes, crush candy canes.
- Immediately on taking the cake out of the oven, sprinkle with an even layer of crushed candy canes. The residual heat from the cake will melt the candy slightly so it sticks to the top layer.
- Cool completely to room temperature, then sprinkle lightly with extra powdered sugar and serve.