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I've never had the butter cake from California Pizza Kitchen. But a reader asked for it, and when I looked it up, I could see that California Pizza Kitchen does seem to know what they're doing in the cake department. Cheesecake on top, butter cake on the bottom, and a light crust of caramelized sugar you get just from buttering and sugaring the pan, this California Pizza Kitchen-Style Gluten Free Butter Cake is pretty much a cake home run.
I tried a bunch of different cake recipes and methods to make this butter cake. They allllll failed miserably except for this one of course. We're talking about cake in the trash failures, which kills me dead. And then since I didn't want you to have to buy a special wee little springform pan just to make this cake (and since I only have 2 of those plus could only locate one in my kitchen cabinets), I tried baking it in a bunch of different pans and ramekins. It worked in them all! And you could still unmold a gorgeous cake without a springform pan.
And anyway with the right recipe (which of course I provide for you below because I'm no miser), this butter cake is actually really simple to put together. The cheesecake layer is going to crack a bit and so what big whoop. I tried baking the whole thing in a water bath and let's just say that it took so long to bake that it ended up in the trash. :(
My favorite part, speaking as someone who adores cheesecake, is the crusty caramelized sugar part. No scary kitchen torch required. No contest.
Gluten Free Butter Cake | California Pizza Kitchen-Style
Equipment
- 4 4-inch ramekins and/or springform pans
- Stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment or handheld mixer
Ingredients
For prepping the pans
- 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter at room temperature
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
For the cake layer
- ¾ cup (105 g) all purpose gluten free flour blend (I used Better Batter; please click thru for full info on appropriate blends)
- ¼ teaspoon xanthan gum (omit if your blend already contains it)
- 2 tablespoons (18 g) cornstarch replace with more Cup4Cup if that is your all purpose gluten free flour blend
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons (84 g) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 (50 g (weighed out of shell)) egg at room temperature, beaten
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoons (3 fluid ounces) milk at room temperature
For the cheesecake layer
- 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese (the block kind) at room temperature
- 3 tablespoons (36 g) granulated sugar
- 1 (50 g (weighed out of shell)) egg at room temperature
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375°F.
- Prep 4 4-inch ramekins and/or springform pans by greasing the bottom and sides of each generously with softened butter and sprinkling with an even layer of sugar. Tap the sugar around the pans to coat the entire buttered surface. Set the pans aside.
Make the cake layer.
- In a large bowl, place the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt and sugar, and whisk to combine well.
- Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the butter, egg, vanilla and milk, and mix to combine. The batter should be thick but relatively fluffy.
- Divide the batter evenly among the prepared baking dishes, spread it into an even layer in each, and set them aside.
Make the cheesecake layer.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a large bowl with a hand mixer, place the cream cheese and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy.
- Add the sugar, egg, salt and vanilla, beating to combine well after each addition. The mixture should be light and fluffy.
- Divide the cheesecake layer among the ramekins, on top of the cake layer, and spread into an even layer.
Bake.
- Place the pans on a large rimmed baking sheet, spaced evenly apart from one another, and place in the center of the preheated oven.
- Bake until the cakes are mostly set on top, with just a little bit of jiggle in the center when shaken lightly from side to side (20 to 25 minutes, depending upon the size of the ramekin).
- Remove from the oven, transfer the pans to a wire rack immediately and allow to cool completely in the pans.
- Unmold the cooled cakes by either removing the sides of the springform pans or lifting the cake out carefully with a small offset spatula.
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Hi, I’m Nicole. I create gluten free recipes that really work and taste as good as you remember. No more making separate meals when someone is GF, or buying packaged foods that aren’t good enough to justify the price. At Gluten Free on a Shoestring, “good, for gluten free” just isn’t good enough! Come visit my bio!
cai says
YAY! I’m the reader (or maybe one of many readers?) That requested this recipe. I am SO thrilled to have Butter Cake back in my life! Thank you for doing this!!!!
Kelly says
My little girl is allergic to dairy and gluten…which cuts out the cheesecake topping. However to make the pizza type base…… would i just not include the top layer? How thick will the batter layer need to be- to get a pizza that looks like this? Thank you!
Nicole Hunn says
Hi, Kelly, I’m afraid I’m not following your question. The base of this cake is yellow cake, not a pizza. You could try doubling the cake recipe and baking it that way, but I haven’t tried this recipe with any substitutions so you’ll have to experiment!
Carol says
This looked so good, I went right to the kitchen and made it. When baking, it puffed up double its size, then deflated back down to about the original thickness. Was that what it was supposed to do? It does taste good.
Nicole Hunn says
It sounds like your oven is/was too hot, Carol.
Ginger says
Sweet Cake Lady, I bow down to you. You amaze me.
Nicole Hunn says
Ginger, I shall now refer to myself forever more as Sweet Cake Lady. :)
Lorraine says
You make me laugh. But I’d cry to if I had to throw out all my effort and baking! Thanks for persevering. This looks doable and delicious! I’ve never had what it’s supposed to be and I should avoid dairy but you know…some things are worth suffering for.
Nicole Hunn says
Occupational hazard, Lorraine! Usually I can salvage a failed recipe for eating purposes, at least in part, but when it’s failed cake … it usually isn’t salvageable. Think of it this way—I do it a lot, so hopefully my readers don’t have to do it at all! :)
Suzette says
Everything you make looks fantastic. I love your books, blog, Facebook, etc.
However, my one disappointment is that most things you create aren’t healthy for us. Since many folks are now aiming for a healthier plant-based diet, it would be truly wonderful if you could begin creating foods made with coconut oil in place of butter and an alternative to sugar such as pure maple syrup, raw honey straight from the bee keeper, Truvia, etc. We eat a whole food plant-based diet, sugar, dairy, gluten free, Kosher. Our health has dramatically improved and at 70 we feel young and full of life. Diet is key.
Nicole Hunn says
Suzette, I’m glad you found something that works for your family. I don’t consider it my responsibility or my place to map out anyone else’s diet. The recipes I post on my blog (and for the most part those in my cookbooks) are meant to replace foods many miss now that they’re gluten free, which usually means baked goods. I don’t publish health food, or naturally gluten free, recipes.
Anneke says
Keep up the good work, Nicole! Healthy eating means different things for different people, and one family’s healthy may be something that makes another family ill. For example, my Type 1 Diabetic daughter can’t eat pure maple syrup under any circumstances, and honey isn’t great either. I personally follow your blog specifically because the GF piece of our diet is, hands down, the hardest thing to manage. I so appreciate all your efforts, even when the recipe is something that doesn’t work for my other dietary issues.
Nicole Hunn says
Thanks, Anneke! I think it should be pretty obvious that I’m creating recipes for what we’re missing. Not creating a family meal plan for others! My family certainly doesn’t eat butter cake every day, or as a meal. :)
ellen says
I know you haven’t tried substitutions, but do you think potato starch would work in place of the cornstarch?
Nicole Hunn says
I honestly don’t know, ellen! Give it a shot!
lm says
This looks delicious. Thank you very much for all your hard work in adapting the recipes and for sharing them with all of us. I hate writing in to ask a question about a change in the recipe especially after you worked so hard to perfect it but here I go! Is the cake part very sweet? Can you lessen the surgar by 1/4 cup in the cake? one cup of sugar per 3/4 c flour seens very sweet. Will that make a difference in the outcome?
Nicole Hunn says
The cake is not overly sweet at all, Im, but I can’t know if cutting back on the sugar will change the recipe appreciably. Sugar is not just a sweetener. It is also a tenderizer. That is why sugar-free baked goods are usually tough. Feel free to experiment!
Lgagne47 says
Looks marvelous – my hubby is a cheesecake lover and would just adore this I’m sure. Thank you for posting it. Putting on my timeline.
Nicole Hunn says
Oh this is right up his alley, then, Lgagne!
stacy says
Looks amazing! Could you use light cream cheese for the cheesecake portion?
Nicole Hunn says
Unless I indicate otherwise, I haven’t tested my recipes with any substitutions. Feel free to experiment, Stacy!
Lucy says
Nicole, the “whey powder isolate”, is it still considered as a dairy product?
The local librarian was very excited about the BAKES BREAD book but concerned about the whey powder isolate. I couldn’t answer her but thought I would ask.
I’m lucky my family hasn’t dairy diet issues and I feel bad when I promote your book to another, then find out they can’t have dairy or eggs…
Many people in the community have been asking me for recipes and I send them to you here in hopes they will find answers.
Have a great day! and thank you for all you do! :)
Mare Masterson says
Nicole addresses dairy free substitutions for the whey protein isolate in the Bakes Bread book, and tells how to adjust the recipe accordingly, I believe its pages 10-11.
Lucy says
Thank you! I’ll tell Debra, she thanks you too!
Lucy says
Looks so dreamy! I have never heard of pizza butter cake before today…looks very yummy! Will it go with ice cream? Hubby came home late last night with more heavy whipping cream :) I guess that was a hint?
Thanks again sweetie! HUGS!
Nicole Hunn says
A not-so-subtle hint, Lucy!
Jennifer S. says
Holy moly Friday goodness! yum-o!
Rose says
This looks lovely! If I was going to make this in just one springform pan, what size would you suggest for the appropriate amount of batter?
Mare Masterson says
Nicole, I would like to know about making in 1 springform pan also, please. Thank you! :)
Nicole Hunn says
Hi, ladies, I honestly don’t know as I haven’t made it in one springform pan. I would try 35 minutes and then check from there!
Cindy Merrill says
If I were to try a regular springform pan do you think the recipe would need to be doubled or tripled?
Mae McPherson says
I would love to know the answer to this also. My first thought was to make it in my springform pan that I usually make cheesecake in…rather than several smaller ones!
Brandy says
Hey Nicole, do you think it would turn out ok if I made dairy free substitutions? I use earth balance butter, rice milk, and tofutti cream cheese.
Jennifer S. says
you should give it a whirl and let us know how it turns out.
Brandy says
I’m gonna- I’ll let you know!
Nicole Hunn says
Unless I indicate otherwise, I haven’t tested my recipes with any substitutions. Feel free to experiment, Brandy!
Brandy says
Ok I did it just like I said… Substituted rice milk, tofutti cream cheese, and earth balance butter.
My batter seemed a little thinner than yours so I was gonna suggest lessening the rice milk a smidge but I baked them up anyway and kept them in for 25 min. And they are to die for!!