“This is the cake my mom made all the time when I was growing up because it’s super easy. I’d slice little slivers of it all day long, often on the same schedule as my brother and sister, until it was gone. It’s one of my favorite cakes, but because it’s rich and dense, it’s almost like a brownie. I really enjoy it warmed until the frosting and marshmallows become soft again and then topped with vanilla ice cream.” —Kelly Fields
Food & Drink
Mom’s Mississippi Mud Cake
Pastry chef Kelly Fields shares her take on a childhood favorite—marshmallows and all
photo: Oriana Koren
Ingredients
Mississippi Mud Cake (Makes one 9-by-13-inch cake)
Double-Chocolate Cake
1 cup unsalted butter
½ cup unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder, sifted
2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs, at room temperature and lightly beaten
1½ cups all-purpose flour
Pinch of kosher salt
1½ cups pecans, chopped
1 cup chocolate chips (use whatever kind you like)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Frosting
2½ cups powdered sugar
⅓ cup unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup whole milk, at room temperature
-
About 3 cups mini marshmallows
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly coat with cooking spray or butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan. In a large saucepot over medium-low heat, melt the butter. Whisk in the cocoa. Remove from the heat and stir in the sugar and eggs, mixing well. Add the flour, salt, pecans, chocolate chips, and vanilla and mix well.
Using a rubber spatula, scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake in the center of the oven for 35 to 45 minutes, rotating the pan after 15 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean when inserted into the center of the cake.
While the cake is baking, make the frosting. Sift the powdered sugar and cocoa together into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or into a medium bowl and use a handheld mixer. Add the butter and beat on medium-high speed until no visible clumps remain. Stop the mixer occasionally and scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to ensure the mixture is as smooth as possible. Return the mixer to medium-high speed and stream in the milk. Mix until well incorporated.
Sprinkle the marshmallows on top of the warm cake and pour the frosting over the top while still warm. (You’re just covering the warm cake with marshmallows so they both kind of melt into each other. It’s nasty-good.) Serve warm or at room temperature. This cake keeps at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Reprinted with permission from The Good Book of Southern Baking by Kelly Fields with Kate Heddings, copyright (c) 2020. Published by Lorena Jones Books, a division of Penguin Random House, LLC. Photographs copyright © Oriana Koren
Related Stories:
drinks
The Pitfalls and Pleasures of Peanut Butter Whiskey
Yes, we suggest you try it
Food & Drink
Lowcountry Pickled Shrimp
A tangy and supremely riffable recipe from Hank Shaw’s latest cookbook
Food & Drink
A Spicy Italian Spin on Stewed Okra
Not a fan of the summer produce star? Chef Mark Bolchoz’s take just might convert you
Trending Stories:
Food & Drink
The Mad Scientist of Pawpaws
Largely the domain of foragers, the biggest edible fruit in the South has mostly been forgotten. A quietly obsessed Quaker from West Virginia has made it his life’s mission to change that
Food & Drink
How an Award-Winning Pastry Chef Doctors Up Boxed Cornbread
Even Kelly Fields whips up a box of Jiffy every once in a while. Here’s how she makes the store-bought stuff her own
30
Slideshow
Arts & Culture
The Top-of-2021 Reading List for Southerners
G&G contributors, editors, and Southern book lovers share new releases and old favorites to read right away this year—and a couple forthcoming releases already on preorder