Better Than Anything Cake (The Butterscotch Caramel Secret)

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Better Than Anything Cake is the easiest chocolate poke cake you’ll ever make. German chocolate cake mix gets soaked in butterscotch caramel and sweetened condensed milk, then topped with Cool Whip and crushed Heath bars. Ready in 50 minutes, better after overnight chilling.

This rich chocolate cake is also referred to as Paul Newman Cake is perfect for your next summer barbecue or potluck for a dessert that’s always a crowd pleaser!

Recipe Overview: Better than Anything Cake

Pan size: 9×13
Servings: 15
Total active time: ~50 minutes
Chill time: 1 hour minimum (overnight is better)
Make-ahead: Yes, up to 24 hours in advance
Storage: Refrigerator, covered, up to 4-5 days

a piece of better than anything cake on a spatula

What Makes This Recipe Different (The Butterscotch Caramel Secret)

Most better than anything cake recipes use straight caramel sauce. This one uses Mrs. Richardson’s Butterscotch and Caramel Ice Cream Topping and that difference matters more than you’d think.

Plain caramel sauce is one-note sweet. Butterscotch caramel has that deeper, slightly toasty brown-sugar flavor that makes the whole cake taste like something that took all day to make. Pour caramel sauce over the chocolate base and creates layers of flavor instead of just sweetness.

Our Better than Anything Cake That Gets Written Into Every Family Recipe Box

The name isn’t marketing. It’s a warning.

This cake has been floating around American potlucks since at least the 1980s. In my old church cookbook, it has the name “Paul Newman Cake” and its a mystery as to why.

I first made this for a church potluck years ago, and Matt took one bite and said “what is this?” It wasn’t a question, more of a statement. He’s not normally a cake person, but that butterscotch and caramel combo got him.

If you’re looking for more crowd-pleasing potluck desserts, try our punch bowl cake or dirt cake.

Love cake? Try our chocolate sheet cake, white cake and cinnamon roll coffee cake.

Ingredients Needed

This better than anything cake recipe only requires a couple of ingredients and comes together in no time! It’s rich, sweet, and surprisingly simple.

Using boxed cake mix significantly speeds up the process, but you could make the cake base from scratch if you’d like. Try our Mexican chocolate cake base or sour cream chocolate cake.

Toffee bits or Butterfinger candy bars are great for the top of the cake too.

Don’t want to use Cool Whip? Make homemade whipped cream with heavy whipping cream.

ingredients for better than anything cake on a table

If you can’t find Mrs. Richardson’s, any thick butterscotch caramel topping works.

How to Make Better than Anything Cake: Step by Step

Make the cake. Bake cake according to package directions in a 9×13 baking pan. Poke holes into the top of the cake using the end of a wooden spoon or a large meat fork.

a chocolate cake with holes poked in it on a table

Add the topping. Reserve about ¼ cup of ice cream topping for drizzling on top of the cake. In a small bowl, combine the remaining ice cream topping with the sweetened condensed milk. Mix well. Pour this mixture over the top of the cake, spreading if necessary to cover the whole cake.

caramel pouring over a chocolate poke cake

Layer the Cool Whip. Spread the Cool Whip over top the cake.

whipped cream spread on top of a chocolate cake

Add the Heath crumbles. Sprinkle with chopped Heath candy bars and drizzle with the remaining ice cream topping.

spoon drizzling caramel on top of a cake

Frequently Asked Questions

Can You Make Better Than Anything Cake the Night Before?

Yes! Here’s the make-ahead timeline that works best:
Night before: Bake, poke, pour the caramel filling. Let cool completely on the counter, then refrigerate uncovered for 1 hour.
A few hours before serving: Top with Cool Whip, Heath bar pieces, and the caramel drizzle.
At serving time: Pull straight from the fridge. This is a cold cake — don’t let it sit at room temperature more than 2 hours.

Can you freeze this cake?

You can freeze the base cake (without the Cool Whip topping) for up to 2 months. Add the Cool Whip and toppings after thawing in the refrigerator overnight.

Can you use Devil’s Food cake mix instead of German chocolate?

Yes. Devil’s Food produces a richer, darker chocolate flavor. German chocolate is sweeter and milder, which balances the caramel topping slightly better, but both work.

Better than Anything Cake Recipe

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Looking for an easy cake recipe that is perfect for the summer? Our Better than Anything cake is full of rich chocolate and caramel flavors and couldn’t be easier to make!

Servings 14

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 30

Total Time 49

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Ingredients

1 box Betty Crocker German chocolate cake mix 13.25 ounces
1 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
17 ounces Mrs. Richardson's Butterscotch Caramel Ice Cream Topping* (divided)
7 ounces sweetened condensed milk (about ½ can)
12 ounces cool whip whipped topping (fully thawed)
3 Heath bars (chopped)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Spray a 9×13" cake pan with cooking spray.
In a large bowl, use a hand mixer to mix together the cake mix, water, oil and eggs. Mix on medium speed for 2 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 28-33 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs. 1 box Betty Crocker German chocolate cake mix, 1 cup water, ½ cup vegetable oil, 3 large eggs
Set aside about ¼ cup of ice cream topping for drizzling on top of the cake. In a small bowl, combine the remaining ice cream topping with the sweetened condensed milk. Mix well. 17 ounces Mrs. Richardson's Butterscotch Caramel Ice Cream Topping*, 7 ounces sweetened condensed milk
17 ounces Mrs. Richardson's Butterscotch Caramel Ice Cream Topping*
Poke holes into the top of the cake using the end of a wooden spoon or a large meat fork. Pour this caramel mixture over the top of the warm cake, spreading if necessary to cover the whole cake.
Spread the Cool Whip over the top of the cake. 12 ounces cool whip whipped topping
12 ounces cool whip whipped topping
Sprinkle with chopped Heath bars and drizzle with the remaining ice cream topping. Cover and chill until serving. 3 Heath bars
3 Heath bars

Notes

If you can’t find the butterscotch caramel combo, buy a jar of caramel sauce and butterscotch sauce and use equal amounts.

Refer to the article above for more tips and tricks.

The calories shown are based on the cake being cut into 15 pieces, with 1 serving being 1 slice of cake. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. **