Fall in Love with Valerie Bertinelli’s ‘Creamy, Dreamy’ Butterscotch Love Cake

The name says it all: Valerie Bertinelli’s Butterscotch Love cake is the caramel-y, buttery, simply dreamy dessert you didn’t know you needed to make.

Find out how to make the Food Network star’s cake that you’ll surely fall in sugary love with.

What you’ll need for Bertinelli’s Butterscotch Love Cake

Before anything else, here’s what you’ll need to perfect the former One Day at a Time star’s cake recipe (full instructions here): unsalted butter, light brown sugar, heavy cream, vanilla extract, cooking spray, a box of yellow cake mix, ricotta cheese, mascarpone cheese, eggs, regular sugar, salt, butterscotch pudding mix, and whole milk.

As the Food Network said on Instagram about Bertinelli’s recipe: “Get ready to fall head over heels for @wolfiesmom’s creamy, dreamy butterscotch cake. A pack of butterscotch pudding mix makes the frosting unbelievably rich!”

Special items you’ll need for the recipe, according to Bertinelli, are a 9-inch by 13-inch baking dish and a stand mixer.

How to assemble Valerie Bertinelli’s cake

First off, Bertinelli gets the butterscotch sauce done. Melted butter is combined in a pan with the brown sugar and stirred until the mixture gets “frothy.” The cream is then added until it’s thickened. Set aside and cooled, the vanilla is added.

The cake mix is prepared according to the box directions, and the cooled butterscotch sauce is swirled into the batter and set it aside.

This next part is what makes the cake look distinctive, giving it a completely white layer. Using the stand mixer, the ricotta and mascarpone cheeses, along with the eggs, sugar, and salt are whisked. The mixture is then slowly poured, not mixed, onto the cake batter in the pan.

Bake in your oven following the cake mix’s instructions for 50 minutes and then cool completely.

While it’s cooling, prepare the frosting by mixing mascarpone, pudding mix, sugar, and milk using the stand mixer until it’s smooth. Spread it over the entire cooled cake with a spatula and enjoy!

Reviews for Valerie Bertinelli’s Butterscotch Love Cake

Food Network fans’ thoughts on her cake were feeling the love…though not entirely.

Reviews varied; one not very positive reviewer said “it was too WET on the bottom (despite draining the ricotta) which leaves an unappetizing texture and mouth feel for this cake. There is NOT an overwhelming butterscotch flavor which was disappointing.”

But another home cook loved it: “I would definitely make this again.”

“Our family loved the cake,” said a happy cake maker. “We tested it out with just the four of us and they all agreed that we could take this cake to parties.”

Finally, another reviewer learned from others before them that perhaps a larger baking dish is what was needed.

“After reading the reviews, I went and bought an 11 x 15 pan with 2 1/2 inch sides,” they wrote. “Just to make sure it didn’t run over. It turned out DELICIOUS!! My husband ate a quarter of it before the frosting was made!!! I also doubled the frosting recipe. This is a very good recipe.”