Better Than Sex Cake

This Better Than Sex Cake really lives up to its name! Rich chocolate cake, gooey caramel filling, fluffy whipped cream, and toffee bits? Yes, please! This indulgent chocolate poke cake is living out your wildest dessert fantasies.

Looking for more indulgent poke cake recipes? Give my triple chocolate poke cake a try, too.

This Better Than Sex Cake Is Unbeatable!

If you’re looking for the most indulgent chocolate caramel dessert to ever exist, well, you’ve found it. This Better Than Sex cake is a moist and tender chocolate poke cake soaked in sweet caramel sauce, hot fudge, and your wildest dessert dreams!

This scandalously decadent dessert is super easy to make. Fluffy whipped cream on top helps to break up the richness and I drizzle my cake slices with extra fudge and caramel sauce. Can confirm: this easy chocolate cake 100% lives up to its name.

Why You’ll Love This Better Than Sex Cake Recipe

• Fudgy chocolate caramel flavor. This recipe is a treasure trove of ooey-gooey, fudgy chocolate caramel goodness. Moist homemade chocolate cake, caramel filling, homemade whipped cream, drizzled with hot fudge? It’s a yes from me.
• Easy ingredients. Whether you make your cake from scratch or from a box, you don’t need anything complicated to make a Better Than Sex cake. Just a handful of pantry staples! I love poke cakes for this reason (check out some of my favorite poke cake recipes). They always turn out great with little effort.
• Crowd-friendly. This is the kind of easy dessert that’s guaranteed to get the party talking. Take this Better Than Sex cake along to potlucks, parties, and BBQs. It’s always a hit.

What is a Better Than Sex Cake?

Better Than Sex cake is a variation of chocolate poke cake created by food-writing mogul Diana Rattray. It’s a chocolate cake that’s soaked in caramel sauce and sweetened condensed milk, then covered in a whipped cream topping. You’ll also find it called a Better Than Robert Redford cake and a Better Than Anything cake. Ever since Paula Deen featured this cake in her home cooking series during the 80s, it’s gained the status of a Southern classic.

What You’ll Need

I like to use my ultra-moist chocolate cake recipe as the base for this better than sex cake. You can reach for a boxed cake mix instead if you’d like, but I highly recommend homemade. Below is a short overview of the key ingredients involved. Make sure to scroll to the recipe card for the full ingredients list and details.

• Oil and Sour Cream – Two essential ingredients for the ultimate moist and tender chocolate cake (or any cake, for that matter). Using oil instead of butter creates a soft and light crumb, while sour cream adds loads of richness and moisture. In place of sour cream, plain Greek yogurt works, too.
• Flour – All-purpose flour works perfectly here. Make sure to measure your flour correctly using a food scale or the spoon and level method.
• Cocoa Powder – I use Hershey’s Special Dark, but any natural unsweetened cocoa powder will do.
• Hot Brewed Coffee – This brings out the chocolate flavor like none other. You don’t actually taste the coffee, but it makes a big difference (see below). If you’d like, you can add a tablespoon of espresso powder to enhance the chocolate even more.

For the Filling

• Caramel Sauce and Hot Fudge – Use your favorite store-bought caramel sauce and jarred hot fudge, like Hershey’s or Smuckers.
• Sweetened Condensed Milk –  A staple in Southern dessert-making! Sweetened condensed milk makes this cake so dreamy. Be sure to buy the sweetened kind and not regular condensed milk.

For the Topping

• Whipped Cream – I include my super-simple method for fluffy homemade whipped cream. It’s easy, and all you need is heavy cream and powdered sugar. Alternatively, you can use store-bought.
• Toffee Bits – I finish off this cake with a sprinkle of toffee bits and a drizzle of extra fudge and caramel. So good!

What Does Coffee Do In Chocolate Cake?

Adding hot brewed instant coffee to a chocolate cake amplifies the cocoa flavors. The cake won’t actually taste like coffee, but the flavor will be deeper and fudgier. If you’d prefer to make your cake without coffee, you can substitute milk instead. The chocolate flavor just won’t be as intense.

How to Make a Better Than Sex Cake

The process of making this poke cake is super simple, and it definitely doesn’t require a seasoned baker. It’s a low-effort, high-reward type of dessert! Gotta love it. Here’s a quick overview on how to make it:

• Prep your tools. Get your oven preheating to 350ºF.
• Make the cake batter. First, cream the sugar together with the oil, eggs, and vanilla. Afterward, beat in the sour cream. In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, then gradually add these to the batter, alternating with hot brewed coffee until combined.
• Bake. Transfer the cake batter to a 9×13-inch baking pan and bake at 350ºF for 25-28 minutes. You’ll need to let the cake cool for about 20 minutes before you go ahead and poke holes.
• Add the filling. While the cake is still warm, use the end of a wooden spoon to poke holes all over the top of the cake. Next, pour over the can of condensed milk, followed by the caramel, and lastly some warmed fudge sauce.
• Make the frosting. When the cake has cooled to room temperature, in a chilled bowl, beat heavy cream into soft peaks. Slowly add powdered sugar, whipping on high until stiff peaks form. Spread your whipped topping all over the top of the cake.
• Garnish and serve. Finish the cake with a sprinkle of toffee bits and a drizzle of leftover caramel and fudge sauce. I recommend chilling your better than sex cake in the fridge for 30 minutes before slicing. If you can resist the temptation, it’s worth it!

Tips for Success

You’re going to be swept off your feet after one bite of this Better Than Sex Cake. Let’s go over some tips on how to make this cake as bomb as it can be:

• Add the filling while the cake is warm. Don’t let your cake cool to room temperature before you poke it and add in the filling. You want the condensed milk, caramel, and hot fudge to soak into the cake while it’s still a little warm, for maximum gooey-ness.
• Don’t poke all the way through the cake. If you poke the holes all the way down to the bottom of your cake, the filling will fall right through. Only poke about halfway down into the cake. The filling will continue to soak through the cake anyway.
• Chill your whisk and mixing bowl. When making homemade whip cream, remember to chill your mixing bowl and whisk attachment in the freezer for 5-10 minutes beforehand. The heavy cream should also be cold from the fridge. Cold tools and ingredients are key to fluffy whipped cream!

Variation Ideas

Looking to put a unique spin on this recipe? Go ahead and live out your wildest fantasies with your Better Than Anything cake. Here are some simple variations that you can try:

• Different Frosting – Even though I love this light whipped frosting, cream cheese whipped cream frosting tastes incredible on this cake as well. And if you’re not in the mood to make your own frosting, you can use Cool Whip instead.
• Another Kind of Cake – For those of you who aren’t big fans of chocolate, I recommend using my yellow cake or vanilla cake for this recipe instead. Alternatively, you can go with your favorite boxed cake mix for extra convenience.
• Different Garnishes – Chopped toffee bits and extra caramel sauce are my go-to garnishes for this cake. But there are plenty of other crave-worthy options out there! Try crushed Oreo cookies, chopped candy bars, mini peanut butter cups, M&M’s, or whatever you’re craving.

How to Store a Better Than Sex Cake

• Fridge. Extras can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. But let’s face it – they’re sure to get devoured way sooner than that!
• Freezer. You can freeze the entire cake or individual slices for up to 2 months. Cover the cake tightly with plastic wrap, then place it in a freezer-safe container and store it. Thaw it out in the fridge before digging in.

More Easy Poke Cakes to Try

• Chocolate Chip Cookie Poke Cake
• Strawberry Jello Poke Cake
• Slutty Brookie Poke Cake
• Ultimate Oreo Poke Cake

Print