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Earthquake Cake

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This earthquake cake is a chocolate cake loaded with coconut, pecans, cream cheese and chocolate chips. A super gooey and delicious cake that ALWAYS gets rave reviews!

Looking for something a little different to serve at your next gathering? This chocolate earthquake cake is filled to the brim with goodies and starts with a cake mix which means it’s super easy to make.

Earthquake Cake Recipe | Chocolate Cake Recipe | Chocolate Coconut Cake | Coconut Pecan Cake

Earthquake cake is a gooey delight loaded with chocolate, pecans and coconut.

Let me first start by saying that this earthquake cake is not the prettiest cake out there – but what it lacks in looks it makes up for in flavor! This is one fabulous cake loaded with pretty much everything you can imagine – chocolate, pecans, coconut AND cream cheese. It also happens to be super easy to make!

How to make earthquake cake

This earthquake cake starts with a layer of shredded coconut and chopped pecans. Not a pecan fan? Try almonds or walnuts, or you can omit the nuts altogether if you’re baking for people with allergies.

The first layer of earthquake cake is shredded coconut and pecans.

The next step is a layer of chocolate cake. I use a box of chocolate fudge cake mix and prepare it according to the package directions.

Chocolate cake batter in a baking dish.

The final step is dollops of sweetened cream cheese and chocolate chips. They call this cake an earthquake cake because it looks like there’s been an earthquake when you pull it out of the oven!

Chocolate cake batter topped with dollops of sweetened cream cheese and chocolate chips.

Your cake will have lots of cracks and tunnels and pockets full of delicious flavor. If the look of the craters bothers you, you can always sprinkle some more chocolate chips into the gaps after it comes out of the oven, they’ll melt from the heat of the warm cake and be totally delicious.

Earthquake cake loaded with chocolate, pecans, coconut and cream cheese.

This earthquake cake feeds a crowd, which means it’s perfect for potlucks, birthday parties and other special occasions. No one will ever guess that this cake starts with a box of mix, they’ll think you made the whole thing from scratch!

A slice of earthquake cake.

If you love chocolate, this earthquake cake is an absolute must try. My family requests it constantly, and I’m always happy to oblige!

More decadent desserts

Earthquake cake is a gooey delight loaded with chocolate, pecans and coconut.
4.87 from 15 votes
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Earthquake Cake

This earthquake cake is a chocolate cake loaded with coconut, pecans, cream cheese and chocolate chips. A super gooey and delicious cake that ALWAYS gets rave reviews!

Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword chocolate cake, earthquake cake
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings 12
Calories 550 kcal
Author Dinner at the Zoo

Ingredients

  • cooking spray
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  • 1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
  • 1 box chocolate fudge cake mix
  • eggs, oil and water according to cake mix package
  • 1/2 cup butter melted
  • 8 ounces cream cheese softened
  • 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9"x13" pan with cooking spray.

  2. Place the pecans and coconut in an even layer in the bottom of the pan.

  3. Prepare the cake mix according to package directions and pour the cake batter over the coconut and pecans.

  4. Place the cream cheese in a medium bowl and beat with a mixer until smooth. Add the butter and beat until combined. 

  5. Gradually add the powdered sugar to the cream cheese mixture and beat on low speed until smooth.

  6. Place dollops of the cream cheese mixture on top of the cake batter. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the cake.

  7. Bake the cake for 40 minutes or until the cake has set.

  8. Cool, cut into squares and serve.

Recipe Notes

  1. Recipe adapted from South Your Mouth.
  2. Make sure your 9"x13" pan is at least 2 inches deep, preferably deeper. If your pan isn't as deep, try a larger pan or put your pan on a baking sheet before you place it in the oven in case of any overflow of batter.
Nutrition Facts
Earthquake Cake
Amount Per Serving
Calories 550 Calories from Fat 279
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 31g 48%
Saturated Fat 16g 80%
Cholesterol 42mg 14%
Sodium 457mg 19%
Potassium 286mg 8%
Total Carbohydrates 65g 22%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Sugars 48g
Protein 4g 8%
Vitamin A 10%
Calcium 8.8%
Iron 16.2%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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Comments

  2. Your Earthquake Cake looks like my kind of cake! It looks so moist and ooey gooey – just the way I like it. Pecans are my favorite nuts and I’m such a coconut lover. Looks amazing!

    Reply

  4. Wonderful recipe, and a great cake for a hawaiian/ volcano themed party. (earthquakes are known to have caused volcanic eruptions.) Looks delicious. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply

  8. I have never had a cake like this, but really, REALLY want to make it! This would be fun to make for a party, that way others can enjoy it and I will not be tempted to eat it all. 😉

    Reply

  9. Thank you for the recipe! We will be visiting my aunt on Sunday and this Earthquake Cake would be a perfect gift for her. My aunt has been working abroad and she came home after 12 years! I can’t wait to make this cake for her as our “Welcome Home” treat.

    Reply

  10. OMG, this cake looks delicious and I bet it’s a crowd pleaser and it looks super easy. We have a lot of potlucks at church and work and I’m always looking for new recipes.

    Reply

  15. Oh my goodness, my neighbor (and I) would love this. Her Birthday is this week and I want to make her something even though her family will buy her a cake. She loves anything with coconut in it so this will be a real treat.

    Reply

  17. Wow! I went drooling iver the pictures. I would love to make and share it to my little cousins. They will love this for sure! I’ll make some over the weekends so I can bring it to our grandparents house.

    Reply

  19. Making this now… followed directions to a T. My 9×13 inch pan is totally overflowing! Such a mess in my oven & the overflow resulted in a mess and billowing smoke from the oven. What’s worse is the cake isn’t set and my family is disappointed by the thought of not being able to taste this delicious-looking recipe!!! I’m in the process of problem-solving but my first recommendation is DO NOT USE A 9×13 PAN. Use a larger pan!! Next time I attempt this recipe – and I will! 😉- I will use my 10.5×15.4” lasagna pan.

    Reply

    • I’m so sorry to hear that this happened to you!! How deep is your pan? The pan pictures is about 2.5-3 inches deep, I wonder if your pan was more shallow? I will update the recipe to make a note of pan size and again I apologize that this happened for you.

      Reply

      • It’s the standard 9x13x2” pan. No worries though and certainly no need to apologize. It just seemed that the other comments were about how delicious the cake looks – and indeed it *is* delicious looking! So I wanted to make sure it was mentioned in case others had the same issue I had.
        Funny story… I kept an eye on it, laid foil on the bottom to catch any further spills and continued to bake at the lowest setting on my oven until the cake was done. (We are determined people over here. 😉) The continued billowing smoke – despite opening windows and getting a fan – did set off the fire alarm, alarm company called and we told them all was under control. Minutes later, the stuff on the bottom of the oven caught fire BUT we were right there when it happened to smother the flames! In the end, my oven got a much needed Spring cleaning 👍🏼and most importantly THE CAKE WAS DELICIOUS 😋 The kids are already asking for it again. btw, the erupting creamy filling caused a name change; in our house it’s lovingly coined the “Volcano Cake”. 😉😂🤣🤣 Thanks for the recipe!

        Reply

  20. Why don’t you use 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla
    extract in this cake?????? I know it is not from scratch
    But if I make this I will be using a do it yourself
    “cake mix” . Yes they have those types of recipes
    Out there and I have 4 of them on my Pinterest
    Cooking board. I will be using pure vanilla extract
    and a chocolate do it yourself cake mix if I make this.
    Please let me know by e-mailing me at
    [email protected]

    Reply

    • I’m sure this recipe would work just fine with vanilla extract and a homemade cake mix, I hope you enjoy it!

      Reply

  22. OMG….I made this tonight as part of Sunday night dinner and it was AMAZING! This will definitely be my go-to dessert for family dinners, holidays, or potlucks. Next time I will experiment with using half semi-sweet chocolate morsels and peanut butter morsels for a little twist. Words cannot describe how wonderful this dessert is. It’s especially nice when it’s still a little warm. Good stuff. Don’t just talk or think about making it. DO IT!

    Reply

  23. I just made this tonight and it turned out nothing like the picture! It looked like yours when I put it in the oven but when I took it out the cream cheese mixture and chocolate chips had all sunk to the bottom! The cream cheese mixture was very runny and formed a layer on the bottom of the cake! I don’t know what I did wrong! ☹️😩

    Reply

  24. I’m allergic to coconut so I’m wondering if it would work to either do graham or choc cookies on bottom?

    Reply

    • It can stay out at room temperature for probably 3-4 hours, after that I’d refrigerate it because of the cream cheese.

      Reply

  27. I baked my cake according to your directions, but the center was still jiggly and the surrounding edges were set (almost to the point of a little crispy)
    Is this normal?
    I have to bring it to a party so I haven’t tried it
    I hope it’s okay 🤷🏻‍♀️

    Reply

    • It should be somewhat gooey, but not liquidy or raw in the middle. To test for doneness, you can insert a toothpick into the center. If the batter comes out liquid and clinging to the toothpick, it needs more time. If the toothpick is clean or just has a few crumbs on it, it’s done. You can always cover the top with foil to prevent over browning. I hope it came out ok for you!

      Reply

  28. While this cake is definitely delicious, mine looked nothing like the picture of yours! All of my cream cheese mixture sunk to the bottom. My cake looked like a plain ol chocolate cake. After refrigerating it, there was a solid cream cheese layer on the bottom.

    Reply

  29. Heading to the grocery store now. Have everything but the coconut, can hardly wait to taste it. This will probably be my family reunion cake this year,They’re gonna love it.

    Reply

  31. I will definitely be using a do it yourself homemade cake mix for this recipe. I do not like the store bought box cake mixes. I found a homemade do it yourself
    Chocolate cake mix over the frugal home website
    So I can use that instead.

    Reply

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