Hurricane Milton showed up this week. To calm the nerves I baked. Fortunately my area of Florida was spared. So as the storm moved on, in the new cool morning temp, I sipped a lavender latte and had a slice of this. Hello Fall.

BOTTOM CAKE LAYER
2-1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 egg, at room temperature
1/4 cup milk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

TOP CREAM CHEESE LAYER
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, slightly cooked
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 3/4 cups powdered sugar, plus more for dusting

INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat 9×13 pan with cooking spray WITH FLOUR or line with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray. Set aside.

MAKE BOTTOM LAYER
In medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
Cream butter and sugar using an electric mixer (I prefer a stand mixer) on medium speed until fluffy, 3-4 minutes.
Beat in the egg just until combined; followed by the milk and vanilla just until combined. With the mixer on low, add the flour ⅓ at a time, mixing after each addition, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.
Transfer cake batter to prepared baking pan and press it into an even layer. (You can lightly spray your hands with cooking spray or place parchment over top of the dough if it’s too sticky.) Set aside.

MAKE TOP LAYER
In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the butter until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla and salt and beat just until combined.
Add powdered sugar 1 cup at a time, beating on low speed until smooth; don’t overbeat or the cake will rise and deflate too much.
Pour cream cheese mixture over the cake layer and spread into an even layer.

BAKE
Bake for approximately 35-45 minutes, until golden brown around the edges and the very center is slightly jiggly when the pan is gently shaken. If there is a lot of jiggle, set the timer for 2 minutes and bake on. Repeat the “jiggle test” at 2 minute intervals until there is minimal jiggle. However, be careful not to overbake or the center will not be gooey. Note, the cake will rise in the oven and fall and indent a little as it cools.
Cool cake completely before slicing, about 3 hours