Better--Than Better-Than-Sex Cake

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• Ready In: 35 mins
• Serves: 10

Ingredients

• FOR CRUST

• 1  cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
• 2  tablespoons sugar
• 2  cups flour

• FOR VANILLA PUDDING LAYER

• 3  egg yolks
• 1⁄2 cup sugar
• 1⁄4 cup flour
• 2  cups milk
• 2  teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2  tablespoons unsalted butter

• FOR CREAM CHEESE LAYER

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, very soft
• 1⁄2 cup sugar
• 1  teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1  teaspoon lemon juice
• 1  cup  cream

• WHIPPED CREAM LAYER

• 1 1⁄2 cups  cream
• 3  tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1  tablespoon vanilla extract

• PINEAPPLE CARAMEL LAYER

• 1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
• 1  can  caramel sauce or 1  can  chocolate syrup (optional)

• CHOCOLATE GLAZE

• 2  ounces  semisweet chocolate (2 sq)
• 2  tablespoons unsalted butter or 2  tablespoons margarine
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions

1. Butter a 9x13" baking pan.
2. Set oven rack in center of oven and preheat oven to 350'F.
3. Beat butter and sugar until fluffy.
4. Add flour and, at low speed on mixer, blend until mixture is pebbly and can be pressed together.
5. Press mixture on bottom of buttered pan and bake for 20 minutes or until golden.
6. Cool completely.
7. (If using a food processor, process until ingredients are a coarse mixture.) For pudding, beat egg yolks and set aside near stove.
8. Whisk the sugar, flour and milk in a medium saucepan until free of lumps.
9. Set over medium heat and cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spatula, just to a boil.
10. Remove from heat and whisk a little of the hot, thick pudding into the beaten egg yolks then pour the yolk mixture back into the pudding, whisking really well.
11. Continue to cook 1 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until thick.
12. Pour pudding into bowl and add vanilla and butter, stirring until butter melts.
13. If pudding has lumps, pour through a large, fine mesh strainer.
14. Chill, with plastic wrap pressed directly on surface of pudding, until ready to use.
15. Beat cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and lemon juice just to blend.
16. In separate bowl, whip 1 cup cream to medium stiff peaks.
17. Fold a scoop of whipped cream into beaten cheese then fold remaining cream into cheese.
18. Set aside.
19. Whip 1 1/2 cups cream, sugar and vanilla to stiff peaks.
20. Spread crust with cream cheese mixture, top with pineapple, then caramel or chocolate sauce.
21. Spread pudding over pineapple; spread whipped cream evenly over pudding.
22. Chill well.
23. To make glaze, melt chocolate and butter over low heat, stirring until smooth and completely melted.
24. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla.
25. Drizzle in zigzags across cake's surface.