Start by heating your oven to 175°C (350°F). While the oven warms up, lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with butter or a non stick spray so the cake doesn’t stick later.

Take a large mixing bowl and add the chocolate fudge cake mix. Add the eggs, oil, and water listed on the cake mix package. Whisk or beat everything together until the batter looks smooth with no dry lumps.

Now stir in the vanilla pudding mix, sour cream, Baileys Irish cream, a pinch of salt, and the vanilla extract. Mix until the batter turns thick, rich, and creamy.

Spread the shredded coconut and chopped pecans across the bottom of the greased baking dish. Once they’re evenly spread out, pour the chocolate batter on top and gently smooth it so it covers the whole pan.

In another bowl, beat the softened cream cheese together with the melted butter until it becomes smooth. Add the Baileys, cornstarch, salt, vanilla extract, and powdered sugar. Mix until you get a thick, creamy filling.

Spoon the cream cheese mixture over the cake batter in random dollops. Don’t stir it in. Leaving it this way helps create those cracked, swirled layers that appear while the cake bakes.

Scatter the mini chocolate chips over the top. Place the dish in the oven and bake for about 40–45 minutes. The center should look mostly set but still a little soft.

Take the cake out of the oven and let it cool on a rack for around 20 minutes. Just before serving, drizzle a little extra Baileys Irish cream over the top to add a final touch of flavor.