Our Texas sheet cake is the stuff sweet dreams are made of – a thick, fudgy icing fused to the top of a moist cake masterpiece. The best part…the recipe for Texas sheet cake is super simple! You’ll be doing the two-step after just one bite of this quick but oh, so rich dessert.
I truly adore sheet cakes! The cake-to-frosting or icing ratio is sublime. They’re great for serving a group whether it’s a big family dinner, church supper, or a potluck! I hope you’ll try more of my favorites next, and rest assured, there will be more of them coming from my kitchen to yours! ♥
What Is Texas Sheet Cake?
A Texas chocolate sheet cake is a thin cake – barely the height of its fudgy cousin the brownie (some even call this cake Texas sheet cake brownies), but it packs all the punch of a serious slice of chocolate cake. This ain’t your average sheet cake, y’all. It’s like a brownie . . . but better! It’s a dense, fudgy, uber-chocolaty, butter cake that has amazing icing infused to the top of the cake. It truly sets the standard for all sheet cakes. As with all butter cakes, it’s best served at room temperature so that the texture and flavor of the butter will shine through and be at its best.
The ingredients for it are all likely lurking in your pantry right now……just saying!
Why Is Texas Sheet Cake Called Texas Sheet Cake?
Though we can’t pinpoint the original Texas sheet cake recipe, its name likely comes from the cake’s enormous size. It also typically includes buttermilk (we use sour cream instead) and pecans, two Texas favorites!
What Is A Sheet Cake?
“Sheet cake” is a baker’s term used simply to describe a flat, rectangle-shaped cake. The pans they’re baked in can be a full sheet, jelly roll pan (10” x 15” x 1”), half sheet, quarter sheet, or 9X13, depending on the recipe.
Like most cakes, sheet cakes are frosted or iced and provide a simple way to serve a lot of people without the fussy cutting required for a round, layered cake.
What Makes It A Texas Sheet Cake?
The true hallmark of a Texas sheet cake is its short stature, but required ingredients include chocolate (though there is a white Texas sheet cake with no chocolate), as well as buttermilk or sour cream, lots of butter, a fudge-like icing, and usually pecans.
Secret Ingredient For Texas Sheet Cake
I do like to bump up the chocolate flavor a bit with a cup of brewed coffee. This is a trick I use in some of my own, more traditional chocolate cakes. If you don’t have any brewed coffee leftover from your morning pot, you can easily make what you need for this recipe using instant coffee.
Just so you know, adding the coffee doesn’t translate to a “coffee” taste in the cake. What it does do, however, is enhance the flavor of the chocolate and boost the chocolatey-ness. I’m thinking that’s a real word, right?
Texas Sheet Cake Ingredients
Cake:
- Butter: Use good quality unsalted butter.
- Brewed Coffee: I like to use fairly strong brewed coffee. Don’t worry, the cake won’t taste like coffee. The coffee will simply enhance the chocolate flavor.
- Cocoa: I use Hershey’s Cocoa 100% natural cocoa powder. It has not been Dutch-processed so it still contains cocoa’s natural acids.
- Sugar: Granulated sugar.
- Flour: Use moderate protein flour, like Gold Medal unbleached all-purpose flour or Pillsbury unbleached all-purpose flour.
- Baking Soda: This is a chemical leavening that reacts with an acid to create a rise in the cake.
- Salt: This enhances the other flavors of the cake.
- Sour Cream: Adds moisture without thinning the batter. The acid in the sour cream activates the baking soda.
- Eggs: Use large eggs at room temperature.
- Vanilla: Use real vanilla not an imitation.
Icing:
- Butter: Same as above!
- Milk: Use whole milk.
- Cocoa: I use Hershey’s, See more above.
- Instant Coffee Granules: Use regular or decaf. You can also use espresso powder. If you use it only add 1/8 teaspoon.
- Confectioners’ Sugar: It’s always best to sift before using it to remove any lumps.
- Vanilla Extract: Use real vanilla, not an imitation.
Recipe Notes For Texas Sheet Cake:
- Time: Isn’t on your side – Be sure to have your icing ingredients set out and ready to go. This icing gets a thick, fudgy consistency as it cools, so you’ll need to work quickly to spread it on the cake after you’ve stirred in the confectioner’s sugar. I like to mix the sugar into the icing with a handheld electric mixer because it makes quick work of the job plus it requires less of an arm workout!
- Pan Size: This recipe uses a classic jelly roll pan, roughly 10” x 15” x 1”. Using a thin pan means this cake will cook up super fast, so it’s a perfect option for last-minute company or potlucks
- Eggs: Just make sure you’ve beaten the eggs a bit before adding them to the batter. Over-mixing once the flour has been incorporated can make your cake tough, and the eggs will be hard to incorporate if they’re not mixed ahead of time
- Icing Tip: The only tip for the icing is that you’ll need to work quickly so it’s still spreadable enough to coat every nook and cranny of your cake. I also like to add some instant coffee here too. And the icing’s just as easy to put together as the cake, all in one pot (though you may appreciate a little help from an electric mixer).
- The icing adds such a lovely texture to this cake – it’s like a soft fudge that’s so creamy it melts in your mouth. You can also copy other recipes like the Pioneer Woman Texas sheet cake and add a generous cup of pecans on top of the icing or stir them into the icing itself to add a little crunch.
- Baking Basics: Unlike many cakes, there’s no need to make sure everything’s at room temperature or dirty up every dish in your kitchen. The batter comes together on the stovetop in one pot, then gets dumped into the pan for baking.
- Peanut butter….. anyone? – This cake is pretty customizable. You can stir some flavored chips into the cake batter – chocolate, vanilla, or peanut butter, or you can replace the cocoa powder in the icing with ½ to ¾ cup of creamy peanut butter for a Texas-sized twist on Reese’s cup. Just keep in mind you may need to adjust the amount of milk and/or powdered sugar to get the right consistency.
How Long Do You Bake A Texas Sheet Cake?
A Texas sheet cake needs to bake for about 20 minutes, just until the toothpick test produces a clean result. The warm icing will need to be added while the cake’s still warm too so the two can mingle where they meet in the middle.
How Many Servings Are In A Full Sheet Cake?
Generally speaking, a full-sheet cake serves approximately 70 to 80 people, with a half-sheet cake serving 35 to 40. A full Texas sheet cake is roughly the length and width of a half sheet cake, but it serves only about half as many due to the height difference.
By the way, a quarter sheet cake is roughly the size of a 9” x 13” pan, so you’ll see some recipes that are cooked in everyone’s favorite casserole dish called a “sheet cake,” too.
How To Make Texas Sheet Cake
- Make the cake: In a saucepan melt butter. Add coffee, and 5 tablespoons cocoa, and bring to a boil.
- Remove from heat and stir in sugar, flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix.
- Add sour cream and stir.
- Mix in the eggs and vanilla until well combined.
- Pour batter into prepared pan and bake.
- Make the icing: melt half of the butter. Stir in milk, cocoa, and instant coffee granules and bring to a boil.
- Remove from heat and mix in powdered sugar and vanilla.
- Stir.
- Pour icing over the warm cake.
- Serve.
More Sheet Cake Favorites!
- Strawberry Jello Cake
- Coconut Sheet Cake
- Lemon Buttermilk Cake
- Strawberry Sheet Cake
- Pina Colada Cake
Texas Sheet Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup strong brewed coffee
- 5 tablespoons cocoa
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup sour cream, room temperature
- 2 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Icing:
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 3 tablespoons milk, room temperature
- 2 tablespoons cocoa
- 1/4 teaspoon instant coffee granules
- 2 3/4 cups confectioners' sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Spray a 10X15 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a saucepan, melt butter (1 cup). Add coffee (1 cup), and 5 tablespoons cocoa, and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in sugar (2 cups), flour (2 cups), baking soda (1 teaspoon), and salt (1/2 teaspoon) and mix until smooth. Add sour cream (1/2 cup) and stir until combined, then mix in the eggs (2) and vanilla (1 teaspoon) until well combined.
- Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 18-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
Icing:
- In a large saucepan melt 1/2 cup butter. Stir in milk (3 tablespoons), cocoa (2 tablespoons), and instant coffee granules (1/4 teaspoon) and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and mix in powdered sugar (2 3/4 cups) and vanilla (1 teaspoon) until smooth (I use a handheld electric mixer).
- Pour icing over warm cake. Cool completely on a wire baking rack.
Fans Also Made:
Notes
- Time: Isn’t on your side – Be sure to have your icing ingredients set out and ready to go. This icing gets a thick, fudgy consistency as it cools, so you’ll need to work quickly to spread it on the cake after you’ve stirred in the confectioner’s sugar. I like to mix the sugar into the icing with a handheld electric mixer because it makes quick work of the job plus it requires less of an arm workout!
- Pan Size: This recipe uses a classic jelly roll pan, roughly 10” x 15” x 1”. Using a thin pan means this cake will cook up super fast, so it’s a perfect option for last-minute company or potlucks
- Eggs: Just make sure you’ve beaten the eggs a bit before adding them to the batter. Over-mixing once the flour has been incorporated can make your cake tough, and the eggs will be hard to incorporate if they’re not mixed ahead of time
- Icing Tip: The only tip for the icing is that you’ll need to work quickly so it’s still spreadable enough to coat every nook and cranny of your cake. I also like to add some instant coffee here too. And the icing’s just as easy to put together as the cake, all in one pot (though you may appreciate a little help from an electric mixer).
- The icing adds such a lovely texture to this cake – it’s like a soft fudge that’s so creamy it melts in your mouth. You can also copy other recipes like the Pioneer Woman Texas Sheet Cake and add a generous cup of pecans on top of the icing or stir them into the icing itself to add a little crunch.
- Baking Basics: Unlike many cakes, there’s no need to make sure everything’s at room temperature or dirty up every dish in your kitchen. The batter comes together on the stovetop in one pot, then gets dumped into the pan for baking.
- Peanut butter….. anyone? – This cake is pretty customizable. You can stir some flavored chips into the cake batter – chocolate, vanilla, or peanut butter, or you can replace the cocoa powder in the icing with ½ to ¾ cup of creamy peanut butter for a Texas-sized twist on Reese’s cup. Just keep in mind you may need to adjust the amount of milk and/or powdered sugar to get the right consistency.
Nutrition
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Source: Gonna Want Seconds
Originally Posted on Centsless Meals
HI Kathleen,
My cake is in the oven this very minute and my icing ingredients are ready to go – but there is no measurement for the vanilla in the icing recipe. I’m just going to try 1/2 tsp and hope that that will do it. And the instant coffee measurement is also missing from the icing ingredients, FYI. I am not using that because I don’t have any on hand. One more question – sorry! – but I sifted my confectioner’s sugar before measuring it. My mom always did that. Sometimes I’m lazy and don’t. Will that make a difference in the frosting, do you think? Thanks and Happy Mother’s Day (yes, I am baking on Mother’s Day!).
Hi Jennifer! Sorry about that. I use 1 teaspoon but I’m sure 1/2 a teaspoon will be great. I’ve amended the recipe. I think the only change in the icing texture will be that it possibly soother. Did you sift before or after you measured it out. If you did it before, you might change the volume of confectioners sugar you add which could make a slightly thinner icing. Hope it all went well and you enjoyed!
The icing ingredients do not mention granulated coffee, however it is mentioned in the directions section. My question is how much granulated coffee should I put into the icing? Thanks, love your posts …
Hi Diedra! I use 1/4 teaspoon of the instant coffee granules. Enjoy! I love this cake!!!
What about if you are using brewed coffee in stead of crystals? How much sould I use?
The cake was the best but the frosting did not come out able to pour. Did it twice and following the video I noticed the bowl of frosting mixed up and became stiff but the next video scene it poured out of the bowl. What’s the secret?
Hi Shelly. I have never had the icing get hard (I have a videographer make my videos). I wonder if your butter cooled a bit too much and hardened. I imagine if you had set it back on the stove it would have become pourable again. The only other thing I can think of is somehow the confectioners’ sugar measurement was off. Any chance it was packed a bit? How was it measured. Was the measuring cup scooped into the confectioners’ sugar or did you fluff it first then use a spoon to fill the cup and level it off. This shouldn’t have happened once, let alone twice! SO sorry.
How long will it last in the fridge after baked and cooked?
Hi Katelyn. I always think 3 days is best for food safety. You can freeze it instead for longer storage 🙂
Kathleen, about how much instant coffee do you put in the icing? I can’t wait to try this!
Hi Sandra. If I add the instant coffee to the icing, I add 1/8–1/4 teaspoon. When you add the instant coffee to the cake, you don’t taste a coffee flavor. When you add it to the icing, the coffee flavor is definitely tasted! The icing is great with or without coffee and most often I make it without coffee <3
Kathleen, Is there anything I can substitute for the coffee?
Hey Judy! You can simply omit the coffee. It’s a secret booster for the chocolate flavor. You don’t taste a bit of coffee. And you can also use decaf coffee (which I often do!) <3
In your recipe directions, you have 5 “teaspoons” of cocoa instead of 5 “tablespoons.
Hey JoAnne! Thanks so much for letting me know. I’ve corrected and updated the recipe. <3