Texas Sheet Cake is a classic southern recipe thats easy to make and full of flavor. Moist cake is topped with a fudge-like frosting, crunchy pecans and can serve a crowd.
What is a Texas Sheet Cake?
There are a lot of stories about the origin of Texas Sheet Cake, but many indicate a similarity to a recipe that appeared in the Dallas Morning News in 1957. Of course, its name is also likely inspired by the cake’s large size. It seems that everything is bigger in Texas–cake included. Cooked in a massive jelly roll pan this cake is perfect for serving at large gatherings.
My First Texas Sheet Cake
I have been coming back and forth from California to Texas for well over a decade. I have now lived in Austin for quite a while and in all this time I have never had a Texas Sheet Cake. And I probably would not have had one if it weren’t for Bake from Scratch magazine. Which I must say, I’m slightly obsessed with.
Since this is the first recipe from the magazine that I have tried and also my first Texas sheet cake, I left the recipe exactly as written. I wanted to see how their recipes were written, to know if they were easy to follow, and most importantly, if they worked.
This recipe did not disappoint. At first, I thought it was just going to be too sweet. But the flavors all came together and it turned out to be a nice, rich, fudgy cake. Put on some warm chocolate frosting with a spread of toasted pecans…How could it really be bad?!?
Ingredients for Texas Sheet Cake
Just like the cake, this is a sizable list of ingredients, but you should have most in your pantry and the whole thing comes together very easily.
- Granulated Sugar
- Water
- Canola oil
- Whole buttermilk
- Unsalted butter
- Eggs
- Vanilla
- All-purpose flour
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Ground cinnamon
- Baking soda
- Kosher salt
- Toasted pecans
- Whole milk
- Confectioners sugar
How to Make Texas Sheet Cake
- In a bowl: Mix together sugar, water, canola oil, buttermilk, butter, eggs, and vanilla.
- In a second bowl: Mix together cocoa powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.
- Combine: Gradually add flour mixture to sugar mixture.
- Pour into sheet pan: Pour mixture into prepared sheet pan and spread with a spatula.
- Bake: At 400° for about 20 minutes, until cake springs back when lightly touched.
How to Make the Frosting
- In medium saucepan: Combine butter and milk cooking slowly until butter is melted.
- Whisk in: Powdered sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla, salt and cinnamon.
- Pour over: The chocolate cake while still warm. Spread with spatula and top with chopped pecans.
Is a Sheet Cake the Same As a Regular Cake?
Close but not the same. The main difference is the size of the pan. A sheet cake is usually cooked in a 15 x 10 jelly roll pan. A regular cake is usually cooked in a 9 x 13 cake pan.
Do You Need to Refrigerate Texas Sheet Cake?
No it’s not necessary. It may last a little longer if covered and stored in the refrigerator. Now if you actually live in Texas where it is warm and humid, I’d suggest the refrigerator.
More Cake Recipes To Try
Would I Make It Again?
I’m excited to report that the recipe worked, it was easy to follow and had no glaring errors. You know the kind… The ingredient list has listed 2 cups of sugar, but the directions to make the recipe only uses 1 cup of sugar. I have no doubt everyone reading this has experienced this at least once in his or her life. From my time at America’s Test Kitchen we saw that a lot when researching and testing recipes from other sources.
So I hope you like this cake as much as we did. I will say, it would make a great 4th of July dessert if you find yourself needing one. If you are looking for other simple and quick recipes you could try Apple Cinnamon Muffins or even more simple are our Special K Bars. If it’s summer and it’s just too hot to turn on your oven, you could always go with Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream.
Please let us know if you make the recipe and how it turns out for you. We are going to continue with our Friday food reads, so please follow along as we work our way through our cookbooks to test and try recipes.
Texas Sheet Cake
Ingredients
Cake
Bake From Scratch
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1/2 cup whole buttermilk
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup chopped toasted pecans
Frosting
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup whole milk
- 1 pound confectioners’ sugar
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F. Spray a 15×10 inch jelly roll pan with baking spray and then dust with flour.
- In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, 1 cup water, oil, buttermilk, melted butter, eggs and vanilla until smooth.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, cinnamon, baking soda and salt. Gradually add flour mixture to sugar mixture, whisking until smooth. Pour batter into prepared pan.
- Bake until cake springs back when lightly touched in center, about 20 minutes. Pour warm chocolate frosting over the cake, spreading with a spatula. Sprinkle with chopped pecans.
- Let cool completely before serving.
Frosting
- In a medium saucepan, combine butter and milk. Cook over medium low heat, stirring occasionally, until butter is melted. Whisk in confectioners sugar, cocoa, vanilla, salt and cinnamon until smooth. Use immediately.
Notes
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I love Texas sheet cake but I may become addicted to this recipe!
I can’t believe I went all these years without it! I’m kinda addicted to it also 🙂
Oh my! 🙂 This looks so fudgy and delicious. Love the addition of pecans on top for that tasty crunch!
Those pecans are a nice addition, and I think if I didn’t use them someone in Texas might kick me out of Austin 🙂
what a delicious cake! Looks so good!
Thanks so much!
Whoa, that’s one loaded cake! Looks incredible.
Thanks so much 🙂
This looks delicious – I don’t think I have ever tried Texas Sheet Cake before!
This was the first for me also.
This sheet cake looks so yummy and sounds so easy to make. I really love pecans so that added touch really makes this quite the treat!
The pecans are such a nice addition to this. Thanks 🙂
I remember growing up eating Texas sheet cake – I always looked forward to the end of the meal because I knew it was coming up next! And pecans are my favorite so I love that you piled them onto your version of this cake!
It took me a while to develop a love for pecans, but now I use them all the time. yum!
I’m always interested in recipes that are simple to make, looks good and tastes good. This looks like it does not disappoint!
Nope it didn’t. Definitely a tasty cake
That sheet cake looked amazing and I love nuts on my desserts. I think that cake goes well in any season so I will consider it now while we are snowed in.
I’d definitely consider it while snowed in. Great way to take your mind off the yucky weather
I’ve lived in Texas for my whole life and I’ve never even heard of this, OMG. But I see pecans and I click, LOL. Definitely have to try this!!
I thought the same thing? I was wondering if I was the only person out there that lived in TX and hadn’t heard of it. Glad I’m not alone 🙂
Love the addition of the pecans!
Yes, it’s really a nice combo
I always wanted to try Texas Sheet cake. Your recipe seems easy to follow. I’m definitely trying it out soon.
Thanks! Yes, it’s super simple
What a delicious cake. I don’t think I’ve ever had this before but now want to try it!
It’s a super tasty cake. Definitely worth a try
I can honestly say that the Texas sheet cake is probably my all time favorite dessert, especially served warm with good vanilla ice cream!
YUM! Going to have to give that a try!
this looks so good! can you deliver to Utah? lol
LOL! Nope but you can easily make it 🙂
Am I the only one who had never heard of Texas sheet cake? I was totally expecting to see a pic of a vanilla cake in the shape of Texas. Haha. So I looked it up online after I read your post and now realize this is totally a thing. And it looks so good! I love chocolate nutty cake. Yum!
LOL! I had no idea either!
I grew up on sheet cakes! I have been making a bunch of them lately and I would love to try this one out! My kids would flip!
It’s delicious and super easy to make. Enjoy 🙂
Yum! I have never had a sheet cake before. This looks and sounds amazing though and like something my whole family would rather enjoy!
What a great recipe! I have never heard of this type of cake before, but now I totally want to give it a go! I could do with a slice right about now with a nice cup of tea 🙂
I have never done a sheet cake before. This looks like something easy enough to do and I am sure my whole family would love it!
It’s super simple and delish. Enjoy 🙂
Texas sheet cake is always trouble. First you take one tiny little piece, and then another tiny little piece, and pretty soon if you’re not careful, you’ll have pieced and slivered your way through a quarter of the cake! (Seriously, this looks delicious! Love the pecans.)
You are so correct! That’s exactly what happened!
I have never had one before either. I am honestly not a sweets fan but everyone in the family is for sure. I do like the simplicity of the recipe though and might give this a try.
This looks absolutely delicious. I love the big chunks of nuts on top. And the recipe doesn’t seem so hard to make. I need to try this.
I’d never heard of Texas cake before, but man does it look glorious, I could have the whole thing.