Go Back
Texas Sheet Cake slices on a white plate showing fudgy chocolate frosting and tender crumb

Texas Sheet Cake

The best Texas Sheet Cake for a crowd — a thin, tender chocolate cake baked in a sheet pan and covered in warm poured chocolate frosting that sets into a fudgy, irresistible icing. Recipe credit: TastesBetterFromScratch.com
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings: 15
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Method Video Notes

Ingredients
  

For the Cake:
  • - 1 cup water
  • - 1 cup butter
  • - 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • - 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • - 2 cups granulated sugar
  • - 1 teaspoon baking powder Stephanie's swap — original recipe uses baking soda
  • - 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • - 1/2 cup sour cream
  • - 2 large eggs
  • - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Frosting:
  • - 1/2 cup butter
  • - 3 tablespoons milk
  • - 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • - 3 3/4 cups powdered sugar

Method
 

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 18x13 inch sheet pan.
  2. Add water, butter, and cocoa powder to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
  4. In a small bowl, mix together sour cream, eggs, and vanilla extract.
  5. Add the sour cream mixture to the flour mixture and stir to combine.
  6. Pour the hot butter and cocoa mixture into the batter and mix until smooth and no lumps remain. The batter will be very thin — that is exactly right.
  7. Pour into the prepared pan and smooth with a spatula into an even layer.
  8. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until set. Start checking at 15 minutes.
  9. About 5 minutes before the cake is done, prepare the frosting: add butter, milk, and cocoa powder to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in powdered sugar until smooth. A hand mixer works great here to beat out any lumps.
  10. Pour the warm frosting over the hot cake immediately. Spread evenly with a spatula.
  11. Allow frosting to set for about 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Video

Notes

Stephanie uses baking powder instead of baking soda — her personal preference and it works beautifully. The original recipe calls for baking soda if you prefer to follow it as written.
This recipe is from Lauren Allen at TastesBetterFromScratch.com — one of Stephanie's favorite finds. Full credit to Lauren for this incredible cake!
Store any leftover cake covered in an airtight container for 2-3 days.
The magic of Texas Sheet Cake is pouring the warm frosting over the hot cake. Don't wait — do it immediately when the cake comes out of the oven. The frosting soaks in just slightly at the edges and sets into the most incredible fudgy layer on top. If you are doubling the recipe like Stephanie did in the video, it is just as easy to make two — the batter comes together fast and you barely add any extra time.