This Texas chocolate sheet cake with buttermilk is perfect for serving a large crowd! It's a soft and tender cake, covered with hot chocolate glaze or fudge and topped with pecans! It's moist, fudgy, chocolatey and so simple and quick to make!
It's my favourite thing to make when my sweet tooth is acting up, especially since it comes together so quick, with relatively low effort! It's not too sweet and perfectly balanced, perfect for a quick craving fix. My other recipes like this rich and decadent Chocolate Sheet Cake and Olympic Chocolate Muffins also hit just the spot!
This recipe is the Austin, US edition of my Formula 1: Dine to Survive series where I make popular foods from all the Grand Prix host countries and cities! Some of my favourites are these Dutch Zeeuwse Bolus (Cinnamon rolls), Azerbaijani Qutab (stuffed flatbread).
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Why is it called a Texas sheet cake? Or funeral cake?
There isn't really a solid answer for this but many say it's because the recipe was introduced in a Texan newspaper! Or that the size of the cake (which is huge) resembles the size of the Lone Star State (Texas- which is also huge!). You take your pick.
It's called a sheet cake because it's made in a sheet pan - a half sheet pan or 13x18" to be precise. Many also make it in a jelly roll pan which has a smaller surface area but allows for a thicker cake.
Now, it's also occasionally called a Texas funeral cake because it was (or is) served at funerals. People tend to want something sweet when they're sad or down and want a little pick me up and this sweet dessert can provide a sense of comfort during a time of grieving by doing just that. It's also perfect to feed a large crowd, depending on how small or large you cut the slices - and is super easy to make.
Ingredients
- Unsalted butter
- Natural cocoa powder (not dutch)
- Boiling water
- White sugar
- Brown sugar
- Neutral oil
- Eggs
- Buttermilk
- Vanilla
- Salt
- All purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Pecans
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions
- Pecans - Use any nuts you prefer instead of pecans. You can also omit them
- Buttermilk - If you don't have buttermilk, simply remove about a tablespoon of the milk and add a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to the milk. Mix and let it sit for a few minutes to curdle and thicken up.
Variations
- Cinnamon - some people like to add about ½-1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
- Instant coffee powder - for a more deeper chocolate flavour, add ½ teaspoon of instant coffee to the boiling water!
- More frosting - if you would like a thicker layer of frosting on the cake, I recommend multiplying all the ingredients by 1.5
- Make it sweeter - taste the frosting after adding the powdered sugar. If you'd like it sweeter, gradually add in more powdered sugar, about ½ cup more.
Equipment - the pan
I recommend using a half sheet pan for this recipe. It's a 13x18" pan which helps make a large and relatively thin cake. It also bakes the cake faster because of the increased surface area!
You can also use a jelly roll pan, which is 10x15". It's smaller than the half sheet one and will result in a slightly thicker cake, if you prefer that instead. Keep in mind, the baking time will slightly increase so keep an eye on it around the 15 minute mark.
Storage
Store the cake at room temperature, tightly wrapped in plastic wrap or in an airtigh container for 3-5 days or 1-2 weeks in the fridge! It keeps super well and stays moist throughout.
Top Tip
- Grease pan and dust with cocoa powder: Instead of using parchment, doing this allows the cake to release easily, but also add a little extra flavour boost with the cocoa powder at the bottom
- Using good quality cocoa powder: The quality of your cocoa powder will affect the overall taste of the cake so I recommend using the best quality you're able to get!
FAQ
You can make a buttermilk substitute by removing a tablespoon of the milk and replace it with vinegar or lemon juice. Stir and let it sit for a 5-10 minutes to thicken and curdle.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Texas Chocolate Sheet Cake
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter (74g)
- ⅔ cup natural cocoa powder (54g)
- 1 cup boiling water (236ml/g)
- 1 cup white granulated sugar (200g)
- ¾ cup brown sugar + 2 tbsp (175g)
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup neutral oil (97g=125mL)
- 1 cup + 1 tablespoon buttermilk* (250mL)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all purpose flour (276g)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
Frosting
- ½ cup unsalted butter (112g)
- 3 tablespoon natural cocoa powder (15g)
- 6 tablespoon milk
- 1 ¾ cups powdered sugar, (add about ½ cup (60g) more if you want it sweeter) (215g) (add about ½ cup more if you want it sweeter)
- pinch of flakey salt
- ½ cup chopped toasted pecans (75g)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 13x18" baking tray with butter and dust with an even layer of cocoa powder. Shake off the excess, and set aside.
- Roughly chop the pecans. Heat up a pan with 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat, and add the pecans. Stir and toast until fragrant, nutty and they start to brown. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat and sift in the cocoa powder. Whisk it together until smooth and pour in the boiling water. Place back on stove on medium and heat until it comes to a boil. Remove and let it cool down a bit.
- In a large bowl, beat together both sugars and the oil. Beat in the eggs until pale in colour, about 2-3 minutes. Add in the buttermilk and vanilla and combine.
- Pour the butter and cocoa powder mixture into the egg mixture and beat until completely combined.
- Mix together the flour, salt and baking soda in a small bowl and add to the wet ingredients. Beat until JUST combined. Don't overmix it.
- Pour and spread the batter evenly onto the baking tray. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and is springy to the touch.
- While the cake is baking, make the frosting. Combine the butter, cocoa powder, and milk in a saucepan (I use the one from before) and place over medium heat. Cook until the butter melts and the mixture starts to slightly thicken a bit, while stirring. Remove from heat and whisk in the powdered sugar and salt until smooth. Mix in the pecans.
- While the cake is still warm, pour over the chocolate glaze and spread evenly.
- Cut into even slices and enjoy!
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