This Chocolate Buttermilk Texas Sheet Cake is the perfect cake for your next celebration. It's simple to make with just a few pantry ingredients like cocoa powder, butter, flour and sugar. You don't even need a mixer! The best part is that this dark chocolate cake comes together in about 30 minutes.
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Meet my favorite cake, the chocolate buttermilk Texas sheet cake! I learned to make this cake as a teenager many, many years ago. It's honestly the most perfect dessert for my sweet tooth.
What makes this moist chocolate cake so good is the hint of cinnamon flavor in every bite. It's the secret ingredient that makes all the difference.
This cake is great when you need to feed a crowd, I mean, it's about the size of Texas! Whip it up for your next birthday celebration, cook out, or pot luck. I'm sure everyone will ask for the recipe.
Love chocolate? Try my Chocolate Cherry Bundt cake next!
Ingredients
- All purpose flour
- Sugar - regular granulated white sugar
- Butter - or margarine. The original recipe that I have calls for margarine, but I have always used butter.
- Water
- Cocoa powder - this is unsweetened cocoa powder, such as Hershey's
- Eggs - I always use large eggs when baking
- Buttermilk
- Bakins soda
- Vanilla extract
- Cinnamon
- Milk
- Powdered sugar
- Nuts - I used pecans
Directions
1) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare a 15x10x1 inch sheet cake pan with parchment paper.
2) Combine flour and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
3) Add butter, water and cocoa powder to a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Combine butter mixture with flour mixture. Stir mixture to combine.
4) Add eggs one at a time, stirring after each addition.
5) Pour buttermilk in a measuring cup. Stir baking soda into buttermilk then add buttermilk mixture to the cake batter. Stir in the vanilla and cinnamon.
6) Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 18 minutes. You will be frosting the cake as soon as it comes out of the oven.
7) Four minutes after the cake has been in the oven, prepare frosting: add powdered sugar to a large bowl. Melt butter (on the stovetop in a small saucepan or in the microwave in a bowl). Add milk, cocoa powder, and vanilla to melted butter, then pour the butter mixture over the powdered sugar. Stir in chopped nuts. Frosting will be thick.
8) Frost baked cake while hot. The heat from the cake will loosen up the frosting making it easy to spread. Use gentle strokes so the top of the cake stays intact.
Tips
Be sure your baking pan is 15x10x1 for these baking instructions. This is typically the size of large cookie sheets or large jelly roll pans.
You might like a thicker cake. If so, use a 9x13 inch pan and increase baking time until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Can I make my own buttermilk?
If you don't happen to have any buttermilk handy and you don't want to run out to the grocery store, try this homemade version:
For this recipe you'll need half a cup of buttermilk: add 1.5 teaspoons of vinegar (any light colored vinegar will work) or lemon juice to a measuring cup. Add milk to the ½ cup mark. Let stand for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
You can easily increase or decrease this basic recipe for other recipes!
How to store
Store leftovers wrapped tightly with plastic wrap or in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days, or longer in the refrigerator.
Freeze in freezer safe containers for up to three months.
Thaw in the refrigerator or on the counter at room temperature.
More Chocolate recipes
- Chocolate Dream Cake
- Guinness Beer Chocolate Cake
- Microwave Chocolate Mug Cake
- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Buttermilk Texas Sheet Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 2 cups flour all purpose
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup butter 2 sticks
- 1 cup water
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- 2 eggs large
- 1 teaspoon bakins soda
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
For the frosting:
- ½ cup butter 1 stick
- ⅓ cup milk (6 tbsp)
- 5 tablespoon cocoa powder (¼ cup + 1 tbsp)
- 16 oz powdered sugar (2 cups)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup nuts chopped (I like pecans)
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare a 15x10x1 inch sheet cake pan with parchment paper.
- Combine flour and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
- Add butter, water and cocoa powder to a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Combine butter mixture with flour mixture. Stir mixture to combine.
- Add eggs one at a time, stirring after each addition.
- Pour buttermilk in a measuring cup. Stir baking soda into buttermilk then add buttermilk mixture to the cake batter. Stir in the vanilla and cinnamon.
- Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 18 minutes. Frost cake immediately after taking it out of the oven.
For the frosting:
- Four minutes after the cake has been in the oven, prepare frosting: add powdered sugar to a large bowl. Melt butter (on the stovetop in a small saucepan or in the microwave in a bowl). Add milk, cocoa powder, and vanilla to melted butter, then pour the butter mixture over the powdered sugar. Stir in chopped nuts. Frosting will be thick.
- Frost baked cake while hot. The heat from the cake will loosen up the frosting making it easy to spread. Use gentle strokes so the top of the cake stays intact.
Notes
You might like a thicker cake. If so, use a 9x13 inch pan and increase baking time until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Mom
5 stars!!