There’s a lot to love about Texas Sheet Cake. Maybe for you, it’s the thin cake layer that’s deep on chocolate flavor. Maybe it’s how the frosting is poured on while warm so it settles into an incredible fudgy layer. Maybe it’s how that fudginess is punctuated with crunchy chopped pecans. Maybe it’s just in how those three incredible components come together. Like I said, a lot to love! And that’s exactly why it’s a longstanding classic that’s been around for decades and will be around for many more.

What Is Texas Sheet Cake?

Texas Sheet Cake first made its appearance in the 1950s or 1960s and was a recipe found in Texas newspapers and also on the backs of flour sacks.

It’s different from other cakes because it’s baked in a sheet pan, so it’s thinner and serves more people. It’s also frosted right in the pan when both the cake and the frosting are still warm, so you don’t have to remove the cake from the pan at all. You just serve it right out of what you baked it in!

The most classic flavor is chocolate, but there are plenty of variations too. We’ve made A Dr Pepper version, a white coconut version, and even an eggnog version.

What Ingredients Do You Need for Texas Sheet Cake?

It’s mostly the usual baking stuff. You need:

• flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda
• cocoa powder
• butter
• eggs
• vanilla extract
• buttermilk and milk
• powdered sugar
• chopped pecans

How Do You Make Texas Sheet Cake?

It’s a little different from most other cakes, because you’re going to be working on the stovetop a bit but you’re not melting any chocolate.

You see, you combine cocoa powder and butter in a saucepan and then whisk that together with some boiling water for thirty seconds or so. You pour that boiling mixture over your dry ingredients and then you incorporate the rest of your wet ingredients — eggs, buttermilk, vanilla.

That goes into a half sheet pan, which is 13×18 inches in size, and it bakes for just about fifteen minutes, which is much shorter than most other cakes. You can start working on the frosting while the cake is still in the oven, because with this cake, you pour the hot frosting on a hot cake.

The frosting also comes together on the stovetop. You melt some butter, whisk in some cocoa powder, and then some milk, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Once that’s smooth, you stir in the chopped pecans, and pour that molten liquid all over the warm cake.

You do want to wait for the frosting to set before you slice it up, but that’s what gives it its signature fudgy texture. And you can serve it right from that sheet pan!