Texas Sheet Cake and Icing

By
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Southern-cuisine expert and cookbook author Diana Rattray has created more than 5,000 recipes and articles in her 20 years as a food writer.
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Updated on 01/3/23
Texas Sheet Cake and Icing in a sheet pan

The Spruce / Rachel Riesgraf
Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 20 mins
Total: 35 mins
Servings: 12 servings
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
634 Calories
29g Fat
90g Carbs
5g Protein
Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 12
Amount per serving
Calories 634
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 29g 38%
Saturated Fat 16g 81%
Cholesterol 98mg 33%
Sodium 319mg 14%
Total Carbohydrate 90g 33%
Dietary Fiber 2g 6%
Total Sugars 71g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 0mg 1%
Calcium 35mg 3%
Iron 2mg 14%
Potassium 80mg 2%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Texas sheet cake may be so named because of its size, but ask any proper Texan and they can likely recite a family secret for making "the best." Featuring a signature Texas ingredient, pecans, the moist chocolaty cake looks unpretentious, like brownies, but it makes an undeniably rich statement on the dessert table. Take one to a backyard barbecue or anywhere you want to feed a crowd.

The classic recipe generally calls for buttermilk, but this updated version substitutes sour cream for a pleasantly acidic flavor and a particularly moist and tender texture.

Ingredients

For Cake:

  • 1 cup butter

  • 1 cup water

  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

  • 2 cups granulated sugar

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour

  • 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

  • 2 large eggs, beaten

  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1/2 cup sour cream

  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For Icing:

  • 1/2 cup butter

  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

  • 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk

  • 1 pound confectioners' sugar, sifted

  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

  • 1/2 cup pecans, chopped

Steps to Make It

Make the Cake

  1. Gather the cake ingredients.

    Cake ingredients in bowls

    The Spruce / Rachel Riesgraf

  2. Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine butter, water, and cocoa in a saucepan over medium heat; stir constantly until butter melts.

    butter, water, and cocoa in a saucepan on a burner

    The Spruce / Rachel Riesgraf

  3. Add sugar, flour, salt, eggs, soda, sour cream, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla; mix well.

    butter, water, cocoa, sugar, flour, salt, eggs, soda, sour cream, and vanilla in a saucepan on a burner

    The Spruce / Rachel Riesgraf

  4. Pour batter into a 15 x 10 x 1-inch jelly roll pan or sheet cake pan.

    batter in a baking sheet

    The Spruce / Rachel Riesgraf

  5. Bake cake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The cake should pull away from sides of the pan and spring back when you touch it. Ice hot cake immediately, following instructions below.

    Chocolate cake with icing in a sheet pan

    The Spruce / Rachel Riesgraf

Prepare the Icing

  1. Gather the icing ingredients.

    icing ingredients in bowls

    The Spruce / Rachel Riesgraf

  2. With about 10 minutes left on timer, prepare icing. Combine butter, cocoa, and milk in a saucepan; bring to a boil, then pull off heat.

    Combine butter, cocoa, and milk in a saucepan on the burner

    The Spruce / Rachel Riesgraf

  3. Add confectioners' sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla; blend icing with an electric hand mixer until sugar is fully incorporated. Stir in pecans.

    Chocolate icing in a saucepan

    The Spruce / Rachel Riesgraf

  4. Pour icing over hot cake. With a spatula or knife, spread icing to edges.

    Chocolate icing on top of the cake in the sheet pan

    The Spruce / Rachel Riesgraf

  5. Let cake cool, then cut into squares to serve. 

    Texas Sheet Cake and Icing in a sheet pan

    The Spruce / Rachel Riesgraf 

Variations

  • Replace the water in the batter with brewed black coffee, cooled to room temperature, for a mocha flavored cake.
  • Add a teaspoon of ground cinnamon to the batter to make a Mexican chocolate cake.
  • Substitute chopped walnuts, almonds, or peanuts for the pecans. Or omit them altogether for a nut-free version.
  • Leave out the cocoa powder when you make the batter and the icing for a white Texas sheet cake version.