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The party can’t start until the cake arrives, and this Texas Sheet Cake For A Crowd is a showstopper! With just a handful of common pantry ingredients and a little bit of baking magic, you can enjoy this luscious, soft, chocolatey cake in under an hour.
If you’re a chocolate lover like me, then this cake recipe is going to become a go-to any time you’re feeding a crowd! On occasion, I’ll even make this chocolate cake on a Monday for my family to simply enjoy as a dessert throughout a busy week.
I’m going to share a little secret with y’all… most recipes are better when you add a little sour cream! This is true of everything from homemade meatballs to muffins, and it’s the secret to making the BEST chocolate cake recipe ever!
In my version of Texas Sheet Cake, I add sour cream to both the cake itself and the frosting. The tart, bright flavor of the sour cream compliments the flavor of the cocoa perfectly, and it adds richness to the cake while still keeping the texture light!
This is the ideal cake to serve anytime you’re feeding lots of people, it’s always a crowd-pleaser, and you’ll have folks begging for the recipe!
Make This Recipe Chocolate Cake Recipe For…
- Casual Entertaining
- Family Get-Togethers
- Graduation Parties
- Summer Celebrations
- Baby Showers
- Potlucks
- Birthday Parties
- Cookouts and Barbeques
Ingredients Needed To Make Sheet Cake For A Crowd
All you’ll need to make this delicious cake is 13 simple ingredients! Some of the ingredients are used for both the cake and the icing, so check the recipe card below for all the measurements you’ll need.
- Butter – salted
- Water
- Brewed Coffee – you get the best flavor using strong coffee instead of instant
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- Brown Sugar
- Vanilla Extract
- All-Purpose Flour
- Granulated White Sugar
- Salt
- Baking Soda
- Sour Cream
- Eggs
- Powdered Sugar
PRO TIP: When you remove your cake from the oven, the sides of the cake should just be starting to pull away from the edge of the pan. Be careful not to overbake.
Items You’ll Need To Make This Chocolate Sheet Cake Recipe
- Jelly Roll Pan – There are tons of different sheet cake sizes but this link will take you to the one I recommend. This kind of baking pan goes by many different names, but essentially it’s a sheet pan with tall, lipped sides about an inch high. You want to make sure to bake this sheet cake in a pan that is tall enough to allow the call to rise without spilling into your oven.
- Large Sauce Pan – You’ll want to use one that has at least a 2-quart capacity, preferably stainless steel.
- Mixing Bowls – You’ll need a medium-sized bowl for this sheet cake
- Hand Mixer – You can use a stand mixer if that’s what you have, but I would recommend a hand mixer for this recipe.
- Whisk
How To Make This Texas Sheet Cake Recipe
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper, or spray well with nonstick spray.
- In a medium or large saucepan, add 1 cup of butter, 1/2 cup of water, 1/2 cup of coffee, and 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once it boils, remove the mixture from the heat. Let it cool for a minute or two, then stir in brown sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Whisk together until fully combined.
- In a separate medium-sized bowl, combine 2 cups of all-purpose flour, 1 cup of granulated sugar, salt, and baking soda. Whisk together to combine dry ingredients. Add your dry ingredients into the saucepan with the butter mixture. Stir well, then add 1/2 cup of sour cream and eggs. Blend well until all the lumps are gone.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly to the sides. Bake for about 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- To a clean, medium-sized saucepan, add 1 stick of butter and 1/4 cup cocoa. Stir together over medium heat until it comes to a boil, then remove from the heat. Add sour cream and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Then use a whisk to stir in the powdered sugar.
- Spread frosting over the cooled cake, slice and enjoy!
How To Serve Texas Sheet Cake
There are so many fantastic ways to serve this cake, and so many events to serve it at. Like most recipes, the way that I serve Texas Sheet Cake changes depending on the event I’m making it for.
If you’re preparing this recipe for a large outdoor party, I like to keep the cake in its sheet pan and allow people to serve themselves. This method of serving is easy and ideal for block parties, potlucks, picnics, pool parties, and birthdays.
When you’re serving this cake at a smaller indoor gathering, you can slice it and place induvial slices on plates for people to simply grab when they want.
How To Store This Recipe
The easiest way to store this recipe is in its pan. Cover your jelly roll pan of cake with foil or plastic wrap and place it in the fridge. It will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.
More Delicious Dessert Recipes…
- Monster Cookies
- Chocolate Covered Strawberries
- Easy Champagne Cupcakes
- Lemon Curd Thumbprint Cookies
- Red Velvet Cake Mix Cookies – 2 Ways
Texas Sheet Cake For A Crowd
Ingredients
For The Sheet Cake
- 1 cup Salted Butter – 2 sticks of butter
- 1/2 cup Water
- 1/2 cup Coffee – brewed strong coffee
- 1/2 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- 1 cup Brown Sugar
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 2 cups All Purpose Flour – spooned and leveled
- 1 cup Granulated White Sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 cup Sour Cream
- 2 Eggs
For The Icing
- 1/2 cup Salted Butter – 1 stick
- 1/4 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- 6 tablespoons Sour Cream
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 3.5 cups Powdered Sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper, or spray well with nonstick spray.
- In a medium or large saucepan, add 1 cup of butter, 1/2 cup of water, 1/2 cup of coffee and 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Once it boils, remove mixture from the heat. Let it cool for a minute or two, then stir in brown sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Whisk together until fully combined.
- In a separate medium-sized bowl, combine 2 cups of all-purpose flour, 1 cup of granulated sugar, salt, and baking soda. Whisk together to combine dry ingredients. Add your dry ingredients into the sauce pan with the butter mixture. Stir well, then add 1/2 cup of sour cream and eggs. Blend well until all the lumps are gone.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly to the sides. Bake for about 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. When the cake is done, take it out of the oven and let cool for 15-20 minutes.
- While your cake is cooling, make your icing. To a clean, medium-sized saucepan, add 1 stick of butter and 1/4 cup cocoa. Stir together over medium heat until it comes to a boil, then remove from the heat. Add 6 tablespoons of sour cream and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Then use a whisk to stir in the powdered sugar. Spread icing over the cooled cake then serve and enjoy!
Douglas says
Love chocolate cake, baker gave me a recipe one time, it was his and my favorite ever, this one look similar, but am wondering about all the sugar in it. 2 cups total????
Didn’t try it yet but will do it for M day coming up.
As always thanks
DB
Donya says
Hey there!
Thank you so much for your interest in this recipe, I think you’re really going to like it, there’s nothing better than a good chocolate cake! For this recipe you’ll need 1 cup of brown sugar and 1 cup of white sugar for the cake itself, and then you’ll need about 3.5 cups of powdered sugar for the frosting. The brown sugar goes into the chocolate mixture for the cake and then the white sugar goes into the dry ingredients. Thank you so much for your support and your fantastic rating! I really hope you enjoy this recipe, it’s definitely a perfect cake for Memorial Day Weekend, please let me know if you have any other questions, I’d be more than happy to help out!
~Donya