Texas sheet chocolate cake (Printable Version)

A moist Southern chocolate cake finished with warm, fudgy chocolate icing and optional nuts.

# What You Need:

→ Cake

01 - 2 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 2 cups granulated sugar
03 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
04 - 1 teaspoon baking soda
05 - 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
06 - 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
07 - 1 cup water
08 - 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
09 - 2 large eggs
10 - 1/2 cup sour cream
11 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

→ Fudgy Icing

12 - 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
13 - 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
14 - 1/3 cup whole milk
15 - 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
16 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
17 - 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

# Directions:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 13x18-inch rimmed baking sheet.
02 - In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon if using.
03 - In a medium saucepan, combine butter, water, and cocoa powder. Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat, stirring until smooth.
04 - Pour hot chocolate mixture over dry ingredients and stir until well combined.
05 - In a small bowl, whisk eggs, sour cream, and vanilla extract. Add to batter and mix until smooth.
06 - Pour batter into prepared pan, smooth the top, and bake 18–20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
07 - While cake bakes, melt butter with cocoa powder and milk in saucepan over medium heat, stirring until smooth and just boiling. Remove from heat.
08 - Immediately whisk in sifted powdered sugar and vanilla extract until smooth. Stir in nuts if desired.
09 - Pour warm icing over hot cake as soon as it comes from oven, spreading quickly with an offset spatula.
10 - Let cake cool at room temperature until icing sets. Cut into squares and serve.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • It's impossibly easy but tastes like you spent hours in the kitchen, which means you can actually pull it off on a weeknight.
  • The icing-to-cake ratio is absolutely indulgent, and the best part is it happens in one pan, so cleanup is almost forgivable.
02 -
  • The icing has to go on the hot cake or it won't meld together; if your cake cools completely, warm the icing slightly before pouring, but the magic really happens when both are hot.
  • Sift your powdered sugar before measuring because a sifter changes everything—lumpy icing stays lumpy no matter how much you whisk, and smooth icing is what makes this recipe shine.
03 -
  • Use a half-sheet pan with sides because a flat baking sheet will let your batter creep out at the edges and bake unevenly.
  • Let the chocolate mixture cool for exactly one minute before pouring it over the dry ingredients, or the heat will cook your flour and make the texture grainy instead of tender.
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