Old Fashioned Texas Sheet Cake with Sour Cream

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This delicious Old Fashioned Texas Sheet Cake with Sour Cream is moist, rich and absolutely incredible!

If you love Texas Sheet Cake as much as we do, you’ll also love our Texas Sheet Cake Cookies and Texas Sheet Cake Cupcakes.

Since I was a little girl, this was the requested item for every birthday I ever had.

Even now all grown up, my mother knows its still a favorite and doesn’t hesitate when I ask her to make it.

I like it both with the nuts and without the nuts, and honestly, it’s my favorite cake EVER!

Now I have my kids addicted to it. I will tell you, I’ve always enjoyed it right out of the refrigerator.

Though it is also really delicious served hot or warm. For some reason to me it just tastes better cold.

I did ask my mom where she originally got our family recipe that she makes.

It was in a cookbook that was through my elementary school. It is not called a Texas sheet cake because it came from Texas, as many believe.

Actually it is called a Texas Sheet Cake because it is BIG and RICH and HOT, and once upon a time, it was believed that rich people lived in Texas and we all know everything is bigger in Texas (yes I was born there and lived there as an adult).

And well, if you’ve ever visited Texas in the summer, you know how incredibly HOT it is. So there ya go.

This is not our family recipe, I will share that one at another time. I have photographs to go with that one.

But if you want a GREAT treat to bring to barbecues and picnics, this is the one.

Texas Sheet Cake with Sour Cream

A few quick notes – it is best to use the ingredients as they are listed and not the low-fat or no-fat version of anything. Don’t substitute margarine for the butter.

The cake will still turn out, but the rich flavor won’t be as good.

Trust me on that, I’ve tried. It is seriously my one weakness where I know I’m putting on the calories, and I am totally ok with that.

Tell ‘ya what – eat a piece and take a walk. That should cover it 😉

Ingredients for Texas Sheet Cake

• butter – we typically use unsalted butter and if you choose to use salted butter, omit the salt in the dry ingredients.
• cocoa powder – we don’t have a preferred brand here, but a higher quality cocoa powder will result in a deeper, richer flavor most of the time. Honestly we use whatever we have on hand.
• granulated sugar – I’ve been asked on occasion if you can substitute another sweetener for the sugar in this recipe, and I suppose you definitely can, but it does tend to change the flavor and texture a bit. We just stick with regular white granulated sugar.
• all purpose flour – I wouldn’t recommend a different type of flour, simply because other substitutions on this recipe will need to happen.
• salt – omit salt if using salted butter
• eggs – for this recipe I used large eggs
• baking soda
• sour cream – This version of Texas Sheet Cake calls for sour cream rather than the standard buttermilk recipe. This one is our favorite. We usually just use the full fat version but have tried it with lower fats and have had no issues.
• vanilla
• Icing (recipe below) – Texas Sheet Cake is incredible with the included icing recipe, and is traditionally served that way, but we have also made it without and it’s delicious too served with some whipped cream.
• Chopped Pecans, if desired – Nuts are optional in this recipe and if you want to switch out the nuts, we’ve found chopped walnuts or crushed macadamia nuts to go best with this recipe.

How do you make Texas Sheet Cake?

For the cake: In a saucepan, combine the butter, water and cocoa over med. heat until the butter melts. Don’t let it cook too long.

In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, flour, salt, eggs, and baking soda. Add the butter mixture to the dry ingredients. Careful, it’s hot.

Add the sour cream and vanilla and mix well. Pour into a sheet cake pan or jelly roll pan.

Bake at 350 degress for 20 minutes.

For the icing: In a saucepan, combine the butter, cocoa and milk over medium heat and bring to a boil. Immediately remove from heat and combine with confectioners sugar and vanilla.

Mix well with a mixer to remove lumps.

Spread over the sheet cake while it is STILL hot.

You can either mix the chopped pecans into the icing before pouring it over the hot sheet cake, or sprinkle them over the top after you put the icing on (or omit all together).

Texas Sheet Cake with Sour Cream Recipe

Old Fashioned Texas Sheet Cake Recipe

www.dailydishrecipes.com

This delicious Old Fashioned Texas Sheet Cake with Sour Cream is moist, rich and absolutely incredible!

4.70 from 20 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Course Cake Recipes and Cupcake Recipes

Cuisine American

Servings 12 -14 servings

Ingredients

  

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Cake:

• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup water
• ¼ cup cocoa
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups flour
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Icing recipe below

Icing:

• ½ cup butter
• ¼ cup cocoa
• ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 box 1 pound confectioners’ sugar (sift it first to remove lumps – otherwise icing remains lumpy)
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• Chopped Pecans optional

Instructions

 

For the cake:

• In a saucepan, combine the butter, water and cocoa over med. heat until the butter melts. Don’t let it cook too long.
• In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, flour, salt, eggs, and baking soda.
• Add the butter mixture to the dry ingredients. Careful, it’s hot.
• Add the sour cream and vanilla and mix well.
• Pour into a sheet cake pan or jelly roll pan.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

For the icing:

• In a saucepan, combine the butter, cocoa and milk over medium heat and bring to a boil.
• Immediately remove from heat and combine with confectioners sugar and vanilla.
• Mix well with a mixer to remove lumps.
• Spread over the sheet cake while it is STILL hot. You can either mix the chopped pecans into the icing before pouring it over the hot sheet cake, or sprinkle them over the top after you put the icing on (or omit all together).

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