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Warm chocolate Texas sheet cake with glossy chocolate frosting in a 9x13 pan, with one slice served on a vintage plate.

Texas Sheet Cake

Warm chocolate frosting melts just slightly into this soft, fudgy sheet cake as soon as it leaves the oven. Its thick, brownie-like slices travel well to potlucks and disappear quickly from the pan.

By Betty Lou Gardner1 hr 10 minUpdated 2026-08-25

This family-style Texas Sheet Cake is rich, soft, and deeply chocolatey, with warm frosting spread over the top while the cake is fresh from the oven. Thicker than the classic half-sheet version and somewhere between a fudgy brownie and an old-fashioned chocolate sheet cake, it is an easy dessert for birthdays, potlucks, and late-night kitchen slices straight from the pan.

Betty Lou Gardner in a family archival photograph

Granny’s Kitchen Notes

From Betty Lou Gardner

I frost this while the cake is still warm because the icing melts down into the top just enough to make it extra soft and fudgy. Sometimes I toss a handful of walnuts into the frosting if I have some sitting around in the cupboard.

How to Make Texas Sheet Cake

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Flour, sugar, and salt being whisked together in a large vintage mixing bowl.
01

Mix the Dry Ingredients

Whisk the flour, sugar, and salt together in a large bowl.

Cocoa and water bubbling in a saucepan as butter melts beside a wooden spoon.
02

Prepare the Chocolate Base

Bring the butter, water, and cocoa to a brief boil, stirring until the butter is fully melted and the mixture is smooth and glossy.

Eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, and baking soda added to chocolate batter in a large vintage mixing bowl.
03

Make the Batter

Stir the hot chocolate mixture into the dry ingredients, then add the eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, and baking soda just until the batter is smooth.

Freshly baked chocolate cake in a 9x13 metal pan with the center set and the edges just pulling from the pan.
04

Bake the Cake

Bake until the center springs back lightly, a toothpick shows moist crumbs rather than wet batter, and the edges pull slightly from the pan.

Warm chocolate frosting being spread over freshly baked chocolate cake with an offset spatula.
05

Frost While Warm

Spread the warm chocolate frosting directly over the warm cake so it settles into the top layer.

Warm chocolate Texas sheet cake with glossy chocolate frosting in a 9x13 pan, with one slice served on a vintage plate.

Texas Sheet Cake

Warm chocolate frosting melts just slightly into this soft, fudgy sheet cake as soon as it leaves the oven. Its thick, brownie-like slices travel well to potlucks and disappear quickly from the pan.

By Betty Lou Gardner

Prep20 minCook20 minTotal1 hr 10 minDifficultyEasy
PrintReview

Ingredients

Scale

Scaling note: Scaling is withheld until recipe-specific quantities, method safety, and instruction synchronization are verified.

Chocolate Cake

Chocolate Frosting

Instructions

  2. 2 ½ cups flour, 2 cups sugar, ½ tsp salt
  3. 1 cup water, 4 tbsp cocoa powder, 1 cup butter
  5. 3 eggs, 1 ½ cups buttermilk, 1 ½ tsp vanilla, 1 ½ tsp baking soda
  7. ½ cup butter, 6 tbsp evaporated milk, 4 tbsp cocoa powder, 3 ½ cups powdered sugar

Serving Suggestions

Nutrition (Approximate Per Serving)

Yield

1 (9x13) cake — Serving size: 1 square

Calories
490
Carbohydrates
73.5 g
Protein
5 g
Fat
21 g
Saturated Fat
12.5 g
Cholesterol
90 mg
Sodium
260 mg
Fiber
1.5 g
Total Sugars
56 g

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Betty Lou Gardner

Betty Lou Gardner

Betty Lou Gardner’s family recipes are preserved in Granny’s Recipe Box.

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