Baking A Sheet Cake

One of the easy types of cakes to bake is a sheet cake. Using just one pan, or baking sheet, you can quickly and easily create a great baked dessert.  There is no need to get too complicated with a sheet cake, especially with the frosting.  Many bakers become intimidated by the thought of creating a multi layer cake, and then having to ice it.  A sheet cake takes away that concern, you are using a basic cooking utensil that is flat.

Start With A Good Baking Sheet

Before you even look for a good sheet cake recipe you need to make sure you have a very good baking sheet.  Don’t use an old steel sheet that you have roasted meats or vegetables on, you want to use a baking sheet that is in pristine condition.  Make sure that the rimmed edge is at least 1″ high.  Some sheets will come with edges even higher, that is not a problem.  The basic sheet size (interior) is about 13 1/2″ X 9 3/4″.  This will very a little, for some reason the manufacturers don’t use an industry standard for sheet size.

Next, I always recommend using a stand mixer for cakes.  They do a wonderful job of creaming, mixing and blending and they make sure all of your ingredients are thoroughly mixed.  When you bake, you never want clumps of ingredients that haven’t been blended properly.

Great Sheet Cake Recipe

Cake Ingredients

3 cups cake flour, sifted

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 cup whole milk

1/3 cup sour cream, room temperature

3 large eggs, room temperature

Frosting Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

4 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/3 cup heavy cream

2 teaspoons vanilla

salt to taste

Cake Directions

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease a 9 X 13 sheet cake pan.

Mix all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl and set aside.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream the butter.

Add the vanilla, the eggs, sour cream and milk and mix thoroughly.

Pour batter into the greased baking sheet and bake for 30-35 minutes.  A toothpick will come out clean when the cake is finished.

Cool completely.

Frosting Directions

Cream the butter in the bowl of your stand mixer.

Add the remaining ingredients and mix well.

Spoon the frosting on the completely cooled cake and spread evenly.