This IS the best chocolate sheet cake ever. And I’m not just saying that because it’s the only one I’ve ever eaten. It IS delicious. And super moist and oh so chocolatey.
I’m officially in love. With the cake, not the Pioneer Woman. Well, maybe PW, too.
If you don’t know who I’m referring to (laughing as I type that), here’s her site:
I visited her and the family earlier this year at her ranch in Oklahoma and we baked cupcakes and made cake pops for some guests. Actually, she made this chocolate sheet cake recipe then for the cupcakes we used. However, we made a different frosting to decorate with so I didn’t get to experience the full effect. I don’t know what took me so long to try her complete recipe. I’m kicking myself now. It’s so easy and pretty darn quick, too. You don’t even need a mixer. Nope. No mixer. But you do need a 12 X 18 jelly roll pan. I think that’s what deterred me a little. I kept picturing a 12 X 18 cake sitting on my counter. And, well… that’s a lot of cake.
But then, a couple of weeks ago I received a surprise from the UPS guy… or girl…
It was PW’s soon-to-be-released cookbook. I was so excited to see it. I got a preview of the cover back in March and here it was. Finished. Full of Pictures. And Full of Recipes.
Including her Chocolate Sheet Cake.
That settled it. No more procrastinating. Chocolate Sheet Cake here I come.
You’ll need 2 cups flour and 1/4 teaspoon of salt to start. Easy enough.
Then pour on the sugar. Two cups of the sweet stuff. I like how this is going.
Melt some butter. Two sticks. Thank you.
While it’s melting, stir together 1/2 cup buttermilk, two eggs, 1 teaspoon baking soda…
And add a little vanilla. A teaspoon to be exact.
Back to the butter. Drop in four heaping tablespoons of cocoa please.
Mix that all up.
Add a cup of boiling water and stir. Let bubble for just a minute and turn then off the heat.
Then pour that over your flour, sugar and salt mixture and stir it all together.
Add the buttermilk mixture and stir until it’s smooth.
Anyone having a little deja vous here? I kinda feel like PW right about now with all these step-by step photos. But really, I couldn’t resist posting all of these pouring shots.
See… here’s another one. Look at that batter. It’s glorious.
Place the pan in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes. I did 18.
And while the cake is baking, you can make the icing.
Melt some more butter. One and 3/4 sticks this time. Add four more heaping tablespoons of cocoa and stir together.
Then add 6 Tablespoons milk and one teaspoon vanilla. Here’s the only thing I did differently. I didn’t have any milk. I know… that bites. So instead I used four tablespoons of evaporated milk mixed with two tablespoons of water. I could have gone all six evaporated, but I wanted to play it safe.
Add ONE POUND of confectioner’s sugar. Thank you again PW. This is definitely going in the right direction.
Mix that all up really, really good. You can also add a 1/2 cup of chopped pecans, but I didn’t have any of those either. And actually, I’m glad I didn’t. This cake was just the way I like it. Non-crunchy.
After the cake is baked , immediately pour on the good stuff. Work the icing all over the cake, so you’ll have less spreading to do. Those little lumps in the photo are just bits of confectioner’s sugar. If you don’t add nuts, you’ll have to stir this really good to get them all out or sift your sugar first. But who has time for that when this cake is waiting.
Let the cake cool completely. Just kidding. Just dig right in.
It was the…
Wait… I need another bite to make sure.
It was the…
Best chocolate sheet cake ever.
By the way, this 12 X 18 cake taking up space on the counter? Don’t even think twice about it. The cake won’t last that long.
Man, I really wish I had some milk right now.
The cake was so good, that I had to take a picture of it on this pedestal. Right where it belongs.
Make this cake. Now. Seriously.
Here is the full recipe from the Pioneer Woman to make things easier for you to follow.
Or you could go out and get a copy of The Pioneer Woman Cooks. However, I’m changing the title to The Pioneer Woman Bakes because she has no less than fifteen sweet recipes included in this thing. You might also like:
- Cinnamon Rolls
- Iny’s Prune Cake
- Buttermilk Biscuits
- Marmalade Muffins
- French Breakfast Puffs
- Maple Pecan Scones
- Perfect Pie Crust
- Patsy’s Blackberry Cobbler
- Flat Apple Pie
- Chocolate Sheet Cake
- Mocha Brownies
- Oatmeal Crispies
- Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
- Peach Crisp with Maple Cream Sauce
- Red Velvet Cake
- Plus … there’s all the real food
Here’s a peek inside.
But you don’t need to peek, because… guess what… I went to the store the same day this book was released and bought another copy to share.
That’s right. One for me and one for you. Well, one of you.
The Pioneer Woman Cooks
by Ree Drummond
Just leave a comment on this post and let me know:
- Have you tried any of Ree’s recipes from her site? Or which one should I try next? And if you don’t know Ree (thepioneerwoman.com) yet, then just go ahead and thank me for introducing you. I’m pretty sure you’ll like her site.
- Leave your comment with a way for me to contact you if you win.
- Deadline to enter is
Monday, November 2nd at 7 p.m. ET One winner will be chosen at random and announced sometime Monday evening on this post.TIMES UP! Here’s the winner!
Good Luck!
