Chocolate Texas Sheet Cake Recipe (Quarter Sheet Cake size)

This is my absolute favorite chocolate recipe. It is a quarter sheet cake, Texas style! A small Texas chocolate sheet cake made in a quarter sheet pan!

This is the chocolate cake that I grew up on. Yes, it is thin and not as visually impressive as a towering stack of chocolate layer cake. However, there are so many merits to this cake!

Before I start, I'll tell you that I'm from Texas, so I definitely have a dog in this fight.

A Texas chocolate sheet cake is a super thin, moist chocolate cake baked in a large baking sheet instead of a round cake pan. Then, when it's fresh from the oven and still hot, a warm, melted frosting is poured on top.

As the cake cools, the frosting hardens into a flaky, almost crisp topping, and it crumbles at the touch of a fork, almost like a piece of fudge! In a word, it is delicious, and it is the only chocolate cake I make.

Yes, I make my vegan chocolate cake when I need a layer cake, but this one feeds a crowd and never disappoints.

This pan is technically a 9x13 inch pan, but it only has 1-inch sides. It's a quarter sheet pan that I usually use to bake dinners for two or roast vegetables for two!

I hope you love this Texas Chocolate Quarter Sheet Cake! This is the exact quarter sheet pan I use and love.

This Texas Chocolate Sheet Cake is perfect for smaller crowds

That is how I started scaling down the Pioneer Woman’s chocolate sheet cake. I certainly didn’t need a giant chocolate cake, but I needed one that served more than two. I halved her recipe and baked it on a quarter-sheet pan, made a few alterations, and it’s perfect! Everyone loves chocolate, and I get about 6 generous servings out of the pan. That’s enough for the 4 of us, plus if anyone wants seconds or an extra slice to take home.

How big is a quarter of a sheet cake?

This quarter sheet cake is the perfect size for celebrating small things, or having a few friends over. Everyone still gets chocolate cake, but you don't have to make a giant 3-layer one. Plus, the cake to frosting ratio on Texas Chocolate Sheet Cake is ideal. My quarter sheet cake pan measures 9x13" with a heavy 1" lip on the sides.

How many pieces of cake are in a ¼ sheet cake?

You can see in the photo that I got 12 small squares of cake, but I would say this quarter sheet cake generously serves 6 people.

Our neighborly visits often go late, and I’m too tired to do dishes when everyone leaves, so I use paper plates. I think it provides a more casual feeling anyway. Last Friday, I used paper plates. Clean-up was a breeze, and they’re perfect for sending home leftovers, too.

So, make it easy on yourself, grab the paper plates and invite your neighbors over!

Texas Chocolate Cake ingredients

• Flour. All-purpose regular, plain flour.
• Sugar. Granulated white sugar.
• Salt.
• Butter. One stick (4 ounces) of unsalted butter. It doesn’t need to be softened, because we will melt it on the stove. We also need an additional 7 tablespoons (almost one whole stick) for making the pourable chocolate icing.
• Cocoa Powder. Two heaping tablespoons of cocoa powder. You don’t need to measure this super precisely, just use a tablespoon to scoop out two scoops of cocoa powder. Repeat when making the frosting.
• Boiling Water. Texas Chocolate Sheet Cake is probably the only recipe you’ve ever seen that calls for boiling water, but trust me on this!
• Buttermilk. Buy store-bought cultured low-fat buttermilk for the best results. You can technically make your own with 1 cup of milk plus 1 teaspoon of lemon juice or vinegar, but the recipe was developed with store-bought buttermilk. We will use some in the cake and the frosting.
• Egg. One large egg, beaten.
• Baking Soda. Just ½ teaspoon of baking soda, because this cake is only going to rise to the surface of the pan you bake it in.
• Vanilla. I always recommend real, high-quality Bourbon vanilla extract.
• Powdered Sugar. This is to make the frosting that we will pour over the cake as it cools.

How to make a Chocolate Texas Sheet Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly spray a quarter-sheet pan with cooking spray. A quarter-sheet pan measures 9x13-inches with a 1-inch lip. Do not use a regular 9x13-inch pan because it is too deep for this batter.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt.
3. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the butter. Once melted, stir in the cocoa powder and boiling water.
4. In a measuring cup, stir together the buttermilk, egg, baking soda and vanilla.
5. Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture, followed by the boiling water mixture.
6. Stir together all cake ingredients very well, and then pour into the prepared pan. Bake cake for 15-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
7. While the cake bakes, make the frosting. In the same saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Stir in the cocoa powder, buttermilk and vanilla until well-combined. Remove the pan from heat and whisk in the powdered sugar.
8. Immediately when the cake comes out of the oven, pour the frosting over. Use an off-set spatula to spread the frosting to the edges of the pan. Let the cake cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.

How to serve this Chocolate Texas Sheet Cake Recipe

I love to serve this Texas Chocolate Sheet Cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top, especially if the cake is still warm.

Can I serve a sheet cake in the pan? 

Yes, you can use a butter knife to slice the cake into pieces and a soft silicone/rubber spatula to remove each slice from the pan to serve.

Texas Quarter Sheet Cake storage

Can you leave a Texas Sheet Cake out overnight?

Yes, cover the sheet cake with plastic wrap and it can be kept out at room temperature for up to 3 days. You can also refrigerate it to store it for 1 week.

Best Texas Sheet Cake Recipe FAQs

More Sheet Pan Cake recipes you'll love

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• Pumpkin Sheet Cake