I’m in a bit of an identity crisis. Remember when I felt like I was meant to be Greek? Well I also feel deep down that I’m a Texan at heart.
A Greek Texan…it could happen.
And no, I’ve never actually lived there but from what I hear, I would fit in.
Everything’s BIG in Texas and this girl loves huge trucks, tall men (my husband’s 6’6″), and big furniture.
And the HAIR! Anyone who knows me knows I’m a little obsessed with BIG hair. The bigger the better. Big hair is hard and next to impossible to achieve in the humidity of Florida, but I try. I curl and tease the crap out of it. But I always want it bigger. Bigger is better, right?
I haven’t quite mastered the draawwl, but Texas, oh Texas – I’ll come home someday.
Until then, I’ll turn to food as I usually do and make Texas themed food to make me feel at “home”. I love the traditional chocolate Texas Sheet Cake but this buttery white sheet cake has been calling to me for months. I’ve had it bookmarked at Life as a Lofthouse forever. It has almond flavoring but you could use vanilla as well. It would be pretty with some sprinkles on it or just plain.
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup water
- 2 cups all-purpose four
- 2 cups white sugar
- 2 eggs , beaten
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Frosting:
- 1/2 cup butter , cubed
- 1/4 cup milk
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
-
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
-
In a medium saucepan bring butter and water to a boil. Meanwhile, in a large bowl add flour and sugar and mix. Then add in eggs, sour cream, extract, baking soda and salt. Slowly pour in the boiling butter/water mixture. Stir with a spatula until well combined and smooth. No need to use an electric mixer. Batter will be very thin.
-
Pour into a greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking sheet. Bake at 375 for 18-22 minutes or until golden brown. Your cake will be flat and not very tall (it's a sheet cake). Cool for about 10 minutes. You still want your cake a little warm when you add the frosting so that it spreads well.
-
For the frosting: In a large saucepan, combine butter and milk. Bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, and then stir in the powdered sugar and extract. Stir until smooth and all combined. Spread immediately over warm cake. Decorate cake with sprinkles, if desired.
adapted from Allrecipes; via Life as a Lofthouse
I'm Christy Denney, The Girl Who Ate Everything. I can't be left alone with a warm cinnamon roll or chocolate chip cookie. 
I have been making this recipe for years. It is quick to make and tastes great. I could eat half the pan myself, so try to make it for a large gathering….it is THAT good!
I love this cake! So so good! And I knew we had more in common than just food! My hair is huge. I always tease the back to get that ‘bump’ 🙂
I love the “bump”! I do that too!
Sounds good. As a Texan, I say, COME ON DOWN! (or over as the case may be.)
Well if you were a real Texan, such as myself, you’d say “y’all come
Over”, and never “Come on down”.
Thanks for the tip!
This is an excellant cake. I have made it for years also. When serving to a large group, I make chocolate Texas Sheet cake, white Texas sheet cake and peanut butter Texas sheet cake. Even better is mixing frostings and cake, such as Peanut butter icing on chocolate cake.
Can you share your recipe for Peanut Butter Texas Sheet Cake?
@Patti,
Here it is: https://www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com/2010/03/how-you-can-get-pregnant-from-eating.html
The cake sounds great, I will have to try making it Gluten Free! And as for hair, in Texas we say “the bigger the hair, the closer to God!” So work on that drawl and come on over and see us sometime.
This looks so moist and yummy! Love it!
As someone who just moved to Texas, I can say we’d love to have you! And, quite honestly, the first time I ever had this was when I still lived in Illinois!
I thought I was the only one who loved a good white cake! Thanks tor sharing.
I made this for the first time in March. I loved it! So delish!
I can’t wait to try this! My husband won’t eat chocolate anything, so if I make a Texas sheet cake I end up consuming 3/4 of it myself! At least now we can be equal opportunity chubby 🙂
I love trying new recipes. Can’t wait to try this one
Um…it’s humid here everyday! We just use Aqua Net to spray the crap out of our hair 🙂
Yum! Cake is good. 🙂
Well, my great-grandfather came to the US from Greece and I was born and still live in Texas…so I guess I’m a Greek Texan. 😉
This looks really good. Something different from the normal chocolate sheet cake. Thanks for sharing!
I made this cake yesterday for my Mexican/Southern infusion party for the Kentucky Derby & Cinco de Mayo… it was a hit! Everyone couldn’t get enough and used the excuse that it is so thin that they could surely have more. Definitely a keeper and I was already asked to make it for Mother’s Day brunch! Thank you!
@Autumn,
Wow! Thanks! I loved it and am glad you did too!
oh my goodness. this looks sooo good.
Quick question: do you think this could be made for a park birthday party? like will the frosting hold up? I live in south florida. Just wondering.
@klb,
I live in South Florida too! In Weston!
The frosting on this is very thin almost like a glaze like regular Texas sheet cake. I think it would hold up…
I have a pan this size but I use it for cooking my chickens and it isn’t lovely to serve things in. Would this one work to make in a 9×13? Thanks!!!
@Julie,
Yikes! I’m not sure. I read a lot of reviews that said that it would not bake right unless it’s in that pan. I would have to try it but I think it would work but you would have to bake it longer.
I made this about a week and a half ago but used vegan butter, vegan sour cream, egg replacer, and vanilla soy milk (we have food allergies in our house) and it still turned out fantastic, too good because I think I ate half of it myself. Love your blog!
Can you sub vanilla for the almond extract?
@Mima Susie,
You can absolutely use vanilla instead!
Have I overlooked the number of servings from this recipe ? It sounds delicious, and I want to make it for a party ! Thanks.
@pansybuff,
No you haven’t! It serves 24.
I made this cake last week, and it was AWESOME! We don’t have the kind of pan you specified so we just used a regular 9×13. I can’t remember exactly how much longer I cooked it, but it turned out perfectly!
Was going to make this for a large gathering this weekend and thought maybe I would run into a few issues. Was going to make a tuxedo cake…one layer white texas & the other layer chocolate.
Do you think the cake would turn out dry if I didn’t use the recipie’s icing? I ask this because the icing is poured on the cake while hot…assuming the cake absorbs some of the moisture…
I was going to use a buttercream icing.
Please help, as I am making the cake this weekend!!!!
@Sonia,
I think it would be great with buttercream. It’s buttery no matter what frosting you put on it.
My icing got hard almost instantly when I tried to spread it, is that normal or did I just blow it?
@Anonymous,
You literally have to boil it, mix it up, and pour and spread it on right away. Did you wait at all?
I was in the midst of making the icing when I needed to nurse a fussy baby and let it cool down. So it was no longer boiling when I put in the powdered sugar. Needles to say, the cake wasn’t pretty but still tasted wonderful. I made it correctly the next day for a labor day weekend gathering- huge hit with everyone!
Don’t forget the pecans! Love, love, love Texas Sheet Cake! Chocolate or White!
I made this for our family Christmas meal and it was a hit. Thanks!! I used Christmas sprinkles.
Seriously in love with this cake! I have made it over a dozen times and I’m not lying! Love, love, love it!
I used Martha Stewart’s Ultimate Chocolate Frosting with this. Fantastic!
Do you have a recipe for a Banana sheet cake with banana flavored icing?
I have these Monkey squares which is a banana sheet cake with browned butter icing not banana. That’s the closest I have: https://www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com/2010/06/monkey-squares.html
And don’t worry about the drawl. You pick it up once you get here. I was born and raise in San Antonio with cousins in east Texas and I always pick up their accent when I visit. Can’t wait to try this. I love the chocolate one.
This is absolutely the best butter cake EVER!! I’ve made it countless times as a cake and cupcakes and I’ve even changed the sugar to brown sugar, added a tablespoon of golden syrup in the liquid and VOILA the best caramel cake ever. Thank you for sharing!
What did I do wrong?? made the cake exactly as recipe says, my cake was not thin and runny, it was almost like pudding, it did rise and looked great, but, it is not light as the picture shows, mine is on the dry side. I hope someone can tell me what went wrong. I have been married and have been cooking and baking for 59 years so I am not a novice , I am really stumped.
If it’s on the dry side I would definitely bake it less. It’s incrediby moist and shouldn’t be dry at all. Every oven is different? Maybe that’s it?
Does the recipe call for unsalted butter or regular butter?
I always use unsalted butter when baking and then you can add salt if called for.
if i make half of the recipe for the icing, would it be enough to cover the cake we are not a big fan of frosting
I don’t think so. It’s a pretty thin layer of frosting as it is.
Loved this and it didn’t even last the day in my house.
Wondering if I added some cocoa powder to this would it be considered the infamous chocolate Texas sheet cake as well?
My brother is married to a girl who is 100% Greek. I love eating Greek food…although, this isn’t Greek. I have got to try this! My kids beg for the chocolate Texas sheet cake. Is the frosting on this one like fudge? Looks yummy!! Thanks for sharing!
Deborah,
The frosting isn’t terribly fudgy but it’s good!
I cannot wait to try this. And I see so many variations I can do with it.
while the cake could possibly be delicious, the frosting turned out to be more of a glaze and was WAY too sweet to eat. I just made this and I’m thinking about throwing it out. It’s almost inedible.
Sorry you didn’t like it! The frosting is thin and sweet but is meant to be a glaze.
This looked so delicious, I immediately went into my kitchen and made it. What a big hit!! It is wonderful! Everyone loves it and I can’t stop eating it!! Happy people over here! Thanks!
I have always made this cake with adding 1/4 cup cocoa and used buttermilk instead. It is usually my family’s favorite. I put nuts in the icing or stir in about 1/2 cup peanut butter. I always use buttermilk instead of milk. That is yummy also. I have made a Buttermilk Almond Pound Cake that we love, and when I saw this recipe I am sure it will be just as good as it is. I love almond flavoring. Oct. 7, 2013.
do I use the unsalted butter for the icing as well?
Yes, I would use unsalted butter.
Well I made this tonight, looked great and smelled yummy, but unfortunately it stuck to the bottom of my tin and it was a little underdone which meant it wouldnt come out (I ate the semi-cooked batter). Tested it befor it came out of the oven and my cocktail stick was clear so can’t really understand what went wrong. Oh well, not to worry I will eat it (sorry meant we’ll eat, hubby and I) and try again!
I just found your website today and also made this cake right after reading the reviews. It is sooooo good. I love your site.
Thank you!
This cake looks so delicious. Could I replace the water with milk? Specifically a milk substitute like almond, soy, or rice milk?
I’m not sure. I’m think it would be fine!
I was wondering if anyone has recently made this cake in cupcake form and what the cooking differences would be?
Could these be made into cookies?
I have never tried it but I think the batter is too thin.
This was so easy and I love the almond flavor! Thanks!