This White Texas Sheet Cake recipe is your new best friend! Just as moist and flavorful as the chocolate version, vanilla is the star in this cake. Sour cream gives a slight tang in both the cake and the frosting, and also makes it supremely moist. The cake is ridiculously easy to put together, and truly one of my favorite cakes when it comes to texture and crumb. You are going to love it! 

white texas sheet cake recipe

Yesterday we went to the lake because it was about 111 degrees, and what better way to fight the heat than sitting in it? There’s nothing I love more than having to put sunscreen on flailing children every 10 minutes so that we don’t all turn into human lobsters.

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how to make white texas sheet cake

It was super fun, heat and sunscreen extremes aside! There was a rock to jump off of, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned as a parent, it’s that rocks pretty much solve the world’s boredom problems.

easy white texas sheet cake

But it didn’t solve it for poor Stay Alive. The kids caught a fish, you see, a tiny one that they kept in a water bottle. They named him “Stay Alive,” not an optimistic start to his life in captivity. He was actively swimming in the bottle until they decided to decorate his living space with a rock that landed directly on his head. Stay Alive benefitted from parental intervention after that, and did indeed swim off alive and well after his release, true to his name. Ah, children. They all turn into that freaky girl Darla from Finding Nemo at some point.

easy white texas sheet cake

Well, in other news, we did something this week I never in one hundred million years thought we would do. (Hashtag 2020, amiright? What other ways can we make this year more weird??)

We registered the kids for private school! Signed the papers, gave them the check. Suffered a mild heart attack after realizing that we’re now paying money for something that used to be FREE.

how to make white texas sheet cake

It’s completely on the hope that their new school will be starting in-person learning soon. Once they get the go-ahead from the state (they’re waiting to hear), then the kids will be able to go to school and get back to normal life. We are crossing our fingers and toes and praying our guts out that they get permission soon, because distance learning is THE WORST. Can I get an amen, mamas??

white texas sheet cake

Texas Sheet Cake: not just for chocolate lovers

What better way to mitigate crazy times than with cake?? I hope you’ve all had a chance to try out a killer Texas Sheet Cake. The traditional version is chocolate, and I call my favorite recipe The Only Texas Sheet Cake You’ll Ever Need. And it’s true, it’s so moist and flavorful, you’ll never need to try another recipe! But I really should have called it the only CHOCOLATE Texas Sheet Cake You’ll Ever Need. Because today I have the vanilla version for you, and it is a real contender. It is definitely the only WHITE Texas sheet cake you’ll ever need!

white texas sheet cake

How to make White Texas Sheet Cake

Sheet cakes are literally the easiest cakes to make, besides the ones from a box. This White Texas Sheet Cake is no exception! If you can boil water, you can make this cake.

And that’s exactly what we’re going to do first, boil some water and butter together. Once it’s all melted, add it to the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, salt, baking soda.

white texas sheet cake

Stir it up and add a whole bunch of vanilla, a couple eggs and some sour cream to make it ultra moist! That’s IT. You can mix it up by hand with a whisk, (I often mix it up right in the saucepan that I melted the butter in), or you can do it with an electric mixer or a stand mixer. It’s so, so easy, you can make this cake in your sleep.

Toss it in the oven at 350 and 20 minutes later it’s done. Here’s the best part: You don’t have to wait for the cake to cool before adding the frosting. Usually you have to wait for cakes to be completely cool before adding buttercream frosting, because a hot cake will melt the butter and ruin it.

pouring glaze over white texas sheet cake

But we’re melting the butter to make this frosting (it’s more of a glaze) so you can add it right on top of your still-warm cake. In fact, I recommend doing it while warm; the glaze gets all melty into the cake and makes it gloriously moist!

Cake-making is usually a time consuming process, even the kind from the box, because of all the waiting. But with this recipe you can literally go from zero to glazed cake in under an hour. Technically you are supposed to wait for the frosted cake to cool completely before digging in, but I’m not really one for technicalities.

The other thing about this frosting is that there is sour cream in it. I LOVE the tang that this adds to the finished cake, but if you are not into it you can use half the amount of sour cream and then add milk gradually to get the consistency you want.

easy white texas sheet cake

Also, did I mention that I doubled the frosting? Normally Texas sheet cakes have 2 sticks of butter in the cake and 1 stick in the frosting. But I mean, how can more glaze be a bad thing? I’m thinking of editing my original chocolate version with double the frosting! Why not??

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White Texas Sheet Cake

4.82 from 27 votes
Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Total: 45 minutes
Servings: 20
This White Texas Sheet Cake recipe is your new best friend! Just as moist and flavorful as the chocolate version, vanilla is the star in this cake. Sour cream gives a slight tang in both the cake and the frosting, and also makes it supremely moist. The cake is ridiculously easy to put together, and truly one of my favorite cakes when it comes to texture and crumb. You are going to love it! 

Ingredients

For the cake

  • 1 cup butter, (2 sticks)
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 & 1/4 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 2 large eggs

For the frosting

  • 1 cup butter, (2 sticks)
  • 4 & 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup sour cream**
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line 
    a large baking sheet* with parchment paper, or spray well with nonstick spray.
  • Make the cake batter. In a medium or large saucepan, add 1 cup butter and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Once it boils, take it off the heat.
  • In a medium bowl or stand mixer, combine 2 and 1/4 cups flour, 2 cups sugar, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1 teaspoon baking soda. Whisk it together. You can choose at this point to add the dry ingredients to the butter/water in the saucepan and mix it right there, or you can pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dried ingredients. Both ways work fine.
  • Stir the wet and dry ingredients together until well mixed, scraping the sides. You can do this by hand or with a mixer.
  • Add 1 tablespoon vanilla, 1/2 cup sour cream, and 2 eggs. Blend well until all the lumps are gone, making sure to scrape the sides and bottom.
  • Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly to the sides.
  • Bake at 350 for about 18-20 minutes* (check times below), until a toothpick comes out of the center with no wet batter on it. The sides of the cake should just be starting to pull away from the edge of the pan. Don’t over bake!
  • Make the frosting. I like to wait until the cake is out of the oven before starting the frosting.
    Melt 1 cup of butter. You can do this in a saucepan on the stove, or in a microwaveable bowl.
  • Add 2 cups of powdered sugar, 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/2 cup sour cream, and 1 tablespoon vanilla. Use a whisk to beat it together, or you can beat with a hand mixer or in a stand mixer. Mix until there are no lumps.
  • Add 2 more cups of powdered sugar. Beat well until incorporated. Add the other 1/2 cup of powdered sugar if you like, you can add as much or as little as you want to get your preferred consistency. 4 and 1/2 cups was perfect for me.
  • If your cake is not done baking when you finish the glaze, stir it every now and then to break up the hardened shell on top.
  • When the cake is done, take it out of the oven and let cool for 15-20 minutes. Spread the glaze over the cake. Let cool at least an hour before digging in so that the frosting has time to set up. (This is what civiled people do. I’m just not there yet, and usually end up digging into a corner of the hot cake like an animal the moment it’s frosted.)
  • This cake is delicious served on its own! It’s also really good served with fresh fruit like raspberries or strawberries.

Notes

*The size of your jelly roll pan is a matter of debate. You can make this cake in a 9×13 inch cake pan (thick cake), a 10×15 inch jelly roll pan (thinnish cake) or an 11×17 inch half baking sheet (thinnest cake). I prefer the 11×17. It gives you the perfect ratio of cake to frosting in my opinion.
If you are baking this in a 9×13 bake for 23-25 minutes. 
If you do a 10×15, bake for about 20 minutes. 
If you bake it in a 12×18, bake for about 18-20 minutes.
All of these times are going to vary because everyone’s oven is different!
**I love the tang that sour cream adds to the frosting for this cake, and I think you will like it too! But if you are worried it will be too much, use 1/4 cup of sour cream and then add milk to get the consistency of frosting you like.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 430kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 25mg | Sodium: 374mg | Potassium: 51mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 47g | Vitamin A: 911IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 25mg | Iron: 1mg
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 430
Keyword: Sheet Cake, texas, white
Did you make this? I’d love to see it!Mention @thefoodcharlatan or tag #thefoodcharlatan!

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Comments

  1. Haven’t made it yet but have made other things of yours that are always great so not worried about it  do love your writing it’s personal that’s important keep up the great work folks like me need you.  Again thank you and all the best to you and yours 

    1. Jill thank you so much for your sweet comment! That means so much to me :) I’m so happy you are enjoying the recipe and the personal stories. Thanks so much for letting me know 💕

  2. I used a 10 x 15 pan and baked for 15 minutes ,, the cake batter was very runny and the cake was very thin , it tasted good but didn’t rise much at all.

  3. I used my 9×13 cake pan & ended up having to cook it around 30 min bc it took this middle longer to set up for some reason. I haven’t tried it yet so I hope the edges aren’t overcooked. It looks delicious though! 

  4. This cake is absolutely delicious, and very easy to assemble I’m looking forward to the next one whichever flavor I make. Thanks a bunch for sharing.

  5. I love this recipe!  And it is easy.  It is my husband’s new favorite. 
    I use plain Greek yoghurt in lieu of sour cream because that is what I had available. I also use a small splash of almond extract with the vanilla. 
    It is an easy recipe to play with, to say making it a lemon cake or a coconut cake, etc.
    Enjoy!

    1. Hey Julie! I’m so glad you both liked the recipe! You are so right, this is a great “base” cake to work with, you can really take it anywhere :) Love the almond extract addition, and I’m glad the Greek yogurt worked well! Thanks for all your tips!

  6. We love this cake…….My husband cannot stop talking about it.
    In fact,,,,I’m making it again right now.
    Thank you for sharing…..I love your website. You’re one of my favorites…….

    1. Thank you so much Carla! I’m so happy to hear it’s been a success. Sometimes it’s hard to beat a simple white cake! Thank you for taking the time to review, that is so helpful for me :)

  7. This cake was excellent. Entire family loved it. I did cut the sugar a bit and made a different frosting (only because it was a leftover frosting I wanted ro use  up). I will make it with the white frosting next time. I baked it in a 9×13 pan 23min. Perfect! Thank you

  8. Karen, I have been making the Texas Chocolate Sheet Cake for well over 30 years and even though I don’t normally make a white cake, I just had to give it a go. We loved it and I had everything in the house to make and it was so easy. I am the Jelly Roll Pan user for this cake and the icing is very rich so it works well with the cake. My husband felt that the cake could use a little more Vanilla and so perhaps next time I will give that a go. I have put most of it in the freezer. It cuts beautiful so when the grandkids show up, I am ready for them. I use so many of your recipes but don’t always make them right away so do give a reply to you. Love your Blog.

    1. Hi Andrea! No, I just leave it covered on the counter. If it’s going to be around more than 2-3 days I would stick it in the fridge. Enjoy!!

  9. Hi!

    Can I half this recipe? If so, what size cake pan do you think would work best?

    Thank you very much

  10. Hi there

    I’m from UK and don’t have any idea how much a cup is…. Could you send me the ingredients with weights please

    Thank you

    Tracey

  11. Can’t wait to try this Karen! I love all your sheet cakes. I HATE making layer cakes and I pretty much have always sucked at getting them to look nice. Sheet cakes are what I always bring to potlucks and picnics or any gathering. Easy, delicious and they feed a crowd! I think this would be good with fresh sweetened strawberries or other fruit on top also! 

    1. Sheet cakes are totally the way to go Kris! There is no faking them. They either taste good or they don’t, whereas sometimes layer cakes look so good they trick you into thinking they are tasty. Haha!! Good idea with the strawberries!

  12. I absolutely love the way your write! You had me hooked to read your entire article (which I usually skip through to get to the recipe..shhh) I can’t wait to try both versions of this cake!

    1. Karyn, thank you so much for your kind words! I love hearing from readers like you that enjoy this aspect of the blog, it is so encouraging. I really love writing my stories and don’t plan to give it up. Thank you again for reaching out, you really made my day after receiving some other negative comments on this same post from rude people that I had to delete. Thank you for being so thoughtful!

    1. I have made this cake about 50 times over the years and now it’s the requested birthday cake of two of my grandchildren. It is crazy good. I don’t make it unless it’s a special occasion because I literally will not be able to stay away from it!

      1. It’s so true Cathleen! Technically this cake serves a crowd…or it just feeds me and my family over the course of 48 hours. Haha!!

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