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Kicking off the first Friday of February with this easy One Bowl Chocolate Sheet Cake with Milk Chocolate Fudge Frosting.
Does anyone else feel like this week just flew by? I spent the first half of the week traveling to Austin, Texas for a fun shoot with Camille Styles. From there I flew over to LA for a quick taping of Hallmark Home and Family (which aired yesterday, but you can watch the replay here). I flew home Wednesday night, photographed new recipes for HBH on Thursday, and today will be spent filming new videos. Such a jam pack week, but I loved every minute of it.
While in LA I was lucky enough to get to hang with my brother Red for a bit too. I wasn’t there very long, but it was awesome to get to see him before he flies to South Korea today with the US Team. I almost never see that kid, so even if it’s just a quick, “hey” it’s still always fun. Red always knows how to get a smile glued to my face and made my quick trip just that much better.
The next few days will be spent cramming in all the work I possibly can before heading off to Korea for the Olympics on the seventh. I still can’t believe we are going to Korea, but it’s happening, and I can’t wait!
As you can probably guess, I’m also very excited to be sharing this chocolate cake with you guys today, and for a few reasons.
One, because everyone knows February is the month of all things chocolatey. Two, because it happens to be my brother Brendan’s birthday, and celebrating with chocolate cake is just something we do. And three, because this cake is beyond good and you all need it in your life sometime soon.
I’ve wanted to make a sheet cake for the longest time now but just hadn’t gotten around to it. For whatever reason layer cakes always excite me a bit more than sheet cakes, but after making this sheet cake, I’m becoming sold on the idea. You guys, if you didn’t know, sheet cakes are the absolute best. They’re easy, no fuss, feed a crowd, and are incredibly delicious.
I can already see this cake becoming a regular in my kitchen for birthdays, dinners with friends, and even holidays. It’s so versatile and perfect for so many different occasions.
For me, the biggest bonus this cake offers is just how easy it is. As I was writing up the recipe, I realized that everything was made in entirely one bowl, with ingredients I already had in my pantry. And not only that, there are absolutely zero skills required for frosting this cake. Just spread on a very generous layer of that chocolate buttercream, and done. Not sure about you guys, but that’s a major plus for me when it comes to baking recipes.
Unlike most sheet cakes, this one is extra moist, chocolatey, and fudgy. My three secret ingredients are buttermilk, Greek yogurt, and coffee. The buttermilk and yogurt keep the cake incredibly light and moist, while the coffee highlights the chocolate flavors going on in the cake.
Now, before those of you who don’t like coffee click away from this recipe, hear me out. I promise that you do not taste the coffee at all. It’s simply there as an undertone that highlights the flavors of the chocolate. I highly recommend giving it a try before you decide to omit it, if you truly hate the flavor of coffee, simply skip it, no big deal.
So that’s the cake portion, and while it is my favorite go-to chocolate cake recipe, I think the milk chocolate buttercream steals the show a bit. I mean, it’s really the cake and the buttercream paired together that makes this cake so good, but the buttercream is pretty much just incredible. And the key to this buttercream? Whipping in some real milk chocolate. Yes, milk chocolate.
I know everyone is all about the dark chocolate these days, and I love it too, but let’s all be honest, some days just call for milk chocolate, and I’m thinking the first Friday in February is just one of those days.
I have to mention that not only is this cake great for birthdays, but it would be perfect to make for Valentine’s Day…which semi explains all the roses in my photos. Just a heads up, the roses will be appearing in all my sweet recipes from now until Valentine’s Day. Sorry, I can’t help it.
Also, if any of you happen to be hosting a Super Bowl party this Sunday, or even an Olympic viewing party in the coming weeks, this cake would be amazing for that too. As mentioned it feeds a crowd and can also be made ahead of time, making the dessert portion of your party a breeze. You can even decorate the cake to support your favorite team. You see, the perfect dessert!
One Bowl Chocolate Sheet Cake with Milk Chocolate Fudge Frosting
Servings: 16 servings
Calories Per Serving: 467 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 1/4 cup plain greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup hot black coffee
- 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
Milk Chocolate Frosting
- 2 sticks (1 cup) salted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 8 ounces milk chocolate, melted and cool to touch
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2-3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream (optional)
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9×13 inch baking dish with parchment paper, then butter/spray with cooking spray.2. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the eggs, buttermilk, greek yogurt, canola oil, and vanilla until smooth. Add the flour, sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, mix until there are no longer any clumps of flour. Add the hot coffee and mix until combined. Batter should be pourable, but not super thin. Stir in the chocolate chips, if using.3. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish, bake 20 to 25 minutes, until the top is just set and no longer wiggly in the center. Remove and let cool completely before frosting.4. To make the buttercream, add the butter and powdered sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a hand-held mixer). Beat the butter and powdered sugar together until the butter is light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the melted milk chocolate and vanilla and beat (scraping down the sides as needed) another 2 minutes or until there are no streaks of white. Add 2 tablespoons of the heavy cream and whip the frosting for 2-4 minutes more or until light and fluffy. If desired add the remaining heavy cream and whip until combined. 5. Frost the cake and decorate as desired.
Notes
Recipe makes a 9×13 inch cake
The chocolate cake of your dreams…
PS. see you guys tomorrow for a fun Valentine’s Day gift guide!
I plan to make this tomorrow for a birthday cake, but I’m just wondering something. For the icing, do you mean 8 oz of milk chocolate measured by weight or by capacity? 8 oz (weight) of chocolate is a very large chocolate bar, so I’m just making sure :).
Hi Heidi! I mean 8 ounces of chocolate by weight. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
This one-bowl chocolate sheet cake with milk chocolate fudge frosting is absolutely fabulous.
Thank you Pamela!
For the most part, my family liked this cake. We won’t add chocolate chips next time as they all, every last one of them, sank to the bottom. All 6 of us, even my 10 year old, thought the frosting was too sweet. I think I’ll add some tangy cream cheese and replace half of the milk chocolate for semisweet. The texture of the cake was nice.
Thank you so much for this Vanessa! I hope this turns out amazing for you the next time you make it!
I made this last week and it’s delicious! Really easy to make, although I think I may have taken it out of the over a little early – it didn’t matter, just made the middle extra gooey. I shall definitely be making this again. Thank you for the recipe.
Best wishes from the UK 🙂
Thank you Leah! I am so glad you loved this!
Just made this and realized was a similar cake to the incredible oreo layer cake with peanut butter buttercream in your cook book. That cake is also awesome! The sheet came out very light and had great volume. We’ll be making this many more times.
Thank you! I am so glad you enjoyed this!
Great recipe! So easy and a deep dark moist chocolate cake . One bite and I knew it was a winner!
Woo! Thank you so much Marjie!
Hi would this work as a single-layer cake using a 9-inch round pan? My oven can only do 1 9-inch round at a time….unless it is okay for half the batter to be sitting in the counter waiting to be cooked? Thanks!
HI! YOu would need to divide the batter in to 2 (9 inch pans). Using one will be to small. You can let the batter sit on the counter while the other one bakes. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
Other than using more of a dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate for the frosting, I followed the recipe exactly. Cake came out very moist with a strong chocolate flavor. I liked the idea of adding chocolate instead of cocoa powder to the frosting.
I am so glad you liked this cake Dedric! Thank you!
Hey Tieghan,
Just wondering what kind of milk chocolate do you use for the frosting.? Also, is there a substitute that can be used for the buttermilk?
Can’t wait to make this for my nieces birthday this weekend!
HI! You can use regular whole milk in place of the buttermilk. I just used Hersey’s Milk chocolate. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
I am thinking about making this for an event, how in advance can you make this? Thank you!
You can makes this up to 2 days in advance, but I wouldn’t make it any earlier than that. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
so this was DA BOMB!!!!!
we made it gluten free with Namaste perfect flour blend, and egg free by using greek yougurt, gelatin and a bit of baking powder. I honestly dont think I have ever in my 30+ years of baking had a better chocolate cake and frosting!
Awh I am so happy to hear that!! Thank you so much Lea, really glad this turned out amazing for you!
This cake looks amazing, and easy to make! I want to make this for my husband’s upcoming birthday, but I know he hates coffee. Do you notice the coffee taste, or does it more add moisture? And what do you substitute with if you leave it out?
HI! You con’t notice the coffee, but you can use hot water in place of the coffee. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
I made it with hot water and wow, delicious! Love how light and fluffy yet flavorful this cake was! Everyone from my husband to my pick teenage brother ate it 🙂
I am so glad you enjoyed this Kayla! Thank you!!
Hi this looks great but I do not like coffee. Can I just use hot water instead.?
Yes, hot water works. Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Thanks! 🙂
Made this yesterday for Valentine’s Day, and I must say, it was INCREDIBLE! I absolutely HATE the tase and smell of coffee, but I know it adds something to chocolate, so I followed the recipe as is 😉 Any other coffee haters shouldn’t worry a single bit about the amount of coffee in the recipe. I don’t think you even need your disclaimer in the blog post!
Secondly, I needed to add 5 or so minutes to the bake time- maybe as a result of different elevation? But it was soft, has stayed moist even though my lid doesn’t have a good seal on my dish, the frosting was easy to mix up, and I will be making this again and again. Thanks for the recipe!
I am so happy you loved this cake Vanessa! Thank you so much!
Looks lovely. I will have to try and find some conversions from ‘cups’ to grams so that I can try it.
Perfect! I hope you love this Fiona!