From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...No, despite what you think, this is not a Texas sheet cake. It's a Denver chocolate sheet cake and the recipe for it first appeared in a Denver Junior League Cookbook. I found the recipe in The New York Times. In all fairness, no one is sure how Texas sheet cake got its name or where it originated. The issue is further confused because the cake is also known as buttermilk brownies, brownie sheet cake, chocolate brownie cake, chocolate sheet brownies, Mexican chocolate cake, Texas brownie cake, Texas cake, Texas sheath cake, and “plain old” chocolate sheet cake. I suspect Denver chocolate sheet cake could also be added to that list, though it has greater height than the Texas version. What all these cakes have in common, is the use of buttermilk and a frosting that contains nuts. The true Texas version is baked in a rimmed cookie sheet or jelly roll pan and makes a large cake that is barely an inch high. Its Denver cousin is higher by an inch. These cakes are all easy to make and are great to make when you have a crowd to feed. In the recipe below, you will see that the amount of cocoa is given as a range. The 1/4 cup version will produce a mildly flavored milk chocolate type cake. I doubled that amount for both the cake and frosting you see in the photos that accompany tonight's recipe. This recipe makes a moist sweet cake that I know you will enjoy. Here is how it's made.
