Recipe: Brownie Sheet Cake

Growing up we would celebrate Thanksgiving and Easter with my family at my Great Aunt & Uncle's home. They would prepare feasts that I will always remember fondly. (In fact I referenced our holidays together in my first blog post as I was proudly the designated "place card maker" for them.) After those meals we would indulge in my Great Aunt's confections which were always delicious. This past summer we all got together for a family reunion of sorts and the morning we left I went through "Auntie's" recipes, rapidly writing down as many as I could. It was another fun morning with family that I will never forget.

So last weekend when I offered to bring dessert to a friend's house, I decided to try one of my prized recipes from Auntie. I only made a couple of small changes based on what I had and the end result was delicious. I would feel confident taking this cake anywhere and that the guests would love it. "Delicious" is a good word for this cake!


Brownie Sheet Cake

Ingredients:
For the cake:
-1 cup salted butter
-1 cup water
-1/4 cup cocoa powder (I tend to have sweetened in my pantry but unsweetened works too)
-2 cups flour
-2 cups sugar
-1 teaspoon baking soda
-1 teaspoon cinnamon (omit if you don't care for cinnamon - I rarely add this)
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-2 eggs
-1/2 cup buttermilk

For the frosting:
-1/3 cup buttermilk
-1/2 cup salted butter
-1 box confectioner's sugar (1 pound)
-1/4 cup cocoa powder
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
For the cake: Preheat oven to 350. Place the butter, water and cocoa powder into a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then set aside. Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda and cinnamon (if using) to a mixing bowl. Add  mixture from sauce pan and whisk together. Add eggs one at a time until combined, then add buttermilk and vanilla. Mix until combined. Pour into greased jelly roll pan (or cookie sheet with raised sides) and bake for 20 minutes.

For the frosting: While the cake is baking, make the frosting. Heat buttermilk and butter over medium heat until boiling. Turn down heat to low. Stir in vanilla. Add confectioner's sugar and stir until combined. Add cocoa, stirring until combined. Remove from heat.

Frost the cake while it is still hot by pouring the frosting over it evenly. Lightly push it to the edges with a spatula. Garnish with sprinkles or powdered sugar if desired.


Enjoy!