The Best One Bowl Chocolate Sheet Cake - A deliciously fudgy chocolate sheet cake that is so easy to make. Top it with a creamy chocolate buttercream frosting. EASY - This recipe is very easy for beginners and will give fool proof results! It's also a quick cake to make and a great snacking cake too. US based cup, teaspoon, tablespoon measurements. Common Measurement Conversions. Weight measurements are recommended for accurate results. You can access metric measurements by using the toggle button under the ingredients list.
Preheat oven to 325°F. Butter and line a 9 x 13 inch pan.
Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl. With a hand whisk, mix the dry ingredients to make sure there are no lumps. (see notes on how to make this a one bowl cake - by using a weighing scale)
Microwave the butter in a large bowl to melt and mix in the cream cheese with it to form a smooth paste.
Add the apple cider vinegar, vanilla and eggs and whisk well.
Stream in the hot coffee in a slow stream, into the wet ingredients while whisking.
Use a whisk to combine the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients, until all the dry ingredients are moistened and there are no lumps. Be gently with the batter as you don't want to overwork the batter either
Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 25 - 30 minutes (it's usually about 27 minutes for me), until the cake is springy to the touch in the middle. Try not to open the oven door until the first 20 minutes have passed.
Remove the cake from the oven, and let it cool down. Carefully flip the cake out of the pan and then remove the parchment paper. Then carefully turn the cake out onto the serving plate, so that the shiny side is facing up.
Apply the buttercream frosting on the surface of the cake, using a knife or offset spatula. You can create swirls or a smooth surface.
Optional - cut about 1 - 1 ½ cm off the edges to create clean, sharp edges. This will give the cake nice clean edges.
Top the cake with funfetti, chocolate sprinkles and / or chocolate shavings.
Notes
One bowl version with a scale
Combine the wet ingredients in a large bowl (that would be the final bowl). Place this bowl on a weighing scale, and weigh in each of the dry ingredients, starting with the sugar and ending with the leavening agents. Make sure to "tare" between each ingredient. You can also place your sifter in the bowl if you need to sift the ingredients in. Now you can stir the cake batter well until smooth.
Baking Times
If you're using 2 x 8 inch pans - bake the cake for 20 to 25 minutes until the cake is just springy to the touch in the middle. If you're doubling the recipe for 3 x 8 inch cake layers - bake the cake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the cake is just springy to the touch in the middle.
Cocoa Powder Measurements
1 cup Callebaut cocoa powder = 4.2 oz / 120 g1 cup Dutch cocoa powder = 3.5 oz / 100 gThe recipe was updated slightly in 2019. It no longer requires milk in the recipe.