Texas Sheet Cake Bites have all the decadence you love in a tiny bite! Topped with walnut and chocolate frosting, everyone will want one!
I love a simple homemade cake, but I don’t always NEED a whole cake. Texas Sheet Cake Bites take all the amazing flavors of the original and pack them into bite-sized treats! As easy as my cookie cake, this dessert recipe is perfect for parties or a late-night snack.
TEXAS SHEET CAKE BITES
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I am not one for fancy cakes unless there is a special occasion. One of my favorite cakes to bake is a Texas Sheet Cake. This bite-sized recipe makes the most simple chocolate cakes covered in a creamy chocolate frosting with chopped walnuts. It’s the perfect chocolate dessert!
This mini muffin Texas sheet cake bites recipe makes a ton, but luckily they’re easy to freeze. I sneak out a couple let them thaw for a few minutes and pop them into my mouth. So, so good! Everyone needs a little chocolate in their lives.
What Is Texas Sheet Cake?
BUTTERMILK: There’s buttermilk in the cake and in the frosting. If you don’t have buttermilk you can use sour milk instead. To make sour milk just add 1 teaspoon of vinegar into one cup of milk and let it sit for a few minutes and it will start to curdle! I have used this substitution a million times in this recipe, and it always turns out great!
FROSTING: I especially love this simple chocolate frosting made with just butter, cocoa powder, powdered sugar, vanilla, walnuts, and buttermilk. You can use regular milk or sour milk in a pinch, too!
This same recipe can be used in a sheet pan or baking dish for a traditional or mini Texas Sheet Cake, too! Just adjust the baking time and look for a cake that bounces back when done.
How to Make Texas Sheet Cake Bites
- Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees F. Then line mini muffin tin pans with mini paper liners OR coat the cups with a baking spray with flour in it.
- Start preparing the cake batter by mixing the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt together in a large mixing bowl.
- Then, add the water, cocoa powder, and butter to a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add it to your dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Now, add the buttermilk and eggs to the batter and beat well. Your batter will be very thin.
- Next, use a cookie scoop or a1 tablespoon measuring spoon to pour a scoop of batter into each muffin cup.
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 12 minutes until they bounce back when lightly touched. Let the bites cool completely before frosting. If you used liners, remove the bites from the pan immediately. Otherwise, let cool for 10 minutes in the pan before transferring them to a rack to cool.
- To make the Texas sheet cake frosting, heat the milk, butter, and cocoa powder until bubbly. Then, add the sugar and vanilla and mix until super smooth before folding in the nuts. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of frosting over each of the Texas sheet cake bites and let it set before serving.
You can make these with or without cupcake liners. Be sure to use a baking spray with flour if you’re not using liners for the easiest removal.
Why Is It Called Texas Sheet Cake?
Unfortunately, the origins of this delicious dessert’s name is unclear.
Some say it’s simply because it’s massive, just like Texas. Others say it’s because of the very Texas additions of buttermilk and pecans (though I prefer walnuts in mine).
The traditional Texas sheet cake recipe we know today is also similar to one printed in 1957 in the Dallas Morning News.
All of them seem to be some form of a large chocolate sheet cake mixed by hand and smothered in a sweet chocolate frosting packed with nuts.
Ultimately, no one knows why it’s called a Texas sheet cake for sure, but I have to thank Texas for their contribution to this amazingly decadent but easy recipe!
More Amazing Chocolate Dessert Recipes
- Triple Chocolate Gooey Cake
- Slow Cooker Chocolate Turtles
- Iced Lunch Lady Brownies
- Nutty Triple Chocolate Cookies
- Rocky Road Clusters
- More DESSERT recipes…
Tools used to make this Texas Sheet Cake Bites recipe
Mini muffin tin: You can use muffin tins for so much more than muffins and cupcakes! From egg bites to the perfect single-serve appetizers, these pans are so useful in the kitchen.
Cookie scoop: If you want every bite to be the exact same size, a tablespoon-sized cookie scoop is the way to go! This way no Texas sheet cake bites will end up over baked or under baked!
*This post originally posted on 08/13/2015.
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 cup butter
- 5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup buttermilk (or sour milk - see notes)
- 2 eggs
Frosting
- 6 tablespoons buttermilk (or sour milk - see notes)
- 1/2 cup butter
- 5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 pound powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
Cake Bites
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare mini muffin tins by lining each cup with mini paper liners or spraying cups liberally with baking spray that has flour in it.
- Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Combine water, cocoa powder, and butter in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, whisking often. Remove from heat, pour into the bowl with dry ingredients. Mix together until just combined.
- Add buttermilk and eggs and mix to combine. The batter will be thin.
- Using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop, place one scoop of batter in each muffin cup.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes or until cakes bounce back when lightly touched. Remove from oven and transfer bites to a rack to cool.If liners were not used, let bites cool for about 10 minutes in the pan. Then using the tip of a knife, gently remove from the pan and place on a wire rack to cool completely.
Frosting
- In a medium saucepan, heat over medium heat buttermilk, butter and cocoa until bubbly. Mix in sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add in nuts and blend until incorporated.
- Carefully spoon about a tablespoon of frosting over each cake bite and let frosting set. Some frosting may run over the sides, that's okay. Store in an air-tight container.
Notes
Nutrition
Martha J Missavage says
I use sour cream instead of buttermilk…works great…I always have sour cream on hand so its easier for me