White Texas Sheet Cake
This is the scrumptious counterpart to the chocolate cake with chocolate frosting known as “Texas Sheet Cake.” Instead of a chocolate cake, this recipe makes a delightfully flavored white cake that is covered in a browned-butter and toasted walnut frosting. As for the cake itself, we use a simple mixing method that prevents it from doming. Once the sheet cake cools, it has a smooth and even surface for frosting. The cake uses buttermilk, which lends tenderness to the crumb, and vanilla and almond extracts for a familiar combination of flavor. We also incorporate a little vegetable oil into the batter to make the cake itself extra moist. The frosting has one invaluable ingredient as its base: browned butter. Bring one stick of butter to a boil, and allow it to brown until the butter caramelizes and gives off a nutty aroma and flavor. Beat this into powdered sugar with milk to make a silky sweet frosting that’s perfect for highlighting the richness of toasted walnuts. Together, this cake and frosting stands as one of the best sheet cakes out there—I suppose we owe Texas a note of gratitude.