Today’s recipe is an old family favorite, a “mainstream” recipe, which I simply tweaked a tad and converted to be gluten free, of course. It’s my much loved Gluten-Free Texas Sheet Cake.
![Gluten-Free Texas Sheet Cake (makes a great birthday cake or cake for another special occasion) [from Gluten Free Easily.com] (photo)](https://glutenfreeeasily.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Gluten-Free-Texas-Sheet-Cake-Slice-Ice-Cream-Gluten-Free-Easily.jpg "No matter what you call this cake--Gluten-Free Texas Sheet Cake, Secret Cake, Chocolate Sheet Cake--you are bound to love this indulgent cake! It's fantastic for special celebrations and we love it with a dollop of ice cream on top for birthday parties.")
I alluded to it a while back, but then life got busy the way it tends to do and sharing it got put on the back burner. So I’m really happy to finally be sharing this Texas Sheet Cake recipe with you today, because I think it could become a favorite in your house!
But here’s the thing, we never called this cake Texas Sheet Cake growing up. We called it Secret Cake because of its key, “secret” ingredient, which was buttermilk.
Don’t click away if you don’t use buttermilk though. While buttermilk may certainly be used, most of us make “buttermilk” using vinegar (or another sour ingredient—see recipe notes) and our milk of choice.
It was years later that I learned that Texas Sheet Cake was another name for the cake that our family would sometimes enjoy for special occasions. I kept seeing Texas Sheet Cake online, hearing the raves, and kept thinking that it looked an awfully lot like “our” Secret Cake.
I remember hearing that there were other names for this recipe as well. Maybe it’s because we live in Virginia that this cake was not Texas Sheet Cake, but Secret Cake to us and the friend who shared the recipe with us.
The original recipe came from my parents’ neighbor, Kay. I call her their neighbor because Kay was my parents’ neighbor after I’d left home and they’d built a new home.
Back when I was in college, I copied Kay’s recipe down—with a separate card for the cake itself and another one for the frosting. To show you how long ago this was, the recipe called for both Crisco and, wait for it, oleo. Oleo!
How long has it been since anyone used that word? As part of my conversion, I simply omitted the Crisco and used butter in place of that oleo. (Oleo is such a funny word to even say, isn’t it?)
This Secret Cake recipe is actually one of the first recipes that I “converted” after going gluten free and attempting to bake again. Although I had been an avid baker, I actually took about a whole year off from baking anything when I went gluten free.
There were two reasons for that. Initially, I was overwhelmed at the prospect of baking anything—well, anything that met my personal standards of tasting good with a normal, non-gritty texture.
To be clear, I’d tried both ready-made gluten-free baked goods and my own baking with purchased gluten-free all-purpose flour and the results were “not up to snuff.”
Three months into my gluten-free journey, my doctor advised that I also remove grains, dairy, sugar, soy, and a few more foods from my diet. I was showing additional sensitivities to foods and my doctor also thought that I would heal better if I removed those foods for 6 months.
While I can pretty easily create meals and bake without those ingredients now, baking anything seemed impossible at that time.
Some time soon after my very “free” period ended, I stayed gluten free, but slowly reintroduced grains, dairy, etc. and I discovered my Two-Ingredient Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Mix. If I want to make a gluten-free version of a recipe that calls for gluten-full all-purpose flour or simply a recipe that calls for gluten-free all-purpose flour mix, that’s my “go to” mix.
So the first time I made this cake, I used the Two-Ingredient Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Mix and it worked just fine. But the last two times I’ve made this gluten-free Texas Sheet Cake—for my mom’s birthday the last 2 years—I’ve included a small amount of sweet rice flour and I really love it in this recipe!
Sweet rice flour is also known as glutinous rice flour. “Glutinous” does not refer to the gluten we all need to eliminate. Instead, the “glutinous” refers to the sticky nature of the rice. And that stickiness gives this cake, which is already wonderfully moist, an amazing texture!
Really any gluten-free all-purpose flour mix will work in this recipe, but I prefer mixes that contain lighter flours and, again, love the inclusion of the little bit of sweet rice flour.
So here’s your recipe and do tell me, what do you call this cake? gluten-free Texas Sheet Cake? Secret Cake? Chocolate Sheet Cake?
Oh and one more thing, I should admit that this cake is very indulgent and that’s why I make it once a year for a crowd versus making it for just the two of us. It never disappoints for a special occasion, although the rich chocolate super sugary topping usually makes it hard to get a great photo. Tasters never complain though!
Note: Our summer family celebrations are usually held outside, on screened porches, or in garages as the entrée is always steamed crabs, which can be messy. These photos were taken in my parents’ garage.
Dad Being Silly Lighting Birthday Candles on Mom’s Cake Last Year
Gluten-Free Texas Sheet Cake Recipe
Whether you call this Texas Sheet Cake, Chocolate Sheet Cake, or Secret Cake, you will love it! And so will your guests! This recipe makes a great birthday cake or special event cake because it easily serves a crowd and it's absolutely delicious. It's even better than the original gluten-full version! For ½ cup of buttermilk substitute, add 1½ tsp vinegar (I use apple cider vinegar) to measuring cup and add milk (dairy or non dairy) to ½ cup line. Let sit about 5 minutes before adding to the recipe. For 1/3 cup of buttermilk substitute, add 1 tsp vinegar to measuring cup and add milk (dairy or non dairy) to 1/3 cup line. Lemon juice can be used instead of vinegar. Cream of tartar will also work, but only half the amount is needed, so use ¾ tsp cream of tartar to make ½ cup of buttermilk substitute and use ½ tsp cream of tartar to make 1/3 cup of buttermilk substitute.Gluten-Free Texas Sheet Cake (aka Secret Cake)
Ingredients
Cake Ingredients
Cake Frosting
Instructions
Cake Instructions
Frosting Instructions
Notes
Joanne says
Hi Shirley
Love the looks of this but my largest pan is 9X13.
Just stay by the oven and check the window often?
I have used your two item recipe and love it, will adjust to this
new addition for this recipe.
Don’t need a lot of dessert or bread or rolls but just enough to
keep me from feeling deprived
Shirley says
Hi Joanne–First, welcome to gfe and I’m so glad that you have been loving my Two-Ingredient Flour Mix! 🙂 If you want to try the sweet rice flour addition, note that you just add 1/4 cup of that and use 1 3/4 cups of the flour mix “as is” for the recipe as shown in the ingredients listing. I didn’t want you adding it to your whole batch of flour mix. 😉
While I’ve never made this cake in a 9 x 13 pan, apparently a lot of folks do. Some even say they only bake it for 20 minutes even then. ? Personally, I think I’d check at 20 (I know that glass baking dishes can provide “faster” baking) and then add more time as needed.
So glad that you’ve found enough baking items to keep that feeling of deprivation away! Enjoy! 🙂
Shirley
Megan Ancheta | Allergy Free Alaska says
HA!!! I’m laughing at your dad lighting your mom’s candles with a torch. That’s something the men in my family have done! The bigger the fire, the better. 😉 Must be a guy thing… lol.
What a special recipe, Shirley! Thank you for sharing it with us. I can’t remember calling Crisco Oleo Oleo… I think I remember seeing it mentioned in a few of my mom’s cookbooks though. BTW, speaking of mom, your mom looks amazing!
Off to pin now – Sending you lots of love! xo
Megan
Shirley says
Megan–Yes, totally a guy thing! Dad got see glee out of doing that AND me taking a picture of him doing it, too! 😉
This recipe included both Crisco and oleo. Crisco still shows up in recipes, but I’ve not seen oleo in decades. Oleo simply means margarine though. At that time, I guess all margarine was made from oleic acid. Back in the day when everyone thought margarine was healthier—ha!
Thanks for the pin and the sweet words on my mom! I will pass on your words and I’m sure she will be tickled. 🙂
Love and hugs … xo,
Shirley
Linda says
The cake looks delicious, and if you hadn’t said the photos were taken in a garage, I never would have known! It’s fun seeing pictures of your mom (and your dad lighting the candles).
Shirley says
Thanks, Linda! It’s one of those over-the-top treats for sure, but it’s definitely a crowd pleaser. 🙂 Well, my parents garage is nicer than many (including ours), but I did mostly crop out all the deer antlers. 😉 Thanks so much re: mom and dad. It’s nice to see them and/or their antics captured on my blog.
Shirley
Susan says
Hi Shirley,
Love the story behind the cake and the pictures of your wonderful mom. The blow torch to light the candle is a hoot! Looking forward to trying this recipe. Will look for the glutinous flour next time I’m at the Asian store.
Shirley says
Thanks so much, Susan. I always love your sweet input! Yes, Dad pulling out the blow torch was a hoot for sure. 😉 I hope you love this cake when you make it. It’s certainly never disappointed our family!
Shirley
Stephanie says
Have you ever substituted anything for the sugar.
I am not able to have sugar as well as wheat but our family also loves this cake.
Shirley says
Hi Stephanie–I have not tried any alternative sweeteners with this recipe yet. It’s possible that dates in the cake and coconut sugar in the frosting might work though. Or even maple syrup in both the cake and frosting. Let us know if you do any experimenting!
Shirley
Judee@ Gluten Free A-Z Blog says
It’s wonderful that you were able to convert an old family favorite and still enjoy it! It looks fabulous. I enjoyed reading the story of the cake and seeing your family pics!
Shirley says
Hi Judee–I have to admit that was one very happy day when I made this recipe gluten free, especially when the results tasted exactly the same. 🙂 Thanks so much for the feedback on the recipe and on my post, including the family factor!
Shirley
Sue says
Funny, you call it “secret cake” but we always called it “Mrs. Brittan’s chocolate cake” because it was my mother’s friend Mrs. (Jackie) Brittan that shared the recipe with us. 🙂
Shirley says
Oh, Sue, I love that! I suppose if I really think about it, we often called it “Kay’s Chocolate Cake” or “Kay’s Secret Cake” instead of simply Secret Cake. In fact, on Mom’s last birthday when I said I was bringing Secret Cake. Mom asked, “You mean Kay’s Chocolate Cake?” 😉 Mrs. Brittan’s Chocolate Cake sounds quite fine. Adding the name not only gives the origin of the recipe, but it also immediately makes the image of the cake and lots of memories pop into our heads, doesn’t it?
And it looks like you’re new here … welcome to gfe and thanks so much for taking the time to leave this comment!
Shirley
Summer says
Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful GF version of Texas sheet cake! My husband and son LOVED it! Better than the original, actually, which really surprised me. Turned out beautifully and stayed moist. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Shirley says
Hi Summer–Welcome to gfe! 🙂 I’m thrilled that this recipe was such a hit with your family, especially since you found it better than the original gluten-full version. You are welcome, of course. I so appreciate you taking the time to leave this review and let all my readers know your success!
Shirley
Kelly Smith says
Shirley, how liquid-y is the frosting supposed to be? I made this tonight in a 9X13 pan. It was good, but the frosting seems overly liquid-y, so I thought I’d ask. Thanks for all you do!
Shirley Braden says
Good question, Kelly. I’ve never really thought of it that way, but I believe it’s pretty liquid-y at first, but then it sets up fairly quickly. Hope it works out for you!
Shirley
Shirley Braden says
And thanks so much for the kind words as always, dear!
GwenH says
I used to make a cake similar to this before I had celiac disease, my recipe was called Texas Brownies, the recipe is very similar to yours, I will definitely be making this! Thank-you so much for sharing your gf recipe.
Shirley Braden says
Hi Gwen–It’s good to see you here at gfe again! 🙂 Funny how this recipe has so many names! Texas Brownies sound good though. Hope you enjoy this recipe!
Shirley
GwenH says
Thanks Shirley, yes it is funny how similar they are. I made your recipe today and it turned out great! It’s been over 3 years already since my celiac diagnosis and I still miss the way things tasted with wheat flour, I’m finding it hard to get used to taste of gluten free baking and starting to wonder if I will ever not miss the way things used to taste.
(At least the icing still tastes the same as always… LOL)
Thanks for sharing your recipes with us all, have a great day!
Shirley Braden says
Yay, Gwen!! Thanks so much for taking the time to tell us all how this Texas Sheet Cake turned out for you! 🙂 I have two thoughts on missing the way things used to taste. First, some suggest just taking a break from baking when going gf and allowing one’s taste buds to reset themselves. I think there can be some merit to that, especially when taking a break from bread. There is good gluten-free bread, but it’s not usually what you’ll find at the grocery store. (There are some terrific recipes in my Bountiful Bread Basket series though. The kickoff post with the links to all the recipes in the series is here.) I think the biggest problem with gf baking in most cases is that typical flours and four mixes are not finely ground and that the flavors are very different. For the closest thing to gluten-full all-purpose flour, I like my Two-Ingredient Flour Mix (made with finely ground rice flour).
Best of luck on your continuing transition, dear! I’ve been gf for 13 years now and I am still learning new things. 🙂
Shirley
GwenH says
Thanks for the link Shirley, I have actually tried a few different bread recipes, some I made a number of times, I have been making the Rice Free Multi-Grain from Allergy Free Alaska for awhile now, the first time I made it I actually thought it was very close to wheat flour bread, I used to love bread and ate it often, I loved making homemade bread and my homemade buns were the best, I think I miss them the most.
I will give some of those other ones a try too, and thanks for the tip on taking a break from baking, I don’t bake as much as I used to since going gluten free, I actually quit eating bread baking for over a year before I was diagnosed, because I was having so much heartburn and indigestion, I found out later it was because of the celiac disease. Even now, I hardly eat bread, but every once in awhile a person just needs a piece of bread. Yes the flavors are very different and I think that’s the hardest to get used to, but hopefully one day I won’t even notice or remember what wheat flour tasted like before. 13 years is a long time, and yes there is always something new to learn. Thanks again for your help and the link for those bread recipes.
Lee Lachance says
Just wondering If you need special sour cream and special powder sugar to be sure it is gluten free?
Shirley Braden says
Hi Lee–Welcome to gfe! 🙂 There is actually no sour cream in this recipe, but both sour cream and powdered sugar are naturally gluten free and safe for us to eat. Enjoy this cake if you give it a go!
Shirley
Fran heany says
You don’t mention if the pan needs to be greased???
Shirley Braden says
Hi Fran–Welcome to gfe. 🙂 That’s a good question. My original recipe does not call for a greased pan. I’m pretty sure I’ve made this recipe with and without a greased pan. In doing a Google search, I saw that many recipes call for a greased pan and some do not (like Pioneer Woman’s recipe). I suspect that’s because some recipes have so much butter in them already. Just to be safe, I’d recommend lightly greasing the pan (even using pan spray if you prefer). Hope that makes sense and that you enjoy this recipe if you give it a try.
Shirley
Fran Heany says
Thank you so much for your quick reply!! I’m making this cake for a dinner at our church. We have several gluten free families and this recipe is just what I need!
Shirley Braden says
You are welcome, of course, Fran! This is a great cake to take to such an event. Hope everyone loves it!
Andrea says
Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour worked awesome for this!! The texture is spot on. I used my old Texas Sheet Cake frosting recipe (3T cocoa powder, 1 T salted butter, 1/2 C margarine, 3 T milk, 2 tsp vanilla) and it was soooo good. I didn’t add the xanthan gum since the 1 to 1 flour already had some in it. Thank you so much for this!!
Shirley Braden says
Hi Andrea!–First, welcome to gfe! Second, I’m so very happy to hear about your success with this recipe. That kind of feedback always makes my day! Thanks for sharing your frosting recipe as well. 🙂
Shirley