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This Vanilla Sheet Cake is a wonderfully moist and fluffy vanilla cake recipe that is easy to make! Itโs covered in a creamy vanilla buttercream and made in a 12ร18 inch pan, so itโs perfect for a crowd!
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Is it weird that Iโm already starting to think about what Iโll do for the boysโ first birthday? Yes, they are just over 6 months old, but they are already starting to show preferences for things and gravitating towards certain foods and toys, so themes are popping into my head.
If youโre like my mom, then you donโt understand the whole first birthday party thing and why people make a big deal out of it when the kids donโt even remember it. Well Iโve discovered as a new parent to twins that the real reason for a first birthday party is not for the kids โ itโs for the parents. When we make it to that one year mark, itโll not only be a celebration of a whole year with those sweet boys, but a celebration that we made it! These early months are precious, but boy are they hard too! Especially with two!
Seriously though, if thereโs one thing I should be good at as a mom, it should be cakes and birthday parties. Iโm thinking that parties with friends and such will feature my fair share of cakes, so Iโm getting ready with this Vanilla Sheet Cake. Itโs a classic birthday party cake! Pink frosting is optional, of course. ๐
One thing thatโs great about sheet cakes is the ease of making them. You know Iโm a lover of layer cakes, but when baking for a larger group or with only a little time to prepare, sheet cakes are handy to have.
How to make a Vanilla Sheet Cake
To get started with this vanilla sheet cake, youโll want to cream your butter, sugar and vegetable oil together until they are light in color and fluffy. Donโt skimp on the creaming โ it adds air to the batter that gives the final cake part of its fluffy texture. The butter adds great flavor and moisture to the cake, while the vegetable oil adds some additional moisture that sticks around for days.
The remaining ingredients are all staples โ eggs, vanilla extract, flour, baking powder, salt and milk. I chose to go with all purpose flour and regular milk, but I also tested this sheet cake with cake flour and buttermilk.
The hubs and I really preferred this cake with the all purpose flour, but cake flour was also delicious. The texture is completely different! The all purpose flour gave a looser crumb, while the cake flour was tighter and reminded me a little more of a โbakery-styleโ cake. Even though we had our preference, you really couldnโt go wrong with either.
As for the milk, I liked both but didnโt see enough difference using buttermilk to use that as the final ingredient. While I always have buttermilk powder handy and ready to use, most people donโt and for the purpose of keeping this sheet cake simple and approachable, I stuck with trusty, classic milk.
The frosting is a lovely, light vanilla buttercream. I added a little corn syrup to it, but you could substitute that with a little honey. The corn syrup helps keep it soft and smooth and perfect for topping a light cake! I finished it off with some fun sprinkles, because what birthday cake doesnโt have sprinkles?
This vanilla sheet cake was a BIG hit! It is so soft and moist with a tender crumb. The flavor is rich and buttery with great vanilla flavor. Everything just melts in your mouth. I shared a good bit of this cake with a friend and I dare say we took forks to it and left few crumbs behind. Itโs totally addicting and so delicious!
Watch How To Make It
You might also like:
Moist Vanilla Layer Cake
Moist Vanilla Cupcakes
Moist and Fluffy Vanilla Cake
Favorite Moist Vanilla Cupcakes
25 Irresistible Sheet Cakes
Vanilla Sheet Cake
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, plus cooling time
- Yield: 25-30 slices
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
This Vanilla Sheet Cake is a wonderfully moist and fluffy vanilla cake recipe that is easy to make! Itโs covered in a creamy vanilla buttercream and made in a 12ร18 inch pan, so itโs perfect for a crowd!
Ingredients
Vanilla Sheet Cake
- 2 1/4 cups (293g) all purpose flour
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup (168g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 cups (310g) sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup (240ml) milk
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup shortening*
- 6 cups (690g) powdered sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp corn syrup (or honey)
- 4โ6 tbsp water or milk
- Pink, Peach and Ivory gel icing color
- Sprinkles
Instructions
1. Prepare a 12ร18 inch sheet pan/jelly roll pan with non-stick baking spray. Preheat oven to 350ยฐF (176ยฐC).
2. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
3. Add the butter, sugar, and oil to and large mixer bowl and beat together until light in color and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Do not skimp on the creaming time.
4. Add the eggs two at a time, mixing until mostly combined after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to be sure all ingredients are well incorporated.
5. Add half of the dry ingredients to the batter and mix until mostly combined.
6. Slowly add the milk and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.
7. Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until well combined and smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to be sure all ingredients are well incorporated. Do not over mix the batter.
8. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
9. Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool.
10. To make the frosting, beat the butter and shortening together until smooth.
11. Slowly add half of the powdered sugar and the salt and mix until smooth.
12. Add the vanilla extract, corn syrup and 4 tablespoons of water or milk and mix until smooth.
13. Slowly add the remaining powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Add additional water or milk, as needed to get the right consistency of frosting.
14. Color the frosting to your desired shade. I used a little bit of pink, peach and ivory gel icing colors.
15. Spread the frosting evenly onto the cooled cake and then top with sprinkles. Cover the cake well and store at room temperature. Cake is best when eaten within 3-4 days.
Notes
* I like to use some shortening with the butter for reasons you can read about in this vanilla buttercream post. Feel free to substitute it with additional butter, but keep in mind that you might want to refrigerate the cake and frosting.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Slice
- Calories: 315
- Sugar: 30.7 g
- Sodium: 64.8 mg
- Fat: 17.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 38.7 g
- Protein: 2.8 g
- Cholesterol: 54.5 mg
Enjoy!
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I have an 11 X 15 sheet pan. Will this recipe work with this size?
I havenโt used that size pan, but you may have extra batter. If you use all the batter, you would probably need to bake it a little longer. I hope that helps!
Hi Lindsey, I just finished baking your Vanilla Sheet Cake for Valentineโs Day dessert. I colored the frosting Rose Pink, and covered it with a beautiful Valentineโs Day Sprinkle melange. It looks beautiful! I canโt wait to taste it. Thank you for the inspiration, and thank you for the recipe. Happy Valentineโs Day :)!
That sounds fun! I hope you enjoy and Happy Valentines Day!
Hi Lindsay, I just finished my vanilla sheet cake to have for dessert tonight to celebrate Valentineโs Day. It looks great, I canโt wait to taste it. Thanks for the recipe. Happy Valentineโs Day :)!
Wonderful! I hope you enjoy!
Could I use 9 inch rounds and make a layer cake from this recipe?
I havenโt tried, but it should be okay. I would use my Moist Vanilla Layer Cake recipe for reference.
Used this recipe for double layer sheet cake for kids birthday party โ absolutely delicious. So moist. A lot of compliments. I used Earth Balance and Ripple milk to make it dairy free. Will definitely be my go to cake recipe. Thanks!
Wonderful! Iโm so glad everyone enjoyed!
Hi Sophie,
I have a question, did you make two 12ร18 pans of the cake or did you use a smaller pan size for each layer? If so, what was the pan size and how long did you bake each layer? I want to do this recipe, but I need it to be much thicker. It will be for an adult party. Please help guys! ๐
I have a 16in x 12in pan. Would you have any idea if this recipe would be enough or would I have to double the recipe?
Hi does it matter if I use salted butter instead of unsalted?
You can use salted butter. For this recipe I preferred to use unsalted.
Helloโฆ can i use buttermilk instead of milk?
That should be fine.
Hi,
The cake looks really delicious. Can you give me the name of the 12ร18 cake pan. I want to make a sheet cake for my sons birthday. But am nervous cos never made it any time. Can you share some tips also.
I use this pan.
Hello! Awhile back I made your moist vanilla cupcakes. WOW! Amazing. Anyhow, I have a couple bdays coming up and would like to try this sheet cake recipe. Question: Should I double this if I want to use a 12ร18 sheet but with 2 inch sides? I am wanting a nice thick sheet cake. TIA!
So glad you enjoyed the cupcakes! If youโre looking for this cake to actually be about 2 inches thick, then yes Iโd try doubling it. I havenโt ever tried it before, so youโll want to test out things with the baking time.
Hi Lindsay! Can i use all vegetable oil instead og using it with butter? If yes how much oil can i use? Thanks! ๐
I donโt think it would really turn out the same way. You canโt really cream oil and sugar together and Iโm not sure if leaving out the creaming step would give you as nice of a cake texture. Plus I tend to think vanilla cakes that use butter have a better flavor than those with only oil.
Help!!! I only have white wheat flour!! Bugs were in my all purpose flour! Do I need to anything different to this recipe using white wheat fflour? I need to make a half sheet cake.
I havenโt ever used a wheat flour in a cake, so I really donโt know. Iโm sorry.
I made this cake over the weekend and it is fabulous! I was a little afraid it would be bland but it has a wonderful flavor and is, unfortunately, the kind of cake you keep going back to โ just one more tiny piece every time โ until you notice how much youโve eaten! Iโm going to make it for my church picnic this Sunday. Thank you!
Awesome! So glad to hear that! Thanks Karin!
Hi Lindsay,
Iโve been following your blog for over a year. You are so creative and your recipes are fabulous. Iโm thrilled that you share your love for Godโs word too! Keep on being that Prov 31 gal and may the Lord continue to bless you, your family and your blog. Great job! ????
Thank you so much Laurie!
Lindsay,
where did you get those sprinkles? They look wonderful!
They are from Sweetapolita.
Hi Lindsay!
Your recipes all look totally mouthwatering!
Have you ever tested any of your recipes in a dairy-free version, like with earth balance buttery flavored sticks or margarine, soymilk, non-dairy whipping cream, etc.?
No I havenโt actually, Iโm sorry!
I made this dairy free using almond or coconut milk and vegan margarine, everybody loved it and no body would know it was dairy free! I plan to make this many more times!
What did you substitute the eggs with?
Need to bake way longer than stated but overall itโs pretty good
Hi Lindsay,
This looks lovely and m going to try it for my kids. The largest pan I have is a 13ร9 would I need to alter the recipe in any way? Donโt know if my pan may be too small.
Thank you.
That should be fine. Iโd try baking it for 25-30 minutes.
Can I make these into cupcakes
Yes, this recipe can be make as cupcakes. Fill the liners about half way and bake for 18-20 mins at same temp. I would recommend checking out my Favorite Moist Vanilla Cups recipe as well.
Lindsay! On the video, it looks like you use heavy cream? The recipe doesnโt say that. What do I use, milk or heavy cream?
Thanks!
It is milk in both places.