The Chocolatiest One-Bowl Sheet Cake with Browned Butter Buttercream

I love this cake because not only is it super delicious, but it is ridiculously easy and quick! I like to focus on making sheet cakes, rather than layer cakes because it is just so much easier. To me, I feel like making a layer cake is a project, but making a sheet cake is such a breeze.

This cake recipe is super rich and the browned butter buttercream lends the perfect buttery and slightly salty element to compliment it!

You do not need an electric mixer for the cake itself, but the buttercream does need either a handheld or stand electric mixer.

Ingredients:

For the Cake:

• 1 cup milk

• 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract

• 2 eggs, room temperature

• 113g (½ cup / 1 stick) butter, melted & slightly cooled

• 228g (1 ¾ cup + 1 tbsp) all purpose flour

• 400g (2 cups) granulated sugar

• 85g (¾ cup + 1 tbsp) cocoa powder

• 2 ¼ tsp baking soda

• ½ tsp baking powder

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 cup hot water - microwaved for 3-4 minutes

For the Buttercream:

• 226g (1 cup / 2 sticks) unsalted butter

• 300g (2 ½ cup) powdered sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)

• ½ tsp salt

• 4 tbsp heavy cream

Directions:

1. For the Browned Butter: You will want to brown your butter before starting your cake because it needs time to chill. Add the 2 sticks of butter to a medium pan over medium-high heat on the stove, stirring frequently. The butter will start to foam and turn to a golden brown color (5-8 minutes). Once the butter is darker in color, has a nutty aroma, and brown specks in it, continue to mix for another 2-3 minutes, then remove from heat and transfer to a heat-proof bowl. Place in the refrigerator until it becomes the consistency of softened butter (1 ½ - 2 hours).

2. For the Cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper, making sure some of the parchment is taller than each side of the pan, so you can lift the baked cake out of the pan with the parchment paper.

3. In a large bowl, whisk milk, vanilla, eggs, and slightly cooled melted butter.

4. Add the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Fold in the dry ingredients. The batter will be thick.

5. Heat your 1 cup of water (I just place it in the microwave in a microwave-safe bowl for 3 minutes), then pour right into the cake batter and whisk until the cake batter is even and thin.

6. Pour the batter into your prepared 9x13 pan and spread out in an even layer with your spatula.

7. Bake for 29-32 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean (or with a few crumbs - if there is liquid cake batter on the toothpick, bake another 1-2 minutes and check again).

8. Allow the cake to cool for 15 minutes in the pan, then use opposite corners of the parchment paper to carefully lift the cake and transfer to a cooling rack. Allow the cake to cool completely before icing.

9. For the Icing: Transfer the browned butter into a large bowl. Use an electric mixer with a whisk attachment to whip the butter for about 5 minutes, until fluffy.

10. Add half of the powdered sugar, mix on low speed, scrape down your bowl, then repeat with the second half of the sugar.

11. Once the sugar is combined (your icing will still be pretty clumpy at this point), add the salt, vanilla, and cream.

12. Whip for about 4 minutes, scraping down the bowl halfway through, until everything is evenly incorporated and buttercream is fluffy.

13. Use a butter knife to gently spread a crumb coat over the top of your cooled cake, then use an offset spatula to spread the rest of the buttercream on top.