How Long Do You Bake A Half Sheet Cake 11x15

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This vanilla sheet cake recipe uses the reverse creaming method, an like shooting fish in a barrel technique that promises a uniquely soft and springy crumb with the most delicious buttery vanilla flavour. Use this cake recipe every bit a birthday sheet cake or for anytime you crave a simple classic dessert. Top the cake with whipped vanilla buttercream, a frosting fabricated from butter, confectioners' sugar, and heavy cream and whipped until extra fluffy.

vanilla sheet cake slice on a white plate

When it comes to classics similar vanilla cake, the chapter never really ends. You see, there's iii layer vanilla cake, vanilla cupcakes, vanilla naked cake, i layer vanilla cake (aka strawberry shortcake block!), vanilla 6 inch cake, confetti cake, and even a vanilla white block hybrid. Each of these recipes use the same ingredients, just remixed and divided in different proportions.

But what about a elementary vanilla canvass cake recipe?

That's what we're focusing on today. This is a pure and classic vanilla sheet cake with a soft, springy crumb and unbelievable sweet vanilla flavor. It's the elementary altogether cake you need and buttery gustation you beloved. And permit'southward add together a giant fluff ball on top– otherwise known as whipped buttercream. This is dessert nostalgia at its finest!

sliced vanilla sheet cake in a glass baking pan topped with sprinkles

Behind the Vanilla Sail Cake Recipe

My vanilla cake recipe (the best I've ever had!) yields too much concoction for a 9×13 inch quarter sheet cake, while the strawberry shortcake block concoction isn't quite enough. My 2 layer vanilla/white cake hybrid is super light and fluffy and while it'due south the perfect amount for a 9×13 inch quarter canvas pan, it doesn't take the same buttery tight nibble every bit traditional vanilla block. For today's recipe, I took what I dearest almost these cakes and combined them into the appropriate amount of batter to fit this classic size pan.

Showtime, allow's walk through an in-depth tutorial of the mixing method. (Contrary creaming! You're going to dearest information technology.) Though this is a very straightforward recipe, I encourage you to read through my tips before getting started.

slice of vanilla sheet cake on a pink plate with a fork

Reverse Creaming Method for Cake

Practice you remember when I shared Tessa's Blackberry Lavender Cake? I just dear her recipes! Prior to that block, I had just used the reverse creaming method a handful of times. I loved her cake's texture, so I replicated it with my strawberry shortcake cake non long later. We're going to use the same method with today's vanilla sail cake recipe. Instead of starting with creaming butter and sugar together like traditional cake recipes, the reverse creaming method begins with the dry ingredients and ends with the eggs. This method produces a lighter and tighter crumb with more jump. The slices are tight like pound cake, but not dense in the slightest. It's velvety soft and nigh tastes creamy.

This method is then unique, but very piece of cake.

Sift the dry ingredients, including the sugar, into a basin. Sifting with a fine mesh strainer is imperative because information technology aerates the dry out ingredients and leaves behind larger sugar crystals. Remember, we aren't creaming sugar and butter together where large saccharide crystals are usually broken downward. Next, mix in cubed room temperature butter, a little milk, and vanilla extract. In this step, the butter coats the flour. The coating of fatty minimizes the flour's germination of gluten, which helps result in a finer cake crumb. You lot'll taste the divergence.

By the manner, we coat flour with fat when nosotros brand biscuits and pie crust too. This practice helps produce an extra flaky (not dense) broiled adept.

2 images of dry ingredients in a sieve and cubes of butter with dry ingredients

Success Tip: Cube the butter when it's cold. Smaller pieces of butter will warm to room temperature much quicker than a full stick of butter. Plus, information technology's easy to cut common cold butter into cubes as opposed to warmer room temperature butter.

Subsequently that, we'll add the residue of the liquids including the remaining milk, the sour cream, and eggs. The photo on the left (below) is our canvass block concoction. I promise it's the creamiest batter y'all'll ever work with. Avert over-mixing it.

Which Cake Pan?

Employ whichever ix×13 inch pan you accept on mitt. I usually lean towards a glass ix×13 inch pan only considering the cake looks extra beautiful serving correct out of the dish. It'due south what I prefer when making cookies and cream cake and yellow canvass cake, as well. If using a metal baking pan, keep a close eye on the cake. Metal pans unremarkably mean a quicker broil time, though my test recipes (in all different pans) each finished baking effectually the same time.

2 images of cake batter in a stand mixer bowl

vanilla cake batter in 9x13 inch glass cake pan

Vanilla Sheet Cake Ingredients

Whether you're a beginner bakery or pro, y'all'll be happy to see that this vanilla canvass cake requires only a handful of super basic blistering ingredients. Each 1 serves a purpose and for best results, I don't recommend making substitutions.

Cake Flour:Cake flour produces the softest cake. There's just no competition, just you tin certainly make this cake flour substitute if needed. Cake flour is sold in the baking aisle with the other flours. You tin use leftovers in any recipes using block flour.
Sugar & Salt: Sugar sweetens the cake and table salt adds flavor.
Baking Powder & Baking Soda: Remember the differences in baking powder vs baking soda and why it's important to use both in some recipes?
Butter:Room temperature butter is the workhorse behind this whole recipe, especially the reverse creaming method. Information technology also adds flavor. I recommend using unsalted butter in this sheet block recipe. If you lot're interested, here's a mail service I wrote on salted butter vs unsalted butter.
Vanilla Extract: Vanilla extract adds flavor. Use an unabridged Tablespoon… trust me! And if you lot use homemade vanilla extract, even better. 🙂
Whole Milk: The cake's crumb is extra rich and we have the whole milk to thank for it. Avert lower fat or nonfat milks. Moist cakes need fat.
Sour Cream:The moist maker! Thanks to sour cream, this cake melts in your mouth.
Eggs: To obtain a fluffier cake, I usually add extra egg whites. Withal, this sheet cake didn't demand it. Maybe my ratios were off, but my few test recipes proved that this combination of ingredients brought together with the opposite creaming method doesn't need extra whites. Merely use iii full eggs. Actually, in one test recipe, I used 4 eggs with no sour foam. The block tasted heavy, so I ultimately swapped 1 egg with sour cream. The cake is much lighter and moister.

Whipped vanilla buttercream in a glass bowl

Whipped Buttercream

Elevating this vanilla sheet cake is a lovely coating of whipped buttercream. Apply the same ingredients equally my regular vanilla buttercream recipe, but add extra heavy foam and whip it for a few actress minutes. A piffling extra cream and a little extra whip plough this frosting into a buttercream/whipped cream duo. This is the same frosting we use to fill our cream filled chocolate cupcakes. Information technology's mega creamy and fluffy, as if y'all borrowed a puffy cloud from the heaven and slathered information technology on a cake. Talk about dreamy!

Couldn't you become lost in these swirls?

If you want to go the actress mile, top this beauty with thick and fluffy Swiss meringue buttercream instead. For a less sweet selection, try my whipped frosting. It's a personal favorite!

Make an American Flag Cake!

Before we finish upward, permit's chat about turning this vanilla sheet cake into a flag block. Spread 2/3 of the frosting all over the cake, saving the remaining 1/3 for piping particular. Take hold of some fresh blueberries and halved strawberries and line them up to mimic the stars and stripes on an American flag. I used Ateco 32 piping tip for the pipage between the "stars" and Ateco 844 piping tip for the pipage between the "stripes."

This would be an splendid pick for Memorial Day Weekend or the Fourth of July. Run into more than Memorial Day Weekend recipes.

vanilla sheet cake decorated like an American flag with berries and frosting

slice of vanilla sheet cake on a pink plate

Would love to know if you lot try this canvas cake!!

More Quarter Sail Cake Recipes

Banana Cake
Pumpkin Cake
Cookies & Foam Cake
Yellow Sail Block
Pineapple Carrot Cake
Spice Cake & Apple Cake

Description

This vanilla sheet cake recipe uses the reverse creaming method, an easy technique that promises a uniquely soft and springy nibble with the most delicious buttery vanilla flavor. Each ingredient serves a purpose and for all-time results, I don't recommend making substitutions.

3 cup s (354g) cake flour(spoon & leveled)
1 and 1/2 cups (300g) granulated sugar
one teaspoon baking powder
ane/2 teaspoon blistering soda
1/2 teaspoon common salt
i cup (2 sticks; 230g) unsalted butter, cubed and softened to room temperature
i Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 loving cup (240ml) whole milk, at room temperature and divided
1/3 cup (80g)sour cream, at room temperature
iii large eggs, at room temperature

Whipped Vanilla Buttercream

1 cup (230g)unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
four and ane/2 cups (540g) confectioners' sugar
1/3 loving cup (80ml)heavy foam
2 teaspoon spure vanilla excerpt
common salt, to gustation
optional: sprinkles for garnish

Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Generously grease a 9×13 inch cake pan.
Sift the cake flour, saccharide, baking powder, baking soda, and common salt in the basin of a stand mixer. (Or if using a handheld mixer, whatsoever large mixing bowl.) With the paddle attachment, beat the ingredients together on low speed for a few seconds to gently combine. Add the butter, vanilla, and 1/2 cup of milk. Mix on medium speed until the dry out ingredients are moistened, about 1 infinitesimal. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the basin. The mixture will resemble a thick dough.
Whisk the remaining milk, the sour cream, and eggs together in a medium basin. With the mixer running on medium speed, add the egg mixture in three additions, mixing for about xv seconds after each addition. Terminate the mixer and scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl, then mix for nearly 15 more seconds until batter is completely combined. Avert over-mixing. Some small lumps are OK.
Pour and spread batter evenly into prepared pan. Bake for around 32-35 minutes or until the cake is broiled through. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, it'south done. Allow cake to cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack. The block must be completely cool before frosting.
Brand the buttercream:With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle zipper, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add together confectioners' sugar, heavy foam, and vanilla excerpt. Vanquish on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to medium-high speed and beat for 4 total minutes. Add together up to 1/4 loving cup more confectioners' saccharide if frosting is besides thin or some other Tablespoon of cream if frosting is as well thick. Add a pinch of table salt if frosting is besides sweet. (I add together 1/8 teaspoon salt.) Frosting should exist extra fluffy.
Spread frosting in a thick layer on cooled block. I apply and recommend an start spatula. If desired, use a piping tip to pipage some frosting and/or garnish with sprinkles. Slice and serve.
Cover leftover cake tightly and shop in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Notes

Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: The cake can be baked, cooled, and covered tightly at room temperature overnight. Likewise, the frosting can be prepared and so covered and refrigerated overnight. Let the refrigerated frosting sit at room temperature for 10 minutes, then beat with a mixer for 1 minute to bring it dorsum to a spreadable consistency. Frosted block or unfrosted block tin be frozen up to two-3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before decorating/serving.
Cupcakes:Fill cupcake liners 2/3 total. Bake at 350°F (177°C) for xix-21 minutes. Yields nearly 2 dozen. Or try my vanilla cupcakes recipe.
two Layer Block: If desired, you tin can divide the batter between two 9 inch cake pans. Broil time will exist a few minutes shorter– keep a close eye on the cakes at 20 minutes and check for doneness with a toothpick.
Cake Flour: For the best results, I strongly recommend cake flour. You can discover it in the blistering alley and I accept many more recipes using it. If you cannot get your easily on cake flour, you can make a DIY cake flour substitute.
Why is everything at room temperature? All refrigerated items should be at room temperature so the batter mixes together hands and evenly. Read here for more information.
Sprinkle Cake: To brand a sprinkle cake, fold well-nigh 2/3 cup (105g) of sprinkles into the cake batter. Avoid nonpareils (the piffling balls), which tend to drain their colour.
Chocolate Frosting: If desired, swap the whipped vanilla buttercream with chocolate buttercream. The chocolate buttercream calls for beating for ane infinitesimal, but for a fluffy whipped texture, whip for 3 full minutes.
Special Tools: Metal 9×13-inch Cake Pan, Glass nine×13-inch Cake Pan, KitchenAid Stand Mixer, Showtime Spatula, Sieve