Texas Sheet Cake

That's one of the many things I love about food. You can experience the world without leaving your kitchen, no ticket buying, no bag packing. Yesterday I was in Sweden, today I'm in Texas. Love that!



Texas Sheet Cake
Serves 12

For the Cake:
150g plain flour
200g caster sugar
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
115g unsalted butter
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 cup boiling water
2 teaspoons instant coffee granules
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup creme fraiche

For the Frosting:
55g unsalted butter
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
3 tablespoon creme fraiche
2 cup icing sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

Make the Cake:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Spray a 16cm x 20cm baking sheet with cooking oil spray and and line the base with baking paper. Set aside.

In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, salt and bicarbonate of soda.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, whisk together the butter, cocoa, coffee and water. Keep whisking until the butter has melted. Remove from the heat. Set aside to cool slightly.

Once the butter mixture has cooled slightly, add it to the dry ingredients and stir until just incorporated.

In a small bowl, whisk the egg, vanilla and creme fraiche together, then pour it into the batter and mix thoroughly to combine.

Pour mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.

Frost the cake as soon as it comes out of the oven, while it is still warm.

Make the Frosting:
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, whisk together the butter, cocoa and creme fraiche until the butter has melted. Remove from the heat and whisk in the icing sugar and vanilla. When smooth, stir in the chopped pecans.

Pour the warm frosting over the warm cake and spread evenly. Let the cake rest for at least an hour before slicing.