I have been dreaming about these Texas Sheet Cake Cookies for over a year and today I am sharing them with you! Packed with chocolate flavor, these cookies are a cross between cake and brownies, delicate and absolutely wonderful!
Have you ever had Texas Sheet Cake? It is an enormous rectangle of cake topped with a pecan-studded chocolate icing that can easily serve 16 people – perfect for birthday parties, barbecues, or other celebrations. Everything is bigger in Texas and this cake is no exception. The original recipe was submitted to the Dallas Morning News in 1957 and it was an instant hit.
Ready for the oven
Today’s recipe takes the concept of the Texas sheet cake and converts it to cookie form. Soft chocolate cookies are topped with a chocolate frosting and then are set aside to cool and set. It is hard to wait for that first bite, but it is worth it!
These cookies are soft, a little cake-like in texture with crispy edges. Wonderful and delightful as is, but so much better with the frosting. As you can tell from the pictures, I didn’t have time to frost the cookies before shooting them. I was running late yesterday and ran out of time. I frosted them later in the evening.
Hot from the oven!
This recipe uses cocoa powder to flavor both the cookies and frosting. I found a terrific article outlining the differences when baking with cocoa and chocolate. If you bake often, it has a lot of great information that will help you decide which one to use in your recipes and why.
I found the recipe on my friend’s website, Little House Big Alaska. Laura is a delight and I love following her adventures. Be sure to check out her blog and subscribe to keep up to date.
Mine wound up thinner and crisper than Laura’s version. My kitchen was very hot and the butter nearly melted when I made the dough. I should have refrigerated it to firm up the butter a bit, which would have given me thicker cookies.
Next time you’re looking for a new cookie to try out, give these Texas Sheet Cake Cookies a whirl. I know you will love them and they won’t last long!
Have a wonderful week everyone and Happy Chocolate Monday!
Key Ingredients for Texas Sheet Cake Cookies:
- All-purpose flour or gluten-free flour blend
- Baking soda and salt
- Butter, sugar, an egg, and vanilla
- Cocoa powder, chopped pecans (nuts are optional)
- Milk and confectioners’ sugar
PRO Tip:
Always watch chocolate cookies carefully because it is easy to over bake them and suddenly, they are burned instead of being perfectly baked.
PRO Tip:
If you have trouble with your cookies over baking, you can double pan them – which means to add a second baking sheet under the one with the cookies to act as a buffer. Also, Silpats are thicker than parchment and add a layer of protection if you have a hot oven.
How to make Texas Sheet Cake Cookies:
- Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt
- Melt part of the butter, half the sugar and cocoa powder together; stir until smooth
- Cream the butter and sugar; beat in the egg and vanilla, then add the dry ingredients and finally the melted butter/cocoa mixture
- Portion dough into balls and bake 7 to 8 minutes; cool on the pans for a few minutes then finish cooling on wire racks
- When the cookies are cooled, make the frosting: Melt together the butter, cocoa, milk, and salt; whisk in the vanilla then the confectioners’ sugar
- Add milk if needed for a good dipping consistency
- Dip the tops of the cookies in the frosting then set aside to let them cool and set up, a few hours
Kitchen Tools I Use to Make This Recipe (affiliate links):
- Chef’s knife
- Cutting board
- Silpats or parchment paper
- Saucepan
- Stand mixer
- Spring-loaded ice cream scoop
Gluten-Free Tips:
Use a good gluten-free blend such as my favorite or Bob’s Red Mill’s 1-to-1 (in the blue bag). There is no need to add any xanthan gum in these cookies but if it is already in your flour blend, that is fine.
Texas Sheet Cake Cookies (Gluten Free)
These cookies take the concept of the Texas sheet cake and converts it to cookie form. Soft
chocolate cookies are covered with a chocolate frosting and then are set aside to let the frosting set. It is hard to wait for that first bite, but it is worth it!
Ingredients
Cookies
- 1-1/3 cups (160 g) all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour blend
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp (1-1/4 sticks) softened butter, divided
- 2/3 cup (132 g) granulated sugar, divided
- 1/4 cup (21 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract or vanilla paste
- 1 cup (114 g) chopped pecans, optional
Chocolate Frosting
- 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
- 2 tbsp cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp milk, plus more if needed
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or pure extract
- About 1-3/4 cups (200 g) confectioners' sugar
Instructions
- Make the Cookies: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with Silpats or parchment paper. Set up wire cooling racks on top of parchment or waxed paper to catch the drips from the frosted cookies.
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a small saucepan, heat 2 tbsp of the butter, 1/3 cup of the sugar, and the cocoa powder together, stirring occasionally, until melted and smooth. Set aside to cool.
- Meanwhile, beat together the remaining 1/2 cup butter and the 1/3 cup sugar together until light and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Scrape the bowl. Add the flour mixture and beat until combined. Mix in the cocoa/butter mixture until well blended. Scrape the bowl again.
- Using a small spring-loaded scoop, drop the dough onto the baking sheets, about 2-inches apart. Bake the cookies 7 to 8 minutes or until they are just starting to set. (It took 12 minutes in my oven.) Beware not to overcook the cookies, it is hard to tell when they are done and they can easily wind up burned.
- Leave them on the baking sheets for a few minutes to firm up before transferring them to cooling racks.
- Make the Frosting: Don't make the frosting until the cookies are cooled and you are ready to frost them. Place the butter, cocoa powder, milk, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Heat, stirring, until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth. Whisk in the vanilla.
- Remove from the heat and whisk in the confectioners' sugar. Add milk if needed to thin enough to easily spread over the tops of the cookies.
- Frost the Cookies: Cover the tops of the cookies in the frosting and set them on the cooling racks. Reheat the frosting over low heat if needed. Leave until the frosting has set up, an hour or two in warm weather.
- Store them lightly covered at room temperature.
Notes
Original recipe by Laura of Little House, Big Alaska
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
30Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 76Total Fat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 8mgSodium: 129mgCarbohydrates: 14gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gProtein: 2g
If you love this recipe, be sure to follow me on social media so you never miss a post:
| Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram | Twitter |
Create a New Tradition Today!
Welcome! The suggestions here are not intended as dietary advice or as a substitute for consulting a dietician, physician, or other medical professional. Please see the Disclaimers/Privacy Policy page for additional details. Unauthorized use, distribution, and/or duplication of proprietary material from The Heritage Cook without prior approval is prohibited. If you have any questions or would like permission, please contact me. We participate in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. This page may contain affiliate links.
