Happy Texas Independence Day - Texas Sheet Cake

Happy Texas Independence Day, y'all! If you haven't heard already, I'm a born and raised Texan. Houstonian to be exact. And to celebrate the day, I made a Texas sheet cake in the shape of Texas. Now you may not recognize the state as I had a slight mishap getting my cake out of the pan. I tried my very best to reconstruct the cake in its proper shape, but the unique shape of Texas made it a tad difficult.

























See, I have proof that it was meant to be the Lone Star State.
























And here we have a slice of West Texas. Who knew El Paso was so sweet and moist? I tried to find the origins of the cake's name, but nobody has a clear answer as far as I can tell. My best guess is that this chocolate cake is so good, it had to be named after the best state in America.

I have said that Texas is a state of mind, but I think it is more than that. It is a mystique closely approximating a religion. And this is true to the extent that people either passionately love Texas or passionately hate it ... For all its enormous range of space, climate, and physical appearance, and for all the internal squabbles, contentions, and strivings, Texas has a tight cohesiveness perhaps stronger than any other section of America. Rich, poor, Panhandle, Gulf, city, country, Texas is the obsession, the proper study and the passionate possession of all Texans.
- John Steinbeck, Travels with Charley: In Search of America


Texas Sheet Cake

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 cup butter
4 tablespoons cocoa
1 cup water
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon baking soda

Directions:
1. Sift flour and sugar together in a medium bowl.
2. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add in cocoa and water and bring to a boil.
3. Pour cocoa mixture over flour and sugar and mix thoroughly.
4. Add remaining ingredients to the mixture, mix until smooth.
5. Pour into a greased and floured Texas-shaped pan. Bake at 350 F degrees for 20 minutes.
6. Let cake slightly cool, invert cake, and pour Texas Sheet Cake Frosting on top.


Texas Sheet Cake Frosting

Ingredients:
4 tablespoons cocoa
1/2 cup butter
6 tablespoons black coffee
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Directions:
1. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add in cocoa and coffee and bring to a boil. Remove from heat.
2. Add in powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
3. Stir in pecans until well incorporated.