Vanilla Sheet Cake
Posted May 30, 2025
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This vanilla sheet cake is moist and flavorful with a perfect crumb. It’s easy to make from scratch with simple ingredients and is the perfect cake to feed a crowd!
I am very passionate about making cakes from scratch. They are always more delicious than box mixes with more wholesome ingredients.
So – I decided to make a huge vanilla sheet cake recipe that’s perfect for feeding large crowds. This cake is moist with a rich & buttery vanilla flavor. It’s so much tastier than made-to-order grocery store sheet cakes.
Slathered thick with homemade frosting like vanilla buttercream, vanilla frosting or even chocolate buttercream, you will be in cake heaven after just one bite.
Vanilla Sheet Cake: Ingredients & Substitutions
- All-purpose flour. Cake flour is a good substitute.
- Salted butter. Unsalted butter works well!
- Granulated sugar. white sugar or organic cane sugar yield the best results.
- Whole milk. 2% milk or heavy cream are good substitutes.
- Sour cream. Full-fat, plain Greek yogurt can be used in place of sour cream. I recommend using full-fat ingredients.
- Vanilla extract. You can substitute up to ½ teaspoon of the vanilla extract with a flavored extract like almond, orange, etc.
- Vanilla buttercream: It takes 1.5x my vanilla buttercream recipe to coat this cake. Or, you can use 1.5 or 2x your favorite frosting recipes like chocolate buttercream or cream cheese frosting.
How to Make Vanilla Sheet Cake
Let’s walk through how to make this recipe together – and don’t forget to watch the video.
Begin by preheating the oven. Then, line a sheet cake pan with parchment paper and lightly grease, set aside.
Then, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and sea salt in a medium bowl and set it aside.
Next, whisk the melted butter, sugar, eggs, sour cream, milk and vanilla in a large bowl until the mixture is smooth.
Then, add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet ingredients and whisk until combined and there are no lumps.
Evenly spread the batter into the prepared sheet cake pan.
Then, bake the vanilla cake in the preheated oven for 28-33 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean or with a few crumbs.
Place cake pan on a wire cooling rack to cool to room temperature.
Make the Vanilla Buttercream
While the vanilla sheet cake is cooling, make the frosting. You can use the vanilla buttercream frosting recipe listed in the recipe card, or your favorite frosting recipes like chocolate buttercream frosting. Just note – you will need to make at least 1.5x the recipe!
To make the frosting, being by beating the butter, vanilla and sea salt for 1 minute. You can do this either in a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachement, or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer.
Then, add 2 cups of the powered sugar to the butter and beat until combined.
Next, add the milk and 3 more cups powdered sugar (you should be up to 5 cups at this time), and beat until smooth.
Once smooth, add the additional 2.5 cups powdered sugar and beat until smooth and fluffy.
Assemble the Vanilla Sheet Cake
Let the cake cool completely before spreading the vanilla frosting evenly over the cake.
If desired, you can cover the cake with plastic wrap and foil and freeze it so it cools faster and no crumbs get in the frosting as you spread it on.
If desired, sprinkle some sprinkles on top of the frosting or decorate with a saying like “Happy Birthday!”
Cake Decorating tools
Once it’s frosted and decorated, chill until the frosting has set (about 30 to 60 minutes).
Serve
Once the frosting has set, cut the cake into pieces and serve slightly chilled or at room temperature.
Store/Freeze
Store leftover cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Or, freeze individual slices by flash-freezing them on a baking sheet. Then, wrap the frozen cake slices in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container for up to 1 month. Thaw slowly in the refrigerator overnight or at room temperature.
Vanilla Sheet Cake Recipe FAQS
This 16×11″ cake pan with a lid is my all-time favorite sheet cake pan. I use it often.
The only difference is the size of the cake. Most cake recipes are baked in round, 6″ or 9″ cake pans. While this vanilla sheet cake is baked in a large, 16×11″ cake pan.
I suggest using one of our homemade frosting recipes:
Vanilla Buttercream
Chocolate Buttercream
Vanilla Frosting (great for decorating)
Strawberry Buttercream
If you make and love my recipes, it would mean so much to me if you would leave a comment and rating! And don’t forget to follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube – be sure to tag @joyfoodsunshine and use the hashtag #joyfoodsunshine so I can see your creations!
Vanilla Sheet Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup butter melted
- 2 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- 4 eggs room temperature
- 1 cup sour cream room temperature
- 1 cup whole milk room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
- 1 ½ cups salted butter
- 1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 7.5 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup + 2 Tablespoons whole milk or half and half, or heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line a sheet cake pan with parchment paper and lightly grease, set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and sea salt. Set aside
- Whisk the melted butter, sugar, eggs, sour cream, milk and vanilla in a large bowl until the mixture is smooth.
- Add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet ingredients and whisk until combined and there are no lumps.
- Evenly spread the batter into the prepared sheet cake pan.
- Then, bake the vanilla sheet cake in the preheated oven for 28-33 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean or with a few crumbs.
- Place cake pan on a wire cooling rack to cool to room temperature (takes about 30 minutes).
- Once cool, you can either lift the cake out of the pan and transfer it to a rectangular serving platter, or leave it in the pan and frost.
Make the Vanilla Buttercream
- In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer, beat the butter, vanilla and sea salt for 1 minute.
- Add 2 cups of the powered sugar, and beat until combined.
- Then, add the milk and 3 more cups powdered sugar (you should be up to 5 cups by this time), and beat until smooth.
- Add the additional 2.5 cups powdered sugar and beat until smooth and fluffy.
Assemble the Vanilla Sheet Cake
- Let the cake cool completely before spreading the vanilla frosting evenly over the cake.
- Then chill until the frosting has hardened (about 30 to 60 minutes).
Serve
- Once the frosting has set, cut the cake into pieces and serve slightly chilled or at room temperature.
- You can put the lid on the cake pan (or cover it in foil or plastic wrap) and chill it overnight if desired.
Video
Notes
- All-purpose flour. Cake flour is a good substitute.
- Salted butter. Unsalted butter works well!
- Granulated sugar. white sugar or organic cane sugar yield the best results.
- Whole milk. 2% milk or heavy cream are good substitutes.
- Sour cream. Full-fat, plain Greek yogurt can be used in place of sour cream. I recommend using full-fat ingredients.
- Vanilla extract. You can substitute up to ½ teaspoon of the vanilla extract with a flavored extract like almond, orange, etc.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
