My mother told me the story of how we came into the possession of this recipe.  It’s pretty neat actually.  A lady called up my grandmother and asked if it would be okay to bring a cake to my parent’s reception.  My grandmother agreed and so this kind lady brought a Texas sheet cake to the party.  It was a nice contrast so the guests had their choice of chocolate or vanilla wedding cake.  My mother fell in love with the cake and spent years trying to track her down for the recipe.  Once she got her hands on it, she made it as often as possible!  I rarely remember desserts unless it was this or her Blue Ribbon Carrot Cake sitting on the counter! 🙂

Prep Time: 20 minutes // Cook Time: 20 minutes // Makes 1 11X17 cookie sheet cake

fun fact, this cake is great for freezing!  Cut up and wrap individual size pieces in saran wrap and store in a Ziploc bag

• Cake:
• Stick of Butter
• 1/2 C. Crisco
• 4 Tbsp. Cocoa Powder
• 1 C. Water
• 2 C. Flour
• 2 C. Sugar
• 1/2 C. Buttermilk
• 2 Eggs (slightly beaten)
• 1 tsp. Baking Soda
• 1 tsp. Cinnamon
• 1 tsp. Vanilla
• Frosting:
• 1 Stick of Butter
• 4 Tbsp. Cocoa Powder
• 6 Tbsp. Milk
• 1 lb. Powdered Sugar (sift!)
• 1 tsp. Vanilla

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease and flour a cookie sheet.
3. In a saucepan, (for the cake) melt butter, Crisco, cocoa, and water.  Bring to a rapid boil.
4. In a bowl, add flour and sugar.  Pour the melt over this and stir.
5. Add buttermilk, eggs, baking soda, cinnamon and vanilla and stir.  Don’t over work it *don’t want to activate the glutens*.  Just stir enough to get the lumps out.
6. Pour into the cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes.
7. **15 minutes into the cake baking**  In a saucepan, (for frosting) melt butter, cocoa, and milk.  Bring to a boil.  Add the powdered sugar and vanilla.  Mix well, keep stirring until it’s smooth.
8. At this point the cake should be just about done.  Pull it out and frost while the cake is STILL HOT.  This allows the frosting to melt more and seep into the pores of the cake!
9. You can stop here and let the cake cool or you can go one step further and sprinkle chopped pecans on top before the frosting hardens.