Yellow Sheet Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
This Gluten-free Yellow Sheet Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting is one of the easiest and yummiest desserts ever! Takes just 10 minutes to prep and it's perfect for any and every occasion.... celebrations, birthdays or just any day you need a dessert.
Yellow Sheet Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Amazing texture-- moist, soft & fluffy. The BEST chocolate frosting. And beyond YUMMY!
Update April 2020: By popular request, I added the baking option for cupcakes.
Original post…
This Gluten-Free Yellow Sheet Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting is everything!
I was inspired to make it for 2 reasons… we already have the Best Chocolate Cake and I’m constantly getting requests for yellow cake (it’s true, we needed a great gluten-free yellow cake in our repertoire!), and you all LOVE our Pumpkin Sheet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting so it seems that the sheet cake size is a hit!
And I personally couldn’t agree more!
A sheet cake baked in a rimmed baking sheet gives just enough cake and perfect ratio of frosting, plus it is easy to make and serves a crowd!
Plus a sheet cake is perfect for every occasion or even just dessert when there’s no occasion.
I scoured the internet for a simple recipe that looked like it would work well gluten-free and decided to base our recipe on one from Sally’s Baking Addiction with a few tweaks and I couldn’t be happier with the end results.
This is The Best Cake!
The cake itself is a perfect texture — moist, soft and fluffy. And I topped it with our rich and creamy chocolate buttercream frosting…. Together this cake is unreal!
All my taste testers have been going crazy for it!
Bonus: this is a super easy recipe and it comes together quickly.
The cake itself is just 9 ingredients, ones you probably already have in our pantry.
You’ll need:
gluten-free all purpose flour (we use GF Jules – affiliate link)
baking soda
salt
butter
cane sugar
eggs
vanilla extract
plain Greek yogurt
and whole milk.
In case you’re new to this website, you should know we are huge fans of GF Jules flour (affiliate link) because it was the first gluten-free flour we discovered when my son was first diagnosed with celiac disease (over 9 years ago) that allowed us to make our favorite gluten-based recipes by simply substituting the flour. We never looked back.
To learn more about why we love GFJules flour and why we have used it for 10 years, click here. Bonus: at the bottom of that post is a one-time use affiliate Discount Code.
And importantly, purchasing through an affiliate link does not change your cost at all. It generates a small percentage of the sale for me, and purchasing through an affiliate link helps me fund this website and all the recipes I share, so thank you!
Back to the cake…
All you do is cream the butter. Then add in the sugar. Then add in the eggs, one at a time. Add in the vanilla and yogurt. Then alternately add in the dry ingredients and milk.
Then entire prep takes about 10 minutes.
Then you pour it into a rimmed half baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes or until golden. That’s it!
Let cool and frost it with the most amazing chocolate frosting!
I used our Chocolate Buttercream Frosting from our Chocolate Cake recipe, because this is the BEST chocolate frosting we’ve ever had!
It’s made with 5 ingredients: butter, milk, cocoa powder, confectioner’s (or powdered) sugar and vanilla.
And it’s super creamy and has a rich, chocolate flavor.
Top with sprinkles if you’re feeling like you want something fun and match the sprinkles to the occasion.
Hope you love it as much as we do!
PIN it!
Scroll down for recipe and leave a comment if you try.
This Gluten-free Yellow Sheet Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting is one of the easiest and yummiest desserts ever! Takes just 10 minutes to prep and it's perfect for any and every occasion.... celebrations, birthdays, Super Bowl and just any day you need a dessert. Made in a half-sized rimmed baking sheet (approximately 9.5 x 14.5). Just added baking option to make 12 cupcakes.
1½ cups gluten-free all purpose flour with xanthan gum (we used GF Jules - affiliate link)
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
⅔ cup butter, softened to room temperature (or dairy free butter) (I used 1 stick salted and the remainder unsalted but either will work)
1¼ cups cane sugar
2 eggs (brought to room temperature ideally)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
⅓ cup plain greek yogurt (or dairy free yogurt)
¾ cup whole milk (or dairy-free milk)
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
6 Tablespoons butter softened
¾ cup Hershey’s Cocoa (100% cacao natural unsweetened)
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
2⅔ cups powdered sugar
4 to 6 Tablespoons milk
Instructions
Yellow Sheet Cake
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and lightly grease a half-size rimmed baking sheet (approximately 9.5 x 14.5) (You can also make these as 12 cupcakes)
In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt using a pastry cutter, whisk or fork. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl (I used a Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer), beat softened butter until smooth and creamy.
Add sugar and beat on high until well combined, scraping down the sides as needed.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating each one until mixed in.
Add in vanilla and greek yogurt. Mix until well combined, scraping down the sides with a spatula as needed.
With the mixer running on low speed, alternately add the dry ingredients and milk until all combined.
Pour into prepared baking sheet*, spread evenly and baking 20-22 minutes or until top is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes our clean. The edges will also start pulling away from the pan.
*For cupcakes, pour into 12 muffin tins, lined with baking cups and bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes.
Let cool before frosting. Can be made a day ahead, leave out at room temperature, loosely covered with wax paper.
Frosting
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
In small mixer bowl, beat butter. Add powdered sugar and cocoa alternately with milk; beat to spreading consistency. Blend in vanilla. (Makes about 2 cups frosting)
Spread evenly on cooled cake. Top with sprinkles as desired.
Thanks Beckie! I’ve never made it with regular flour but it should work perfectly! Happy you’re loving my Instagram videos — I hope to get them on the website soon! Let me know if you make this 🙂
Made this cake for a birthday party I hosted. SO yummy and moist! The gluten-eating people loved it too. Easy to make and the chocolate frosting compliments it perfectly.
Super easy recipe! I used a handheld mixer because I don’t have a standing one, and almond milk instead of dairy. Took about 25 minutes in my oven. The end product was delicious, a truly incredible texture!
This is by far the best gf yellow cake recipe I have tried. The texture was perfect and the flavor was so delicious that it can easily stand alone with no frosting needed. Thank you!
I think it will probably take 25-30 minutes, 35 minutes at the most… I made them as cupcakes the other day and those took 20 minutes. Test by using a tooth pick or knife and making sure it comes out clean in the center. Hope you love it!
I have been searching for the perfect gluten free cake recipe for my sons first birthday cake. I came across this recipe and decided to try it for the 4th of July. Normally my family complains and says any gluten free item I make is gritty but not with this cake! No one said anything negative so I will definitely be using it again.
Great question! I have never made this as a round cake but for a double, you would definitely need to make two batches of the batter. My might be ok with 1 1/2 of the frosting. Let me know if you make it.
THE ICING IS INCREDIBLE! I have never EVER made an at-home icing that made me want to put down the betty crocker fudge tub icing I grew up loving until TODAY. Can’t wait to try out your sheet cake! I’m made another gf yellow cake recipe bc I didn’t have any yogurt on hand, and it disappointed (again) so I’ll try yours as soon as I go to the market! thanks so much, the icing is going into my family cookbook. 🙂
Made the cake last night! It’s almost gone now…. needless to say we LOVED it! Thanks so much for finally putting yellow cake w/ choc frosting back in my gf belly!
Great question! I’ve never made this with anything other than regular sugar, and not sure another sugar would work — would be a different texture/ flavor.
This cake was lovely! I made it in a 9×13 pan because I didn’t have the size you mention, and it was not as tall as other cakes I’ve made, but thicker than your photos, which was perfect for me. It did sink just a touch in the center as it cooled, but it didn’t seem to impact the texture. Very nice recipe I’m sure I’ll make again!
Hi! My name is Karen, and I’m the mom in our Healthy Gluten-Free Family. My posts and pictures here and on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter are labors of love that allow me to share a very personal journey with you, one our family has taken together — learning, experimenting and sharing how to raise a healthy happy gluten-free family. Read more ...
I love this ! We are not gluten intolerant. Can I substitute all purpose flour ? Love following you and I’m liking your videos!!
Thanks Beckie! I’ve never made it with regular flour but it should work perfectly! Happy you’re loving my Instagram videos — I hope to get them on the website soon! Let me know if you make this 🙂
Made this cake for a birthday party I hosted. SO yummy and moist! The gluten-eating people loved it too. Easy to make and the chocolate frosting compliments it perfectly.
So happy you loved it! And especially happy alllll your people loved it! Thank you!
Super easy recipe! I used a handheld mixer because I don’t have a standing one, and almond milk instead of dairy. Took about 25 minutes in my oven. The end product was delicious, a truly incredible texture!
Thank you! So happy you loved it! And thanks for sharing that you made it with almond milk and it tasted great!
This is by far the best gf yellow cake recipe I have tried. The texture was perfect and the flavor was so delicious that it can easily stand alone with no frosting needed. Thank you!
Wow! Thank you so much! Happy you love it as much as we do!
I would love to try and make this but only have a 12×12 cake pan. How long do you think it would take to cook?
I think it will probably take 25-30 minutes, 35 minutes at the most… I made them as cupcakes the other day and those took 20 minutes. Test by using a tooth pick or knife and making sure it comes out clean in the center. Hope you love it!
This review is for the chocolate buttercream frosting. It was AMAZING. Don’t bother with any recipe.
Thank you!! It is my favorite chocolate frosting too!
I have been searching for the perfect gluten free cake recipe for my sons first birthday cake. I came across this recipe and decided to try it for the 4th of July. Normally my family complains and says any gluten free item I make is gritty but not with this cake! No one said anything negative so I will definitely be using it again.
So happy everyone loved it! Thank you!
If I wanted to make this into a double layer circlular cake, do you think it would require 2 batches of cake and frosting?
Great question! I have never made this as a round cake but for a double, you would definitely need to make two batches of the batter. My might be ok with 1 1/2 of the frosting. Let me know if you make it.
THE ICING IS INCREDIBLE! I have never EVER made an at-home icing that made me want to put down the betty crocker fudge tub icing I grew up loving until TODAY. Can’t wait to try out your sheet cake! I’m made another gf yellow cake recipe bc I didn’t have any yogurt on hand, and it disappointed (again) so I’ll try yours as soon as I go to the market! thanks so much, the icing is going into my family cookbook. 🙂
So happy you LOVE the frosting! Can’t wait for you to try the cake! I just made it this weekend as cupcakes and they were so good!
Made the cake last night! It’s almost gone now…. needless to say we LOVED it! Thanks so much for finally putting yellow cake w/ choc frosting back in my gf belly!
YAY! This makes me so happy! Thanks for sharing!
Can I sub the Cane sugar for any sugar?
Great question! I’ve never made this with anything other than regular sugar, and not sure another sugar would work — would be a different texture/ flavor.
This cake was lovely! I made it in a 9×13 pan because I didn’t have the size you mention, and it was not as tall as other cakes I’ve made, but thicker than your photos, which was perfect for me. It did sink just a touch in the center as it cooled, but it didn’t seem to impact the texture. Very nice recipe I’m sure I’ll make again!
Yes, it’s not a tall cake… the sheet cake is intentionally much “shorter”. Happy you enjoyed it!