Sheet cakes remind me of those back-to-school days of summer when I was in elementary school, which seemed to creep closer and closer to the beginning of August each year I got older, shortening my summer break. The beginning of the school year, however, meant birthdays and birthdays meant cake — whether it came from the Kroger deli or someone’s mother made it. The cakes of my childhood were always piled high with frosting. I only ate the the frosting if it was dotted with sprinkles — or jimmies, as we called them — otherwise I scraped it off. The chocolate jimmies were the best.
This week’s recipe comes from baker Jessie Sheehan’s second book, The Vintage Baker. It’s for Devil’s Food Sheet Cake with Sea Foam Frosting, and I consider it the adult version of those childhood cakes I remember. It’s also the quintessential cake to ring in the new school year if you have kids — make it and become the baker whose cake everyone looks forward to! —Kristina
Image Above: Vintage interior art, permission granted to Chronicle Books by Kraft Heinz Foods Company
Why Jessie loves this recipe: The Devil’s Food Sheet Cake with Sea Foam Frosting pays (sweet) tribute to the beloved cake-mix cakes of my childhood. Be it Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker, when I was little, my favorite cake always came from a box. I loved its springy crumb, its dark brown color (yes, cake isn’t — I mean wasn’t — CAKE, unless it is/was chocolate), its sweet, slightly chemically-induced taste, and if the vanilla frosting atop it came from a can, well then all was right in my 10-year-old world. This cake is my from-scratch version of all that, wherein the chocolate flavor comes from cocoa and espresso powders, and the rich, tender crumb comes from oil and egg yolks; funky chemicals need not apply. And with the blanket of billowy marshmallow-like frosting atop it, I like to think I’ve done Betty (and Duncan), and my 10-year-old self, proud.
For a chance to win a copy of The Vintage Baker, respond in the comments section below by September 12, 5PM EST to the following question: What food related event do you cherish most from your childhood? Was it the county fair (pie!)? Was it participating in a cake walk? Was it birthday parties? Summer vacation road trips? Let us know! We will announce the winner in the comments section, so be sure to check back!
About Jessie: Jessie Sheehan is a baker, food writer and recipe developer. She is the author of The Vintage Baker and the co-author of Icebox Cakes. She has contributed recipes/and or written for epicurious, Food52, Fine Cooking, TASTE, Little Sous, and Main Street Magazine, among others. She likes layer cakes with lots of frosting and cookies that are thick and chewy, and has a soft spot for chocolate pudding. She lives in Red Hook, Brooklyn with her husband and two boys, not far from her beloved Baked, the bakery where she got her start. She blogs at jessiesheehanbakes.com and can be found on Instagram at @jessiesheehanbakes. You can find her recipe for the “Old School” chocolate wafer icebox cake in our archives here.
Image above: Cover. All photography by Alice Gao.
Image above: Jessie Sheehan
Image above: Devil’s Food Sheet Cake with Sea Foam Frosting
from Design*Sponge https://www.designsponge.com/2018/08/your-new-go-to-chocolate-sheetcake-giveaway.html
from Home Improvment http://notelocreesnitu.tumblr.com/post/177094355544
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