Based on my favorite red velvet layer cake recipe, this sheet cake version is just as soft and moist with the perfect light chocolate flavor and tangy cream cheese frosting. It’s one of those cakes you keep wanting one more bite of! Baked in a 9×13 pan and sliced into squares, it’s convenient for feeding a crowd, so quick and easy to decorate, and always the perfect flavor to serve. And while the iconic red color is made with food coloring, I’ve had lots of success making this recipe with all-natural red food coloring (pictured throughout this blog post!) in case you want that alternative.
Red Velvet Sheet Cake Ingredients & Substitutions
Here are all the ingredients you’ll need for this red velvet sheet cake! I’ve also included substitutions if you need them:
- Cake flour. This has the lowest protein content of all the flours, which makes the texture super light and fluffy. You can find cake flour at most grocery stores, but if all you’ve got is all-purpose flour in your pantry, here are instructions for how to make your own cake flour. Keep in mind that if you do use the homemade version, the gram measurement will weigh more (236g instead of 212g) since all-purpose flour is heavier than cake flour.
- Cocoa powder. Red velvet cake has a very light cocoa flavor, which is why this recipe calls for just three tablespoons of cocoa powder.
- Baking soda + vinegar. The chemical reaction that happens between these two ingredients is what gives the cake its rise! When they react with one another, tiny air bubbles are created that expand in the baking process. I use white distilled vinegar in this recipe but you can also use apple cider vinegar.
- Unsalted butter + vegetable oil. This is a butter and oil based cake. The butter adds richness and the vegetable oil creates a more moist and tender crumb. You can use salted butter if you prefer (just omit the salt from the recipe) and use any oil you normally use for baking (canola oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, etc). I prefer plain vegetable oil.
- Granulated sugar. Not only does sugar sweeten the batter, it actually creates an extra soft and tender texture in the baked cake. The creaming process with the butter and oil also creates the foundation for the rise of this cake.
- Vanilla + salt. These enhance and add depth to the light cocoa flavor.
- Eggs. I use two large eggs in this recipe, which help bind the ingredients together and create structure in the baking process.
- Buttermilk. Provides tons of moisture while binding the ingredients together at the end of the recipe. If you don’t have buttermilk on-hand, you can easily make your own by adding 1 Tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice into a liquid measuring cup, then topping it with whole milk until you measure out 1 Cup. Stir it together and let it come to room temperature. Keep in mind that it will end up looking curdled, but that’s what we want!
- Red food coloring. For the signature red color! I recommend using any brand of red food coloring that is concentrated and flavorless. I have used AmeriColor Super Red for this recipe but with the US ban on Red 3 I have since switched to Enco Naturals which doesn’t contain Red 3 or Red 40. If you are using natural food color, you may need to add up to 1 tsp more than the recipe calls for if you want a deep red.
Tangy Cream Cheese Buttercream
Red velvet cake and cream cheese buttercream are always a match made in heaven. I frosted this red velvet sheet cake with my favorite super silky cream cheese frosting and it lends the perfect balance of tangy and sweet. I kept it rustic and just frosted it onto the sheet cake while swooping my angled spatula through to create some swirly textures, then sprinkled some freeze-dried strawberry pieces around the edges for decoration (totally optional, but pretty!).
The cream cheese frosting recipe below makes just enough to frost the top of the sheet cake as pictured, but you can absolutely double the frosting portion of the recipe to frost the sides and add a piped border around the edges. It’s a soft frosting, but totally pipeable if you want to add more intricate details.
The most important thing to note is that you need to use full-fat brick-style cream cheese – other kinds of cream cheese (reduced fat or the spreadable kind in tubs) contain too much water content and will make your frosting turn to soup. If you don’t have access to full-fat brick-style cream cheese, I recommend any of these other frostings instead:
- Vanilla buttercream
- Swiss meringue buttercream
- Brown butter frosting
- White chocolate buttercream
- Strawberry buttercream
Red Velvet Cake Recipe Video
This red velvet sheet cake recipe is identical to my red velvetlayer cake recipe, the only difference is that I bake the sheet cake at 325ºF (163ºC) while the layer cake is baked at 350ºF (177ºC). This video shows how to make the batter for the layer cake version, which might be helpful since the ingredient amounts and process for making the batter is the same.
If you love recipe videos like this one, be sure to check out my YouTube channel! I’ve got a growing collection of cake recipes, decorating tutorials, and Cake Basics over there. Hit the subscribe button on my page so you never miss a new video.
More Red Velvet Recipes
Here are all my other red velvet cake recipe variations in case you’re wondering whether or not you can make this sheet cake recipe as a layer cake, cupcakes, and more:
- Red Velvet Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Red Velvet Cupcakes
- Small Batch Red Velvet Cake
- Vintage Christmas Red Velvet Cake
I hope you love this red velvet sheet cake recipe as much as I do! Let me know if you make it in the comments below and feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram to show me a photo. I love to see what you create!
Red Velvet Sheet Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
Red Velvet Sheet Cake
- 2 Cups (212g) sifted cake flour
- 3 Tbsp (18g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 Cup (113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 Cups (300g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 Cup (120ml) vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 tsp distilled white vinegar
- 2 tsp red food coloring* gel or liquid
- 1 Cup (240ml) buttermilk, room temperature* DIY recipe in notes
Cream Cheese Buttercream*
- 1/2 Cup (113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 8 Oz cream cheese, room temperature brick-style, not the spreadable kind
- 4 Cups (480g) powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
Garnish (Optional)
- 1/4 Cup freeze-dried strawberries
Instructions
Make the Red Velvet Cake
- Preheat the oven to 325°F (163ºC). Prepare a 9×13 metal baking pan by spraying the sides with baking spray and lining the bottom with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the sifted cake flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer and large bowl), cream the butter on high for two minutes, then add the vegetable oil and sugar. Cream together on medium-high until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl and paddle. Turn the mixer to low and add the eggs one at a time. Once the eggs are incorporated, add the vanilla and white vinegar and mix on low for another 30 seconds. Scrape down the bowl and paddle once more.
- Mix the red food coloring into the buttermilk. With the mixer on low speed, alternate adding the flour mixture and buttermilk in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Mix only until the ingredients start to come together, then whisk the batter by hand a few times to make sure there are no large lumps.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool completely before frosting, either in the pan or gently invert it onto a cooling rack or serving plate to cool.
Make the Cream Cheese Buttercream
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and cream cheese on high until light, fluffy, and uniform (no lumps), about 5 minutes. Turn the mixer to low and add the powdered sugar a few cups at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition. Add the vanilla and salt, mixing on low for another 30 seconds.
Assembly
- Once the red velvet sheet cake has cooled completely, frost with the cream cheese buttercream. To create the look pictured, add all of the buttercream to the cake surface and use an angled spatula to create rustic texture, then sprinkle the edges with freeze-dried strawberry pieces.
Notes
- The red velvet sheet cake can be made ahead and stored at room temperature in the pan covered with plastic wrap, for up to two days. Alternatively, you can cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in the freezer for up to two months before thawing to room temperature.
- The Cream Cheese Buttercream can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you’re ready to use it, bring it back to room temperature and re-whip in your stand mixer to bring back to smooth buttercream consistency.
- The frosted sheet cake can be stored at room temperature, covered with plastic wrap or aluminum foil, for up to five days.
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