Milk Soak Chocolate Sheet Cake
A Sheet cake is a simple affair. No fancy frosting and daunting layers. Not surprisingly, this Milk soak chocolate sheet cake is one of the most popular recipes on the Bibby’s Kitchen blog. Sheet cakes are the easiest way to feed a crowd. They also travel well which makes them a handy dessert to take along to bring and share gatherings. Finicky details are out the window and it’s all about taste.
The sponge is light and airy, but once soaked with the milky syrup, becomes rich and sticky. No dry anything here. For the ganache frosting I’ve used a combination of milk and 70% dark chocolate. The milk chocolate is for sweetness and the dark, for deeply roasted flavour. To give the frosting a glossy sheen, I add liquid glucose, but you can substitute with honey or golden syrup.
Milk Soak Chocolate Sheet Cake
- 45 g (1/2 cup) cocoa
- 180 ml (3/4 cup) boiling water
- 180 ml (3/4 cup) flavourless vegetable oil
- 4 eggs
- 5 ml (1 teaspoon) vanilla extract
- 50 g (3/4 cup) castor sugar
- 225 g (1 1/2 cups) cake wheat flour
- 7.5 ml (1 1/2 teaspoons) baking powder
- 1.25 ml fine salt
Milk soak
- 400 g tin evaporated milk
- 150 g (3/4 cup) light brown sugar
- 5 ml (1 teaspoon) vanilla extract
- pinch of fine salt
Chocolate Ganache Topping
- 200 g milk chocolate
- 200 g dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids)
- 80 ml (1/3 cup) fresh cream
- 15 ml (1 tablespoon) liquid glucose or honey
- 100 g toasted hazelnuts
- Preheat the oven to 180º C. Line and grease a 32 x 22 cm rectangular baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Combine the cocoa and boiling water in a small bowl.
- In large mixing bowl, whisk together the oil, eggs, vanilla and castor sugar. Add the cocoa paste to the egg mixture and whisk to combine.
- Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together, then add to the egg mixture, whisking until just combined. Pour the batter into the tin and bake for 30-35 minutes or until cooked through. Always check for doneness before removing the cake from the oven.
- In the meanwhile. make the milk soak. Place all the ingredients in a small saucepan and bring up to the boil. Simmer for 3 minutes.
- Poke holes in the top of the cake as soon as it comes out the oven. Slowly ladle the hot milk over the cake, then set aside to cool.
- To make the chocolate ganache , melt the milk and dark chocolate, cream and glucose together in a heatproof bowl. I usually do this in the microwave. Whisk until smooth. Spread the ganache over the cooled cake and top with toasted hazelnuts.
3.5.3208
18 Comments. Leave new
Hi Bibbi, do you ladle the hot sauce over the hot cake straight from the oven? thanks for another good recipe
This cake looks incredible and all that frosting? YUM.
For stress-free baking, this sheet cake is definitely the answer. And as you say, then there’s the truffle frosting!
Morning Cheryl. Yes, as soon as the cake is out the oven, ladle over the sauce. It will soak up better while it’s still hot. Let me know how it goes. Enjoy!
This was delicious!!! Made it for a crowd 😉 and it was quick and stress free. That ganache frosting is amazing!! Not too sweet. Thanks Di 🙂
How insane is this cake? You think one slice will do, until you have that one slice… The ganache frosting is so versatile. It’s especially good with cupcakes in place of a buttercream frosting or on that fudgy banana bread.
Wow, that looks absolutely divine!
Hi Anna. It’s definitely the kind of cake you’d need some friends round for. Left lurking on the counter, could be fatal! Thanks for stopping by.
Hi Dianne -I made this for my staff, and it was such a hit as well as being very easy to make. I left out the hazelnuts as one of them is allergic, and piled Chuckles on top instead. This is going to be a go-to recipe from now on.
Those Chuckles sound like the perfect solution Kate! Needless to say, if I’m looking for a failsafe and decadently rich cake to feed a crowd, this chocolate cake has it wrapped up. So glad it went down a storm.
Too much evaporative milk , the cake was swimming in it, i had to tip a lot out
Hi Dianne!
I noticed it says “add the cocoa paste”. I don’t think cocoa paste is available here. Will cocoa powder do the same job? Do I need a different amount in that case?
Love, Vee
Hello Vilde. The cocoa paste is made up of the cocoa powder and boiling water. Both quantities are specified in the ingredient list. I hope that helps. Enjoy!
Hi Samme. Not sure what could’ve gone awry here. It is very saucy at the bottom, almost like pudding cake, if you will. I’ve been making this recipes for years and it always worked. The only thing I can suggest is to double check the size of the baking tin and cooking times. Also, I pour the syrup over the cake while still hot so that it absorbs most of the liquid.
Very excited to try this, thank you so much! No evaporated milk where I am, any ideas for a substitute?
Hello Annie. I think the next best thing would be to thin down fresh cream. Depending on the fat content of the cream, I’d say perhaps use the ratio of 3 to 1 of your using single or fresh cream.
I hope that helps.
Hi due to. a lack of oven in house we are trying in for Easter weekend , could I make this 2 days before need? thanks
Hi Michele. So sorry to the late reply. I hope you went ahead, anyhow. This cake is very flexible. A couple of days is perfect.