Graduation Sheet Cake (Printable)

Moist vanilla sheet cake with creamy buttercream and colorful piped roses for a festive centerpiece.

# Ingredient List:

→ Sheet Cake

01 - 3 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 2½ teaspoons baking powder
03 - ½ teaspoon baking soda
04 - ½ teaspoon salt
05 - 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
06 - 2 cups granulated sugar
07 - 4 large eggs, room temperature
08 - 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
09 - 1¼ cups whole milk, room temperature

→ Buttercream Frosting

10 - 1½ cups unsalted butter, room temperature
11 - 6 cups powdered sugar, sifted
12 - ¼ cup whole milk
13 - 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
14 - Gel food coloring in assorted colors

# Directions:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 12x18-inch sheet cake pan and line with parchment paper.
02 - In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
03 - In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together using an electric mixer until light and fluffy, approximately 3-4 minutes.
04 - Add eggs one at a time to the creamed mixture, beating well after each addition. Mix in vanilla extract until fully combined.
05 - Alternately add flour mixture and milk to the creamed mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Mix just until combined, avoiding overmixing.
06 - Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
07 - Allow cake to cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before removing from pan.
08 - Beat butter until creamy. Gradually add sifted powdered sugar, then milk and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes.
09 - Divide buttercream into separate bowls. Add gel food coloring to portions for roses (red, pink, yellow) and leaves (green). Keep some white for the base layer.
10 - Spread a thin layer of white buttercream over the cooled cake to create a smooth, even base.
11 - Fit piping bags with petal tips for roses and leaf tips for foliage. Pipe decorative roses and leaves across the cake surface, focusing on corners and borders.
12 - Using a small round piping tip, pipe a congratulations message or personalized graduation greeting on the cake.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It's the rare cake that feels both impressive and genuinely achievable, even if you've never piped a rose before.
  • The vanilla base is so buttery and moist that people will ask for the recipe, and you'll love that you can actually give it to them.
02 -
  • Room temperature ingredients are not a suggestion—they're the difference between a cake that turns out silky and one that's dense and separated.
  • Gel food coloring is worth seeking out because liquid coloring will thin your buttercream and make piping nearly impossible, and you'll regret not planning ahead.
03 -
  • Invest in gel food coloring and quality piping tips because these two things alone will make your roses look like they came from a bakery, and they cost almost nothing.
  • Practice piping on a piece of parchment paper first if roses are new to you, because confidence shows in the final cake, and knowing you can do it changes everything.
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