Chocolate Buttermilk Squares are made with buttermilk and cocoa powder in the moist cake and rich frosting. The perfect dessert for a crowd!
These buttermilk bars are made in a big sheet pan, similar to a Chocolate Texas Sheet Cake. Plus, we’ve added buttermilk to this Cake Recipe, which gives the squares a slightly tangy taste and a wonderfully tender texture. Chocolate lovers are sure to go crazy for these Buttermilk Squares!
CHOCOLATE BUTTERMILK SQUARES
The key ingredient to these buttermilk bars is, of course, the buttermilk. Buttermilk has a lot of purposes like helping quick bread dough to rise, or making Pancakes extra fluffy. In this Chocolate Buttermilk Bar recipe, it adds a tangy flavor to the cake as well as the frosting. Mixing it into the cake batter also helps to make the recipe extra moist. The finished dessert is unbelievably soft and flavorful!
This delicious treat is sure to become a favorite recipe for when you need to serve a lot of people. The large pan makes them perfect to bring to a potluck, party, or dinner with friends.
Along with how many servings you get, it is also a super quick recipe. It only takes a few minutes to combine the ingredients, then you only have to bake for 20 minutes, and finish by pouring the chocolate frosting over the top. As long as you give it enough time to cool, you’ll have the perfect dessert that’s easy to transport, and ready to go!
HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN BUTTERMILK
If you don’t want to buy a whole container of buttermilk just to use for one recipe, you can make buttermilk yourself using plain milk and lemon juice or vinegar.
- Add 2% milk to a glass measuring cup. Fill it up 1 tablespoon short of the cup mark.
- Mix 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar into the glass of milk.
- Let the mixture sit for 5-10 minutes at room temperature until it’s slightly thickened with curdled bits.
- Measure out as much as you need of the buttermilk to use in the recipe.
MORE DESSERTS WITH BUTTERMILK
Cinnamon Raisin Quickbread
Buttermilk Pie
Iced Strawberry Brownies
Orange Bundt Cake
BAKING TIPS
- Prep time: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and prep the 15×10 baking pan with nonstick spray and parchment paper.
- Chocolate Buttermilk batter: Add the butter, cocoa powder, and water to a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk as the butter melts until the chocolate mixture is well combined. Then remove from heat. In a mixing bowl, combine the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Whisk until creamy, then stir in the cocoa mixture. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Whisk in the dry ingredients until just combined.
- Baking time: Pour the batter into the baking dish. Use an offset spatula to make sure it is all spread evenly. Bake for 20 minutes.
- Chocolate frosting: Add butter, cocoa powder, buttermilk, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk until the frosting is smooth. Pour over the warm cake and spread it evenly. Let the frosting and cake cool completely before slicing into squares.
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VARIATIONS
- Chocolate chips: If you want some extra chocolate in the Chocolate Buttermilk Squares recipe, try mixing some chocolate chips into the batter. Dark chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips, or semisweet chocolate chips would all work well.
- Pecans: After adding the frosting, you can sprinkle some chopped pecans over the top of the cake. They’ll add a nice crunch to the moist dessert.
- Frosting: You can also try adding different kinds of frosting to this recipe depending on your taste. Chocolate Ganache, Buttercream, or Cream Cheese Frosting would all taste good with this simple chocolate cake base.
MORE SHEET CAKES
Yellow Sheet Cake with Chocolate Frosting
Peanut Butter Sheet Cake
Chocolate Sheet Cake
Lemon Sheet Cake
HOW TO STORE
- Serve: Kept covered in plastic wrap, Chocolate Buttermilk Squares can keep well at room temperature for up to 4 days.
- Store: Carefully cover the squares to store them in the fridge for up to 1 week. Leave them out for a half-hour or so to bring them to room temperature before serving.
- Freeze: Cover the dish in plastic wrap, and then tin foil to keep it in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let it thaw at room temperature before serving.
Ingredients
Chocolate Buttermilk Cake:
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup baking cocoa
- 1 cup water
- 2 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Poured Chocolate Frosting:
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/3 cup buttermilk
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 15x10 baking pan with baking spray and line with parchment paper.
- To a medium saucepan add butter, cocoa powder, and water on medium heat.
- Whisk until well mixed.
- Remove from heat.
- To a large mixing bowl add sugar, buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla and mix well until creamy.
- Add in cocoa mixture and whisk well.
- Add flour, baking soda, and salt, whisking until just combined.
- Pour batter into baking dish and bake for 20 minutes.
- To your medium saucepan add butter, cocoa powder, buttermilk, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract.
- Whisk until smooth.
- Pour over warm cake and spread evenly.
- Let cool completely before slicing.
Nutrition
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