Graduation Sheet Cake Buttercream (Printable)

Soft vanilla sheet cake adorned with smooth buttercream and beautiful piped roses for a festive centerpiece.

# What You'll Need:

→ 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

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 for decorative roses and leaves

# Directions:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line a 12x18-inch sheet cake pan with parchment paper.
02 - In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
03 - In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, approximately 3 to 4 minutes.
04 - Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in vanilla extract.
05 - Alternately add flour mixture and milk to the creamed mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Mix until just combined.
06 - Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center emerges clean.
07 - Cool cake completely in the pan on a wire rack.
08 - Beat butter until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, then milk and vanilla. Beat until smooth and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes.
09 - Divide buttercream into separate bowls. Tint portions with gel food coloring for roses (red, pink, yellow) and leaves (green), leaving some white for base layer.
10 - Spread a thin layer of white buttercream over the cooled cake to create a smooth foundation.
11 - Fit piping bags with desired tips: petal tip for roses and leaf tip for foliage. Pipe roses and leaves across the cake, concentrating on corners or as a border.
12 - Using a small round piping tip, pipe a congratulatory message or personalized graduation sentiment on the cake.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • The cake itself is foolproof—soft, moist, and stays fresh for days, so you can bake ahead without stress.
  • Those buttercream roses look intimidating until you actually pipe them, and then you feel like a professional baker for the rest of your life.
  • It feeds a crowd without requiring fancy equipment or restaurant-level skill, just patience and a steady hand.
02 -
  • Room temperature ingredients are everything—I learned this the hard way by ignoring the advice, and my first cake had an odd, curdled texture that no amount of mixing could fix.
  • Don't overmix once you add the dry ingredients; the moment everything is combined, stop, because that's when gluten development turns your tender cake into something tough and disappointing.
  • Gel food coloring is absolutely worth buying instead of liquid, because liquid coloring will thin your frosting and turn your vibrant colors into pastels.
03 -
  • If your buttercream looks too soft while piping, chill it for 15 minutes—cold frosting holds shape better and makes piping far less frustrating.
  • Use parchment paper under your piping bag when you're practicing roses, because you can slide it underneath a new sheet endlessly without wasting frosting or sanity.
  • Buy a piping bag stand or prop one up in a tall glass to keep your hands free while you're filling bags with multiple colors.
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