Crazy Cake goes by so many different names. You might know it as Wacky Cake or Chocolate Depression Cake. But no matter what you call it, one thing is certain — it’s delicious and always a hit!
This no egg chocolate cake recipe without milk is great for those dealing with allergies (and also great if you open the refrigerator and find out that you don’t have any eggs or the milk has gone bad)! If you’re looking for a dessert to take with you to a party or get-together, this crazy cake recipe should be on your list!
Scroll down for a printable recipe card or read on to get tips and learn how to make this delicious chocolate cake!
CRAZY CAKE
Crazy chocolate cake is so easy to make and only requires one bowl for mixing which makes cleanup easy!
The recipe is an old one and is sometimes called Depression Cake because it comes from the time of the Great Depression. I’ve even seen it called Depression Era Chocolate Cake.
It was created during the time when it could be hard to find milk, eggs, and butter. Before I learned this recipe, I didn’t even know you could make a cake without eggs unless you count making a Soda Cake. But I thought a homemade cake needed eggs, butter, and milk!
This crazy cake always comes out super moist and rich, so it’s definitely proof that you don’t need eggs or milk!
RECIPE FOR CRAZY CAKE
So I’m not the one who invented this recipe, but you know I love an easy recipe that depends on pantry basics. Not fancy ingredients needed to make this wacky chocolate cake!
To make this Crazy Cake recipe, you’ll need:
- Flour
- Sugar
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- Baking Soda
- Salt
- Water
- Vegetable Oil
- White Vinegar
- Vanilla
- Chocolate Frosting
The exact measurements for ingredients can be found in the recipe card below.
The ingredient list might feel a little long for my usual recipes, but they’re all basic. I bet you have them in your kitchen now! If you’re like me, you might need some frosting (crazy cake frosting is a must-have for even more delicious chocolate goodness) but sometimes I even have that in my pantry!
HOW TO MAKE WACKY CAKE
This recipe makes about 12 servings. It only takes about 10 minutes to prep and about 30 minutes to bake. That bake time can be important. You don’t want to overbake crazy cake because it’s moistness is one of it’s best parts!
Preheat your oven to 350°F and spray your baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. I recommend using an 11×7 baking pan for this recipe but I’ve made it in a 13×9 before too. If you make it in the larger pan, you will probably need to shorten the baking time and know that you will have a very thin cake.
If you want to use a 13×9 pan, consider doubling the recipe. You can also make this recipe in an 8×8 or 9×9 pan as well. Just be aware you might have to adjust your bake time.
Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt) in a large mixing bowl.
Create a well in the center of the dry mixture. Pour all of the liquid ingredients (water, oil, vinegar, and vanilla) into it. Then whisk to combine all of the ingredients together.
Pour the cake batter into the baking pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.
Allow the cake to cool completely and then frost with chocolate frosting and enjoy!
If you’re looking for more great cake recipes for entertaining, try Red Velvet Sheet Cake and White Wine Cake!
Crazy Cake
Ingredients
- 1½ cups flour
- 1 cup sugar
- â…“ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup water
- â…“ cup vegetable oil
- 1 Tbsp white vinegar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Chocolate frosting for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and spray an 11x7 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Make a depression in the dry ingredient mixture. Pour in the water, oil, vinegar, and vanilla extract into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Whisk to combine.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared baking dish and bake for 30-35 minutes. The cake is full baked when a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool completely and then frost with chocolate frosting (or your favorite frosting!)
Notes
Nutrition
Ariel says
Delicious and vegan if you want it to be! Thank you so much. I’m also gluten intolerant and swapped out the flour for a gluten free mix and it turned out great!
Wendy Green says
Looks delicious!! I’m gonna have to try this out!