Crazy Cake
This Depression-era crazy cake recipe combines pantry staples and leaves you with a moist, flavorful chocolate cake that is absolutely decadent!
Ingredients
Cake
- 1½ cups flour
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons cocoa
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 5 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup cold water
Frosting (optional)
- ½ cup butter melted
- ½ cup cocoa
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 5 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup milk or more if needed for desired consistency
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In an UNGREASED 8×8-inch pan, add the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Using a whisk stir together the ingredients right in the pan to sift it all together.
- Using your fingers or a spoon, make a good-sized well in the middle and two smaller wells, one on each side of the center well.
- Place the vegetable oil in the center well.
- Place the vinegar in a small well and the vanilla in the other small well.
- Pour the cold water over all of the ingredients.
- Using the whisk, stir until combined. You can also use a spoon to get into the corners and further mix until smooth. If there are bubbles in your batter, gently tap the pan on the countertop to release the bubbles.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. Remove from oven to cool completely before serving.
- Ice with frosting or powdered sugar or plain.
Frosting (optional)
- Place the cocoa in a medium mixing bowl. Add the melted butter. Using a mixer, mix together until smooth.
- Then add vanilla, powdered sugar, and milk and mix until smooth beating for 2 to 3 minutes.
Notes
This recipe can easily be doubled for a 9×13-inch pan.
The vinegar is a must in this recipe. It reacts with the baking soda to give the cake the desired texture, doing the work eggs would do in other recipes. The cake does not come out tasting like vinegar!
Keep a close eye on the cake at the 30-minute mark as you don’t want to overbake it.