No butter, no milk, and no eggs needed! Wacky Cake, Crazy Cake, Depression Cake, this super simple, one-bowl cake recipe goes by many names. It’s incredibly moist, rich, and fudgy despite being made with only basic pantry staples! Also includes an easy chocolate icing made with no butter, milk, or eggs!
I didn’t originally plan to share this recipe on the blog today but, considering current events and the fact that many of us are self isolating at home, I thought some basic, simple recipes were in order. Ones that would help you make the most of the ingredients you currently have on hand and don’t require any unnecessary grocery store visits.
Today’s “Crazy Cake” is precisely that kind of recipe. It uses no butter, no eggs, and no milk and yet yields an insanely moist, fudgy chocolate cake. It’s made in just one bowl and is basically fool-proof. Despite the simplicity of the recipe, it holds its own against even my favorite chocolate cake recipe.
Crazy cake (also known as “Wacky Cake”) is not my own invention. It’s a product of the depression era when ingredients were scarce and people had to make the best of what they could find in their pantry. It’s made an appearance on the blog before, in the form of the cupcake base for my grandmother’s recipe for black bottom cupcakes, so it might even seem familiar to you.
How to Make Crazy Cake:
- Start by whisking together all of your dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt) in a large bowl. Back in the day, the ingredients were often mixed together directly in the baking pan, but I think it’s easier and worth the extra dish to make in a separate bowl.
- Make a well in the center (see photo above).
- Add your wet ingredients (water, oil, vinegar, and vanilla extract) into the well in the center of the bowl.
- Whisk all ingredients together until you have a smooth cake batter.
- Pour into an 8×8″ baking dish and bake until cooked through. Cool and cover with icing, if desired (more on the icing below!).
Wacky cake is incredibly simple to make, but the easiest way to go wrong is by accidentally over-baking the cake. Keep an eye on it and cook just until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (or with a few moist crumbs).
Icing
It goes without saying that you can really use any icing you’d like on this cake. Buttercream frosting, chocolate frosting, peanut butter frosting, cream cheese frosting, even Swiss meringue buttercream, any of these would work great (though you would only need a half-batch).
But…! All of these recipes use butter. And some of them use milk, or eggs! And if we had butter and milk and eggs… well we’d probably just be making classic chocolate cake, right? We wouldn’t be here in the first place. So I wanted to provide you with a frosting that also uses no butter, milk, or eggs.
Technically this frosting is a glaze, but it’s a thick, fudgy one (it reminds me of the glaze I use on my Texas sheet cake). It’s incredibly simple to make: whisk together powdered sugar, cocoa powder, water, and vanilla extract until smooth.
Can I Make this in a 9×13″ pan?
Making this exact recipe in a 9×13″ pan would yield a very thin cake. If you double the recipe, though, you can make it in a 9×13″ pan. You can also make the recipe as written in a 9×9″ or 11×7″ pan, you will just need to reduce the baking time by about 5 minutes or so.
What’s with the Vinegar?
I’ve had a lot of people ask me if they can make crazy cake without vinegar. Unfortunately, because this recipe is made without eggs, the vinegar is a necessity. It reacts with the baking soda to give the cake its lift and perfect texture (and does not make the cake taste like vinegar at all!) I do not know of a substitute that would work as well, though you can use white vinegar or apple cider.
Can I Make a Vanilla Crazy Cake?
Yes! Just leave out the cocoa powder for a vanilla version. I also like to increase the amount of vanilla extract used to 1 ½ teaspoons.
How to Store:
Store in an airtight container (or just cover the cake with plastic wrap) at room temperature for up to 5 days. It will keep longer in the refrigerator, but keep it tightly covered to keep it from drying out.
Enjoy!
More Recipes You Might Like:
Are you more of a visual learner? Check out my YouTube channel where I show you exactly how I make this cake step-by-step in my own kitchen.
Crazy Cake
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (190 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup (35 g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup water
- ⅓ cup (80 ml) canola or vegetable oil
- 1 Tablespoon white vinegar¹
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
ICING
- 1 ½ cups (190 g) powdered sugar
- ¼ cup (25 g) natural cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and lightly grease an 8x8 glass baking dish².
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.1 ½ cups (190 g) all-purpose flour, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar, ⅓ cup (35 g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt
- Make a well in the center of the bowl and add the water, oil, vinegar, and vanilla extract.1 cup water, ⅓ cup (80 ml) canola or vegetable oil, 1 Tablespoon white vinegar¹, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Whisk or stir all ingredients together until batter is smooth.
- Pour batter into prepared baking dish and bake on 350F (175C) for about 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Do not over-bake or the cake will be dry.
- Allow cake to cool before frosting.
ICING:
- To prepare the icing, whick together sugar, cocoa powder, water, vanilla extract, and salt until smooth. Icing should be a thick and fudgy consistency, but should be spread-able. If it is too thick, add additional water one teaspoon at a time until the proper consistency is achieved.1 ½ cups (190 g) powdered sugar, ¼ cup (25 g) natural cocoa powder, 2 tablespoons water, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, ⅛ teaspoon salt
- Once cake has cooled, gently spread frosting evenly overtop. Enjoy!
Notes
Store covered at room temperature for up to 5 days. Cake will keep even longer if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator by the fridge may dry out the cake a bit.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Abigail
This recipe is the best! It is fast super easy and taste delicious!
I make it almost every week!
Thank you!
Marilyn
I am wondering about making this as cupcakes. A friend gave me this recipe many, many years ago and it was double your amount. She made as a cake and it reminded me so much of a cake my mother had delivered by a baker in the 60s. Yes, he took orders and delivered to the neighborhood in Upstate NY. 🙂 Along with the milk delivery person, but I digress. I’m wondering if you had made this as cupcakes and approximately how many it would make? I’ve seen the other comments of those that said they just watched the baking time. Thanks for all your help and recipes!
Sam
Hi Marilyn! It should work just fine as cupcakes. I’m not sure on a bake time though. I would guess it would make around 12-15.
Terri White
I hadn’t heard of this cake but I tried it tonight. I left the glaze as vanilla on the chocolate cake. As advertised, it was very easy and delicious! I sent the link to my BFF because her daughter is dairy free. This will be perfect for her.
Thank you for another hit!
SUE
How would I convert this to a lemon crazy-cake? Thanks!
Sam
Hi Sue! Unfortunately without having tried it, I can’t say for sure how it would go. I’m sorry. 🙁
Barbara Howard
I love this cake. I grew up with it. Brings back a lot of memories❤️
Cara
I’ve made this so much with all different flavors. For lemon, I’d say you should nix the cocoa powder, add in the Zest of 2 lemons, or more, depending on preference, and swap out half the water for lemon juice. You can also leave the water if you have lemon extract, which you can swap out for the vanilla. When I do it though, I keep the vanilla, add lemon extract, add the Zest of 2 lemons, and do 1 part lemon juice and 3 parts water, but my husband LOVES lemon, so it really depends on your preferences. hope that helps, even though it’s late!
Jan
This has been our family favorite cake since I’ve been born – literally.
We’ve always made it with a Mocha Frosting (which I also use on my Aldi’s box brownies that people think are Rock Star brownies when I share them). Here’s my frosting recipe.
Cream 1/2 c butter, 2 heaping cups of powdered sugar, 6T cocoa, 4T strong coffee (I use instant), 1 tsp vanilla.
This is enough frosting if you leave it in the pan.
Enjoy!
Mari
We all love it 😍 specially my grandkids.Thank you Sam, all your
recipes are 👍🏼👍🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
So happy to hear it, Mari! Thanks for your review ❤️
Elline
Followed your tips for the 11x 7 pan and baked for 25ish mins, tried to follow the recipe and it is DELICIOUS!!! I did accidentally put a lil too much water on the icing but it was nice and gooey which we enjoyed, we were also little nervous because the icing was too sweet for us but once it was topped on the cake it was *chefs kiss* perfect combination. This recipe is a KEEPER. Thank you so much!!!
Will definitely try the vanilla version too!
Elline
Yaaass! I’ve finally found a recipe that I can make during a weeknight!
I have a question though, what are your thoughts on turning this into like a poke cake with one of your signature frostings?
Sam
Hi Elline! That should work just fine. 🙂
Elaine
All the military wives I knew had this recipe memorized because it was so yummy and easy to make on a budget!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Exactly! We love that it saves you a trip to the store too 😊
Aubree
I was craving something chocolate today and was going to just buy something at the store but then thought why? I told my 4 year old daughter who loves “Sam recipes” and watching your videos that we are going to bake today and she got to pick which chocolate treat. She said chocolate cake and I wanted an easy recipe that didn’t make too much. Sam…. Wow. Just Wow. We couldn’t wait for it to cool all the way before adding the frosting and honestly I think the warmth let is spread easily and smooth. Then we still could not wait for it to cool before having a piece and I am glad we didn’t. It is delicious warm and cooled (had another piece later). I am definitely keeping this recipe on hand. So easy, quick and absolutely delicious. I love making memories cooking/baking in the kitchen with my daughter and you and your recipes add to the fun and success of the many things we have made. Thank you!
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Aubree! 🙂
elizabeth s wiebelt
I’m not a very good baker, but this cake came out perfect. My husband loved it!! I do however, have a question that my husband wanted to know. How can I make a yellow cake as easy as this??
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Elizabeth! We’re so happy your husband loved the crazy cake! We actually cover how to make a vanilla cake in the post 🙂
Sharita
I made this cake about two nights ago….. the YUMMIEST cake!!! I am so very grateful for this recipe and I WILL NOT use another, this is it HANDS DOWN!!! It was sssooo moist, delicious and out right G-O-O-D! Thank you for sharing this recipe and I’ve shared it with all that will listen 🙂
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy it was a hit for you, Sharita! Thanks for sharing our recipe ❤️
Anna
Hi Sam! I am such a big fan!! Thank you for posting this recipe. I have been looking for something to make for the birthday of a very lactose intolerant little girl. Can this recipe be made into cupcakes or will it dry out too much?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Anna! This should work well for cupcakes, but we aren’t sure on bake time. Keep an eye on them and check with a toothpick for doneness. Please let us know how they turn out; we hope the birthday girl loves them! ❤️
Suneek
Hi , I’ve tried this recipe for cupcakes and it works great. I just kept an eye on the oven because I wasn’t sure how much time it would take for baking the cupcakes.
Christina
Thank you for the recipe! My son is allergic to milk, egg, and nuts, so this was perfect for his 1st birthday. Everyone said they never would have guessed it was missing the eggs and dairy! I used half water and half coffee, which I find makes the chocolate flavor richer. The icing was a nice complement in a thin layer. I did find the very edges seemed a bit dry, although the interior of the cake was perfectly moist. I used a ceramic bake dish, so I’m not sure if that’s the reason. Either way we will be using this recipe again!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Christina! We’re so happy to hear your son was able to enjoy this cake. The dry edges could very well be be from the ceramic dish; next time, try using a metal pan and let us know how it turns out. 🙂
anousheh
Just perfect ,the best recipe for crazy cake
Rashmi Devaprasath
Hi Sam.. my daughters BFF is allergic to egg, vinegar and bananas 🤯 and most eggless cake recipes have vinegar in them. I understand the need for the vinegar but have you tried out any other options which might work as well? Will lime juice work?
Sam
Hi Rashmi! So honestly I have not tried lime juice in this recipe. I am inclined to think that lime or lemon juice would work, but without having tried it myself I am hesitant to say for sure, I’m really sorry! If you do try it, I would love to know if it works for you in case anyone else has the same question.