Without milk or eggs, this bizarre cake is moist, tasty, and dark. a creation of clever cooks during the Great Depression who came up with a cake that could be created without pricey and limited ingredients. Using your preferred frosting, frost.
| Prep Time: | 10 mins |
| Cook Time: | 30 mins |
| Total Time: | 40 mins |
| Servings: | 10 |
| Yield: | 1 8×8-inch pan |
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup white sugar
- 4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Sift together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into an 8×8-inch ungreased cake pan. Make 3 depressions in the flour mixture. Pour oil into one well, vinegar into second, and vanilla into third well. Pour water over all, then stir with a fork until well blended.
- Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes.
Reviews
I added extra cocoa powder to give it a deeper chocolate color and flavor.
This flavor of this cake is good. Much better for you than store bought. If you double it I suggest adding a 1/4 to half cup more water. I use it whenever I make chocolate cake. It goes really well with raspberries because of the dark chocolate flavor.
It worked, made as ring form to make an ice-cream cake. I used coffee and brown sugar and apple cider vinegar. Was looking for dairy and egg free cake.
I make this with GF flour and it works for everyone in my family including the Vegans!!
Made it when I was younger. I couldn’t remember the recipe. I am so happy you all had it.
Great recipe!
I used butter instead of oil and I use cinnamon instead of cocoa powder…. I poked with a fork a few times… Sorry y’all
The only chocolate cake recipe I use! If I have left over coffee I use it instead of water. My family and friends love peanut butter frosting on this cake.
Turned out great. Used olive oil as the oil ingredient. Will definitely be making again.
This is a go to recipe for our family. My son has a dairy and egg allergy so we use use it regularly. Everyone loves it and I have made a few easy swaps that really elevate it. I have swapped the vanilla for cherry extract for a cherry chocolate cake. But normally I use vegan butter in place of the vegetable oil and coffee instead of the water. I’ve made frosting but usually we just sprinkle the cupcakes with powdered sugar.
I grew up on this! It’s been in our family for generations, our recipe is exactly like this. We recently subbed lemon juice for vinegar and it came out great! We always top it with lemon frosting and sprinkles 😉
Our go-to cake for nearly 15 years, it’s AMAZING!! And with food allergies to peanuts, all tree nuts and eggs, this cake was a lifesaver!!! It’s always moist and a great texture!! Love it and would make even if we did not have food allergies!!
I’ve made this for years. So easy and delicious. I top it with a dusting of powdered sugar. Easy peasy!
This is my favorite cake. I always frost it with peanut butter frosting.
My mother gave me this recipe with the name “Cake pan Cake”. I have been making this recipe for over 50 years! I’ve made it so much I know it by heart. It is “dangerous” as it is so quick and easy to make. It is so moist and chocolatey.
Replaced the water with cold coffee. Makes the chocolate ‘bloom’ and taste more chocolatey.
Have been making this cake for years. My mom got me started when I was a little girl. My kids love it as much as I do and it’s so easy to make. Anyone who likes chocolate cake will like this too.
Delicious!! Chocolate and moist. I made this cake with my son. Quick and easy. Thank you for sharing!
I love this cake! I doubled the cocoa (because there is no such thing as too much chocolate!), and used balsamic vinegar (that pairs nicely with chocolate). This cake is super soft and has just the right amount of sweetness.
Pros: Easy, inexpensive, few ingredients, suitable for the egg- and dairy- intolerant, quick, and only dirtied one pan, which is the pan it was baked in. Cons: cake is a bit on the dry side. I found the flavor to be alright, but it really needed a rich and creamy frosting to counter the dryness in the cake itself.
Moist, easy to make and flavorful. Easiest cake to make.