Name: Chocolate Depression Cake
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour; 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder; 1 cup granulated sugar; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1 teaspoon vinegar; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 1/3 cup vegetable oil; 1 cup water

Featuring no milk, butter, or eggs, this decadent chocolate depression cake recipe is magically both deliciously fudgy yet fluffy, like a devil’s food cake made from scratch.

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Friends, today I have something you need in your life: chocolate depression cake. It’s something that is ridiculously simple to make and decadently delicious.

Now, you’re probably wondering why it’s called a depression cake? Well, recipes like this grew in popularity during hard times in our history like The Great Depression, when ingredients for typical cakes grew scarce. This particular depression cake recipe uses simple pantry ingredients and doesn’t need any butter, milk, or even eggs! It is kind of the dairy-free fluffy cake version of my Mama’s Chocolate Cobbler. It’s also known as a Crazy Cake or Wacky Cake, as a cake without butter is definitely a Wacky Cake, right?

Don’t let the simple ingredients fool ya into thinking this is a run-of-the-mill cake, though! With a deeply rich and fudgy chocolate flavor and fluffy texture, it is similar to a moist devil’s food cake. We like it without icing as a great snack cake, but you can add in some simple frosting to make it a dessert worthy of any table. Just note that the frosting does include dairy.

Recipe Ingredients

All-purpose flour
Unsweetened cocoa powder
Sugar
Baking soda
Salt
Cinnamon
Vanilla extract
Vegetable oil (I regularly use refined coconut oil, which doesn’t have a coconut flavor).
Vinegar
Water

Stir together all of your dry ingredients first.

Once your dry ingredients are mixed together, add in all of your wet ingredients.

Give that a stir until well combined.

Pour into a greased 8×8 baking dish.

This batter is heavenly!

Bake at 350 for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Can you smell it? I sure can. Wish you were here!

Look at that crazy beautiful chocolate crazy cake!

I just topped the cooled cake with a can of frosting, but you can whip up a homemade frosting, glaze, or sprinkle a little confectioner’s sugar over the top.

Look at this pretty little slice of chocolate depression cake, just waiting for you to eat it!

There ya go!

YUM!

Storage

Store cake leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Freeze slices of the frosted or unfrosted chocolate cake for up to 3 months.

Recipe Notes

Now, y’all know I’m all about dumping it all in a bowl and going for it. But in this recipe, make sure you pay attention. If you stir all your dry ingredients together first, your batter comes together as smooth as can be in no time at all.
As mentioned, you can serve this chocolate wacky cake recipe in lots of different ways. Simply sprinkle a slice with powdered sugar, serve with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or top with icing. You will find a recipe for vanilla icing here or homemade creamy chocolate frosting here.
To make this cake recipe into cupcakes, pour the chocolate cake batter into a lined muffin tin. Fill each cup about 3/4 full and bake for 15 to 20 minutes at 350.
To make this chocolate depression cake gluten-free, simply use gluten-free all-purpose flour.