Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Family Recipe File Crazy Chocolate Cake



(Update March 25, 2020: Who knew when I posted this in 2011 we would be going through a pandemic 9 years later! What's great about this recipe? You don't need eggs or milk, which can be hard to find right now! And we all need chocolate, right?)

This has to be the easiest chocolate cake to make—ever! As I was looking through my Mamaw’s recipe box to find another recipe to share with you, I came across this Crazy Chocolate Cake recipe. I remember making it growing up, so my mom must have the recipe too, though I don’t know if Mamaw gave the recipe to Mom or vice versa. This is one of the few times Mamaw didn't write where she got the recipe on the card.

What is great about this cake is you mix it together in the same pan in which you bake it. No mixer. No bowl. Just the baking dish and a fork. And no eggs or milk, either! The vinegar in the mix helps the cake rise. From what I’ve read, this recipe (and many others similar to it) was developed during the Great Depression as a cost-effective way to make a chocolate cake without expensive ingredients.


The cake is tasty without frosting—moist, rich and chocolaty. I just dust it with powdered sugar. But feel free to top it with your favorite frosting. Enjoy!


Author: Linda Ditch
Crazy Chocolate Cake

Crazy Chocolate Cake

A Great Depression-era cake made without eggs and milk, mixed and baked in one pan.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/4 cups flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 8 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vinegar
  • 1/2 cup cooking oil
  • 1 1/2 cups water

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift the dry ingredients into a 12 x 7 1/2 x 2-inch baking pan.
  2. Mix together and make 3 indentations in the dry ingredients. Into one hole, put vanilla, into another put vinegar, and into third put cooking oil. Pour water over all and mix batter well with a fork.
  3. Bake for about 30 minutes or until the center springs back to the touch. After cooling, dust the top with powdered sugar. (optional.)

1 comment:

  1. This is fascinating. I am loving the 'old timey' recipes, and the concept of everything done in one single pan is pretty tempting.

    ReplyDelete