This delicious Chocolate Wacky Cake recipe was a popular dessert during the depression because it doesn’t have any eggs, butter, or milk in it. This recipe serves 9 and costs $3.96 to make (including the peanut butter frosting!). That’s just 44¢ per serving!
Do you ever have a craving for a cake but do not want to head out to the store to get all the ingredients? Same! We like to be problem solvers so we did some research and found a cake that can be made with ingredients that we all have in our pantry.
Wacky Cake, Crazy Cake, and Depression Cake
The cake is commonly known as Wacky Cake. It is a classic cake, which originated during the Great Depression, due to the lack of food supplies. The cake is made without eggs, butter, or milk! It has also been called Poor Man’s Cake, War Cake, Depression Cake, and even Crazy Cake. Whichever name you choose to call it, we can all agree that it is crazy good!
We made a few adjustments to the recipe that we found on allrecipes and we are absolutely thrilled with the results. This Wacky Cake Recipe gives you a moist chocolate cake with a creamy peanut butter frosting on top. It will absolutely be the solution to your cake craving! And as if a dreamy peanut butter frosting atop a delicious chocolate cake wasn’t enough, this Wacky Cake is super budget-friendly! Now you really can have your cake and eat it too! Life is good friends.
This is a great recipe to get your kids involved in too. It is just so simple. It will be another fun way to make memories together in the kitchen. Isn’t that what we all want? Jill’s daughter loved putting the sprinkles on top to make the cake “extra wacky.” We can’t wait to see fun pictures of you and your loved ones in the kitchen whipping up this recipe!
The kids will also love watching the chemical reaction of the baking soda and vinegar in the cake batter!
Make sure you pin this recipe to use again and again!
Wacky Cake Recipe Questions Answered:
Why is it called Wacky Cake?
It is also sometimes referred to as Crazy Cake, Joe Cake or even WWII cake. We call it Wacky Cake because it is just so crazy that you can make this cake with standard pantry items and end up with a moist chocolate cake. You would think it would turn out dry tasting without any milk or eggs, but it is quite the opposite! This cake was first created during World War II when food was being rationed during the war. Eggs and Milk were hard to come by but people still wanted, and I would say, even needed cake! Because, let’s be honest, we all NEED cake, no matter the situation!
Can I use lemon juice instead of vinegar in the cake?
Lemon juice is a great substitute for vinegar. It is a 1:2 ratio. Our recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of vinegar so you would use 2 teaspoons of lemon juice instead.
How do you make a wacky cake from scratch:
- First, mix together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a greased 8-inch square baking pan.
- Next, make 3 holes in the dry ingredients (two small and one large). Pour the vinegar in one small hole, vanilla in the other small hole, and the vegetable oil in the third larger hole.
- Then pour the water over the pan and use a wooden spoon to mix until smooth. Be sure to get the corners!
- Bake for 35 minutes and cool.
- Next, make the wacky cake frosting by placing vegetable shortening and peanut butter in a bowl and beat until smooth and creamy.
- Add powdered sugar and beat until well blended until it begins to thicken. Then add the vanilla and 1 tablespoon of water at a time and mix until it is fluffy.
- Finally, spread frosting over the cake, add the sprinkles, cut and serve!
How to get the kids involved with this recipe:
- Ages 2-3: Let them help mix the dry ingredients together in the square pan. They’ll also love watching the baking soda and vinegar chemical reaction! Little ones will also love pouring the sprinkles on the cake!
- Ages 4-5: Have them help make the holes in the dry ingredients and pour the wet ingredients in the holes. Explain to them why the vinegar bubbles up. (The baking soda and vinegar in the cake ingredients react with each other because of an acid-base reaction. Baking soda is a bicarbonate and vinegar is an acetic acid. When they mix together they create a reaction that has a byproduct of carbon dioxide (the bubbles).
- Ages 6-8: Have them make the frosting and spread it over the cake.
- Ages 9-11: Supervise them while they prepare the entire recipe. Remember to have them read it twice before beginning the recipe.
- Ages 12+: Let them prepare the entire recipe, unsupervised, while you do the happy dance in the corner!
Discover why we love getting the kids involved in the kitchen and more tips in our How to Get Kids Involved In Cooking article.
Wacky Cake Recipe and Flavor Variations:
- You can double the recipe below and bake it in a 9×13-inch pan. Just increase the baking time to 40-45 minutes.
- You can leave the frosting off the cake and serve it plain (see picture below) or with a dusting of powdered sugar.
- Feel free to frost the cake with your favorite frosting recipe.
More Recipes to Make with Pantry Ingredients:
- Homemade White Bread
- Dry Roasted Chickpeas
- Easy Chana Masala
- Homemade Granola
- Instant Pot Refried Beans
- Tomato Chicken Alfredo
How long is this good for:
- Store: This cake is best stored at room temperature. It will keep for about 3-4 days when covered tightly.
- Freeze: This cake freezes well (with or without our peanut butter frosting). Wrap the cake in 2 layers of plastic wrap and 2 layers of foil. Frozen this way, the cake will keep for 3-6 months.
How much will this recipe cost:
RECIPE COST: $3.96
PRICE PER SERVING: $0.44
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour – $0.29
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder – $0.38
- 1 cup granulated sugar – $0.23
- 1 teaspoon baking soda – $0.01
- 1/2 teaspoon salt – $0.01
- 2 teaspoons white vinegar or apple cider vinegar – $0.01
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract – $0.17
- 5 Tablespoons vegetable oil – $0.15
- 1 cup water – $0
- 1/2 cup vegetable shortening – $0.72
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter – $1.41
- 3 Tablespoons warm water – $0
- 2 cups powdered sugar – $0.58
To find out more about how we price our recipes, check out Budget Recipes Explained.
Cook’s Tools:
- 8-inch square baking pan
- whisk
- measuring spoons
- measuring cups
- wooden spoon
- wire rack
- medium bowl
- handheld mixer
More $5 Recipes:
- Buttermilk Sheet Pan Pancakes
- Crock Pot Greek Yogurt
- Dry Roasted Chickpeas
- Eggs Benedict Breakfast Braid
- French Toast with Blueberry Syrup
- Green Smoothie
- Instant Pot Refried Beans
- Mango Banana Smoothie
- Red Velvet Buttermilk Waffles
Chocolate Wacky Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting
Recipe Cost $3.96 Recipe Serving Cost $0.44Equipment
- 8x8-inch square pan
- measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
- whisk
- wire rack
- Medium bowl
- handheld mixer
Ingredients
FOR THE CAKE:
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 5 Tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 cup water
FOR THE PEANUT BUTTER FROSTING:
- ½ cup butter or vegetable shortening at room temperature
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter at room temperature
- 3 tablespoons warm water or milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract optional
- 2 cups powdered sugar sifted
Instructions
MAKE THE CAKE:
- Move oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Add flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, and salt to a greased 8-inch square baking pan. Whisk until combined.
- Make 3 depressions (or holes) in the dry ingredients – two small and one large. Pour the vinegar in one small depression, vanilla in the other small depression, and the vegetable oil in the third larger depression. Pour the water over the pan. Use a wooden spoon to mix until smooth. Make sure you get into the corners of the pan because there tends to be a build-up of dry ingredients there.
- Bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool the cake completely on a wite rack.
MAKE PEANUT BUTTER FROSTING:
- Place vegetable shortening and peanut butter in a medium to large size bowl and beat using an electric mixer until smooth and creamy.
- Add two cups of powdered sugar and beat until well blended and it begins to thicken.
- Add the vanilla and 1 tablespoon of water at a time (3 tablespoons total) – mix for approximately 3 minutes, or until it’s lighter in color, fluffy and spreadable. If the frosting is too thick, add a little more water and beat.
FINISH CAKE:
- Spread frosting over the cake. Slice and serve!
Notes
- If you have butter, we suggest using butter in the frosting instead of the vegetable shortening. We just think it tastes better.
- The amount of frosting in this recipe makes a nice thick layer. If you'd rather less frosting (and fewer calories), then simply cut the frosting recipe in half.
Nutrition
This delicious Chocolate Wacky Cake recipe was a popular dessert during the depression because it doesn’t have any eggs, butter, or milk in it. This recipe serves 9 and costs $3.96 to make (including the peanut butter frosting!). That’s just 44¢ per serving!
Noelle
I love love love chocolate cake and this one was a hit! Made it for my daughter’s birthday as we are all stuck in our house and it made her day! Thank you
Jess Jankowski
SO happy to hear that the cake made your daughter so happy! That makes our day!
Lisalia
YAY! Finally a dessert I can make with all the food shortages going on. My kids and I want something yummy and comforting. Thanks for this yummy recipe!
Jess Jankowski
YES! We all need cake, especially during the current circumstances. So happy this recipe helped you!
Hope Hill
Great recipe for times like these. I am having a lot of problems getting goceries right not especially eggs. Can’t wait to give this try. Thanks for the post. Love your recipes!
Jess Jankowski
So glad it is helpful for you, especially right now. Enjoy!