45 minutes

Chocolate Wacky Cake (Crazy Cake)

 This Chocolate Wacky Cake is a delicious old-fashioned one-pan chocolate cake that contains no eggs, butter, or milk and is made completely with pantry staples! It’s totally wacky and vegan too!

Chocolate Wacky Cake topped with chocolate icing and sprinkles on a white cake stand.


 

Have you ever had Chocolate Wacky Cake before? It’s a really old recipe, and if you’ve had it before it’s probably because the recipe was passed on to your mother or grandmother at a church or community gathering decades ago.

Where Did The Name Come From?

Wacky Cake is believed to have come about in times of rationing during WWII, but it also called Depression Cake or Crazy Cake, which would date its creation a little earlier in America’s history, but either way, it was created when milk, eggs, and butter were scarce and people had to learn to adapt in the kitchen.

Slice of chocolate wacky cake on a white plate.

This cake is topped with the same faux ganache as my Chocolate Yogurt Cake which means even topped with a thick and indulgent icing, this cake doesn’t have any milk, eggs, or butter in it, and is totally a vegan cake too! This cake is perfect if you’re looking to only use pantry staples to make something sweet!

If you decide to omit the ganache topping, you can dust it with powdered sugar or drizzle in chocolate sauce. And if you do have the ingredients on hand, you could top it with my Cool Whip Ganache or Classic Chocolate Ganache as well.

Slice of chocolate depression cake on a white plate with a jar of icing and the rest of the cake on a cake stand behind it.

One of the other reasons this cake gets is name is that of the way it’s prepped, right in the pan it’s baked in, but make sure to whisk it up good and get all the dry ingredients mixed in before baking. You can mix the ingredients together in a bowl if you wish and then add them to the pan.

Close up photo of a slice of chocolate crazy cake.

Recipe Tools

  • An 8-inch round cake pan – this cake conveniently makes just one layer which means it’s perfect what you want something small for a family dessert or as an addition to a dessert spread for the holidays.
  • I highly recommend using a Bake Even Strip, this will help to ensure a relatively level cake once bakes and not one with a huge dome top.
  • Cake tester to make sure that your cake is perfectly cooked before pulling out of the oven.

More Cake Recipes

Wacky Cake

Pin It For Later

Click the button above to save this delicious recipe to your board!

Let’s Connect!

If you’ve tried this recipe, please let me know how you liked it in the comments below and leave a review. I love hearing from you!

Don’t forget to tag me – @sugarandsoulco on Instagram and Pinterest with your photos or join our Sugar & Soul Show-offs Community and share them there, where you can join our recipe challenges!

Chocolate Wacky Cake topped with chocolate icing and sprinkles on a white cake stand.
4.82 from 11 votes

Chocolate Wacky Cake


Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings 10 people
This Chocolate Wacky Cake is a delicious old-fashioned one-pan chocolate cake that contains no eggs, butter, or milk and is made completely with pantry staples! It's totally wacky and vegan too!

Ingredients
  

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. 
  • Use a nonstick 8-inch (round or square) cake pan, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Make four wells in the mix.
  • Add the wet ingredients into the wells and then whisk to combine, making sure all dry ingredients are mixed in.
  • Bake for 32 to 35 minutes or until toothpick comes clean from the center of the cake. 
  • Cool the cake on a cooling rack for 30 minutes before inverting and removing from the pan. Top with ganache or a dusting of powdered sugar.
  • To make the ganache, add the chopped chocolate to a microwave safe bowl and microwave on 30-second intervals, stirring between each until melted. Usually, about 90 seconds works for me, once the chocolate has melted about 90% of the way, just continue to stir and the rest with melt without further microwaving.
  • Whisk in the warm water a tablespoon or so at a time, whisking until smooth. Pour the ganache over the top of the cake and top with sprinkles if desired. The ganache will slightly harden over time.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 247kcal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Sodium: 228mg | Potassium: 65mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 20g | Calcium: 7mg | Iron: 1.3mg

Did You Make This Recipe?

Don’t forget to share it with me on Instagram @sugarandsoulco and follow on Tiktok @sugarandsoulco and Pinterest @sugarandsoulco for more!

Categories:

, , , ,

Share your thoughts!

Love this recipe? Share your thoughts with me and leave a review! And don’t forget to connect on your favorite social platform below!

4.82 from 11 votes (4 ratings without comment)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




More You'll Love