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Vanilla Depression Cake – No Eggs, Milk or Butter

When you’re stuck at home with limited ingredients on hand, this Vanilla Depression Cake is the easiest way to satisfy a sweet tooth. The best part is, there is no eggs, milk or butter required!

Vanilla Depression Cake Recipe

Depression Cake gets its name from the Great Depression. It was a popular cake due to its ability to be made easily without the need for milk, sugar, butter or eggs, because the ingredients were then either expensive or hard to obtain.

It is also commonly referred to as, “crazy cake” or “wacky cake” because it uses non-traditional cake ingredients.

Trust me, you won’t get depressed eating this cake and you’ll be surprised at just how delicious it is without all of those traditional cake ingredients!

This dense, moist cake recipe requires a few simple ingredients you likely already have in your pantry, a fork and a cake pan. That’s it!

Ingredients Needed:

  • Flour
  • Sugar
  • Baking soda
  • Kosher salt
  • White distilled vinegar
  • Canola oil
  • Water
  • Pure vanilla extract

How to Make Vanilla Depression Cake:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 13×9 glass baking dish.

In the baking pan, mix the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt until combined.

Now, make 3 impressions (holes) into the dry ingredients. You can make these impressions using your fingers or the backend of a spoon.

Pour the vanilla into one impression, the oil into another, and vinegar into the last impression. Don’t worry if they overflow into each other.

Now, pour the water over all ingredients and mix until combined using a spoon or fork.

Bake in the oven for 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Once done, allow to cool completely before frosting. Check out our cream cheese frosting recipe below too!

Serve and Enjoy! You can also store any leftovers in the fridge for about a week.

Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 1 – 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 3 Cups Powdered sugar

Cream Cheese Frosting directions

Using a mixing bowl, combine the softened cream cheese and mix until smooth

Add in the vanilla and powdered sugar and mix until combined

Spread onto the cooled cake.

Easy Vanilla Depression Cake

Easy Vanilla Depression Cake

Yield: 1
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Additional Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes

When you’re stuck at home with limited ingredients on hand, this Vanilla Depression Cake is the easiest way to satisfy a sweet tooth. The best part is, there is no eggs, milk or butter required!

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ C Flour
  • 1 C sugar
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp white distilled vinegar
  • 5 tbsp canola oil
  • 1 C water
  • 1 ½ tsp pure vanilla extract

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 13×9 glass baking dish.
  2. In the baking pan, mix the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt until combined.
  3. Now, make 3 impressions (holes) into the dry ingredients. You can make these impressions using your fingers or the backend of a spoon.
  4. Pour the vanilla into one impression, the oil into another, and vinegar into the last impression. Don’t worry if they overflow into each other.
  5. Now, pour the water over all ingredients and mix until combined using a spoon or fork.
  6. Bake in the oven for 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
  7. Once done, allow to cool completely before frosting.
  8. Serve and Enjoy! You can also store any leftovers in the fridge for about a week.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 262Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 450mgCarbohydrates: 43gFiber: 1gSugar: 25gProtein: 2g

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

Isabel

Monday 5th of December 2022

Thank you so much for sharing your recipes. They are all wonderful 💕

Brittanie

Tuesday 6th of December 2022

Aw you are so welcome!

marg

Monday 23rd of May 2022

thank you for the recipe, sounds great, do you happen to have dairy-free icing, that would be good, as this is also a vegan cake if one is looking for a recipe thanks again, I will bake one up.

Brittanie

Monday 23rd of May 2022

Hi Marg, at this time I do not have a dairy-free icing but I will look into whipping one up :) Thanks so much!!

Anjalee

Friday 24th of April 2020

Could you please give me the metric measurements for the ingredients?

Brittanie

Friday 24th of April 2020

Hi Anjalee! If you scroll down to the bottom, the measurements are given in the recipe card. Thanks so much!

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