The chocolate cake is known as Wacky Cake, but the rich, moist cake is anything but ridiculous. Instead, this easy-mix deep chocolate cake is a dream: It's inexpensive, heart healthy, great for those who are allergic to dairy or eggs or who keep a kosher diet.
The cake is an old-fashioned recipe - how old-fashioned is up for debate. Wacky Cake may have been created in the Depression, some believe, or in the 1940s, during World War II egg and butter rationing.
So Easy to Make
Whatever the genesis, the classic cake remains popular. It's cheap to make, as well as fun and quick to mix: The baker sifts dry ingredients in a pan, makes three wells in the mixture, and pours in the remaining ingredients. It takes under 10 minutes to assemble and the measuring is easy, so it's a perfect recipe for parents and children to make together. Ingredients can be kept on hand in the cupboard, so a cake can be whipped at a moment's notice, with no trip to the grocery store.
A Heart Healthy Cake
While Wacky Cake can't be regarded as health food, it's certainly an improvement on the typical store bought cake, which often contain unhealthy saturated and/or trans fats as well as artificial preservatives. Wacky Cake calls for oil; canola is a good choice. Unsweetened cocoa is substituted for unsweetened chocolate, so there's a drastic cut in saturated fat. The cocoa gives the cake a rich, dark appearance.
Good for Special Diets
Those who adhere to kosher dietary laws, which prohibit the mixing of dairy and meat products, also will like the fact that dairy-free Wacky Cake is parve, or neutral, so can be used to end any meal on a sweet note. Since the cake is naturally free of egg and milk products, those with allergies can enjoy a "regular" cake that requires no modifications
Wacky Cake
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup white sugar
- 4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar (no substitute)
- 6 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 cup water
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees (175 degrees C)
- Sift flour, sugar, salt, soda and cocoa powder into an 8 by 8-inch square, ungreased cake pan. Make three wells. Pour oil into one well, vinegar into another well, and vanilla into the third well. Pour water over all, and stir well with fork. Be careful not to overmix.
- Bake at 350 degrees (175 degrees C) for 30 or 40 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in cake comes clean.
- Let cool in pan, spread icing on top when cool. To serve cut into about eight or nine slices. Store covered in pan for a day or so; cake is better when eaten within a day.
Toppings
Cake can be topped various ways. Toppings include: a dusting of confectioner's sugar, a half-recipe of a simple buttercream frosting; whipped cream, fresh sliced fruit or or a canned pie cherries.
Enjoy this marvel of a chocolate cake!
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