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Whacky Vegan Chocolate Cake
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This vegan chocolate cake recipe has been around for decades. It’s also called the Whacky cake or the Depression cake. But let me tell you, the taste and texture of the cake is definitely not whacky or depressing. It’s unbelievably moist and tastes like any regular chocolate cake especially with the frosting. At first I didn’t tell my husband that the cake has vinegar in it, so he was not able to tell any difference. He liked the cake very much even after I told about the secret ingredient. But since I knew about the vinegar I was able to feel a very very very mild smell/taste. I guess it’s psychological. I have to stress here again that when eaten with the frosting this chocolate cake is so delicious. This vegan chocolate cake recipe is definitely a keeper. I’m already thinking of the variations I can make each time.
I also wanted to prepare a vegan frosting for this cake, but I didn’t have confectioner’s sugar. Actually I have it somewhere but was not able to find it. I have made a pact that I won’t be buying anything other than dairy products, vegetables, fruits and other extremely necessary groceries for the next 2 months. Recently I did a pantry audit and was overwhelmed by the things I had accumulated in the past months, especially after starting this blog. I didn’t even know that I had bought so much baking/cooking stuff. That’s why I didn’t want to buy confectioner’s sugar, even though I was so tempted to run to the grocery store.
I was wondering what to do for the frosting without the sugar because all the recipes I had called for confectioner’s sugar. I had a few packs of instant pudding mixes and thought how it would be for a frosting. I googled and found that pudding mix frosting is very common. Luckily I had the Cool Whip topping which is required for the frosting. Even though I was skeptical, I had to proceed with it anyway because I had no other go. Surprisingly it did turn out good. So the frosting is not vegan.
| Vegan Chocolate Cake Recipe |
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- 1 and 1/2 cups Unbleached All Purpose Flour (I used Bleached)
- 3/4 cup Sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/4 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder (I used Hersheys)
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 1/3 cup Canola Oil
- 1 tablespoon White Distilled Vinegar
- 1 cup Cold Water
- 1 cup Cold Milk
- One 4oz Pack Instant Pudding Mix, Any Flavor (I used Oreos cookie flavor)
- One 8oz Container Thawed Cool Whip (I used Fat Free)
- Preheat the oven at 350F/180C for 15 minutes. Lightly oil the cake pan you are using.
- Stir together all the dry ingredients (flour to cocoa powder) and create a well in the center.
- To the well add all the wet ingredients one by one. Mix until just combined. Don’t overmix. It’s ok to have some lumps.
- Pour the batter in the prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Mine was done by 24 minutes. If baking cupcakes, check around 13-15th minute.
- Cool completely on a wire rack. I left it for an hour.
- To remove the cake from the pan, run a sharp knife around the inside of the pan to loosen the cake.
- Cool completely before frosting. Actually frosting is not even necessary for this moist cake. You may simply dust with confectioner’s sugar and top with fresh raspberries.
- Pour milk into a large bowl. Add the pudding mix. Beat until fluffy for 2 minutes.
- Blend in the thawed Cool Whip thoroughly.
- Frost the cake/cupcakes and refrigerate it at least for 3-4 hours before serving.
- For Cake: I read that apple cider vinegar is better than white distilled vinegar when it comes to baking, because you will not even have that very mild smell or after taste I was referring earlier.
- For Frosting: This frosting is not very sweet, but it was perfect with the cake and for us. We don’t like overly sweet cakes and frosting.
- For Frosting: This measurement will be right for a 13×9 inch cake or a layer cake. I had at least a cup of frosting left over, which I intend to serve in ice cream cones for my son.
1. Egg Replacement Event – Vinegar hosted by me.
2. Just for You hosted by Alka. I made this cake for Valentine’s day for my husband.
3. My Favorite Things – Heart Shaped Food hosted by Bindiya.
4. Cook and Create with Luv for Luv hosted by Priyanka.
Also check out the delicious chocolate cake recipe.
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This is the best cure for depression. I love it. Next I’m gonna try to make it with some nuts and chocolate bits in it. I love baking but I have had some trouble with baking without eggs. This is absolutely the best cake ever. Thanks for the recipe.
You’re welcome Julia.
[...] and the easiest to make, too. I got the recipe from a friend, who’s vegan, who got it from an eggless-cooking blog. A depression-era food, this chocolate cake’s secret ingredient is vinegar. [...]
Hi Madhuram,
Thanks for sharing these wonderful recipes.
i have a question.
Can i replace the 1/4 cup Cocoa in this recipe by 1/4 cup of any flavored pudding mix eg: Strawberry pudding mix to create strawberry flavored cake ?
Do you think it will work ?
Thanks
- Rupa
Rupa that’s a very nice idea. You have to try it out to see if it works. I think you would have to reduce the quantity of sugar little bit because the pudding mix already has sugar in it. If you try please let me know.
Hey Madhuram,
Have you tried making eggless cake from the ready pack of cake mix (eg. Betty Crocker) available in the grocery store.
I want to make using the ready cake mix but don’t know how to replace the 3 eggs that they call for.
I looked through most of your recipes but i guess you have done all from scratch !!…you have a lot of patience
Any suggestions ?
Thanks
luv
-Rupa
Rupa I once made a white cake from a cake mix using 1/4 of plain yogurt for each egg to be replaced and it did turn out good.
Can i icing that you prepared using the cool whip be piped ?
Rupa that icing cannot be piped.
Made this cake today.
It was awesome. Thanks madhu for sharing the recipe.
Question: If i want to make this as a 1 layer cake should i halve all the items in the cake mix recipe you gave.
THANKS !!
- Rupa
Rupa, the recipe already is for just one layer only. It’s for an 8 inch or 9 inch cake.
Thanks a lot for your advice Madhu.
The eggless cake you made using Yogurt…are you meaning the one which has a Rainbow decoration / icing in the photos of your website ? (Eggless Vanilla Cake and Cake Decorating Tips)
Oh i ddin’t know a simple thing like Yogurt would work magic on a box mix….cool idea.
THANKS for help once again
Yes, it is it Rupa. As I have mentioned in the post I’m not telling that its the best eggless white cake but a simple one to put together with very minimal ingredients.
Thank you! this is very delicious chocolate cake recipe. I am really enjoy reading your post. This is a best cake recipe.
You’re welcome Anne.
Awesome; as a 19 year old guy that is out of eggs, I can say this is an awesome recipe. Thank you.
You’re welcome Max.
Hi Madhuram.
I made this cake for the second time today – for my Wilton Course 1 graduation class tomorrow. It came out AWESOME. I think this is a foolproof recipe and I would choose to make it in a heartbeat! Thanks a lot for this wonderful recipe.
Vijaya
Yes it is a foolproof recipe Vijaya. I too have tried it a couple of times and it makes excellent cupcakes too.
I’ve just found your site and it’s great reading so far. thanks!
A tip about this recipe that you might try sometime is to use a fruit flavored vinegar. Raspberry worked well when I tried it. It was really subtle but added a nice touch.
Thanks Abby for the tip. I haven’t tried raspberry flavored vinegar until now.
Hi Madhuram, Thanks so much for this recipe.
i tried it with very little oil and sugar and it still turned out great and yes i used lime juice instead of vinegar. Thank you,
You’re welcome Krsna. It’s great to know that the cake turned out good even with all the changes you have made. Did you double the quantity of lime juice or did you keep it to 1 tablespoon itself?
Hey, i used the same amount of lime juice i.e. 1 tablespoon
I tried your chocolate cake recipe some days ago but somehow couldn’t achieve the same result as you, my cake really wasn’t looking that good (atleast it tasted good). What kind of chocolate are you using? Maybe it’s coming from the flour I used, I have a gluten intolerance so I used Rice flour instead of normal wheat flour.
Rice flour doesn’t have gluten so the cake will not rise Shirely. I have used rice flour instead of all purpose flour in cookies and it comes out very well, but it does not work in cakes/muffins. You have to use gluten free baking mix or xanatham gum to help the cake rise. Check out the gluten free cookie recipes I have here:
http://www.egglesscooking.com/2010/09/27/gluten-free-oatmeal-cookies/
http://www.egglesscooking.com/2009/12/21/gluten-free-cookies-chocolate-chip/
http://www.egglesscooking.com/2010/03/04/oats-brown-rice-flour-chocolate-chip-cookies/
I baked a cake first time in my life as i am a very impatient person, but this time i wanted to prove myself and impress my husband. It was the most wicked tasting cake. I have always been a vegetarian and to find a good and quick recipe was not the easiest.
Was wondering if cold milk can be added instead of cold water to make it more moist???
My next attempt is blueberry bundt cake as i have few friends over the weekend, hoping again it turns out well.
Thanks alot for the lovely recipes….
You’re welcome Shivangi. Yes, you could add milk as well. Do try the bundt cake with the changes I have mentioned in the Notes section and I’m sure it would turn out good.
Hi Madhu,
I did try the bundt cake last weekend and it tasted good but as u rightly said is it dense and somehow wasn’t fluffy. It tasted excellent with vanilla ice cream.
I missed out on baking soda as i thought baking powder and soda was the same until i got to know from my friend who bakes quite a bit that both are different.
I will def try next time with baking soda and see how it turns out.
Congratulations on your bundle of joy…. even i delivered 4mths back and will start work start of next month, so i still have 2 weeks of baking time lolll…. this time it will be muffins.
Thanks again for lovely recipes!
You’re welcome Shivangi. Your friend is right. BP and BS can’t be used interchangeably; it alters the result.
Hi there
Could you tell me if there is a substitute for the salt and oil in this receipe?
Thanks
Lucille
Hi Lucille, you could omit the salt and try using 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce mixed with a tablespoon of water instead of the oil ; but note that the cake will be a bit dense and you may want to bake it 2-3 minutes extra. Do check once for doneness around 22nd minute and proceed from there accordingly.
Dear Madhuram
I have tried this recipe and everybody loves the cake/muffins made out of
out of it. I am not paying attention to its looks as well. I baked
it just now and saw there were small holes at the top. Is it
because I mixed too much after adding the vinegar? After adding
batter into the pan I slightly hit it against the countertop to get
rid of bubbles and immediately put it in the oven.
Thanks
Also I used chopped almonds. I tossed them in the flour before
mixing with the batter. They still sank in the bottom.
Do you have any suggestion for me?
How is it a vegan cake when the frosting you prepare has milk in it? otherwise a good one!
I have mentioned that the cake is vegan and not the icing.
hi,
step 3 of the recipe says: “To the well add all the wet ingredients
one by one.”
what would the result be if the wet ingredients are stirred
together first and added at the same time to the dry ingredients?
thanks.
I don’t think it should be a problem. You could do that as well.
Can I not use the icing and eat it simply
and one more thing can I add flaxseeds instead of vingar
I frogot one more thing can I use butter instead of oil
The cake came out horrible
I hate the Vingar taste I did everthing
except the oil I used butter and
instead sugar I used powerdered sugar
It was a cake disater
It tasted bland and like clay
I’m sorry that you did’nt get desired results, but I’m very surprised that this recipe did not work for you because its the easiest and tastiest ever. This is my go to recipe if I need to bake a cake in a hurry. Did you mix the ingredients well enough? Did you happen to use baking powder instead of baking soda?
hi Madhuram,
i baked vegan choco cake today and sad to say it didn’t turn out
to be that good. it has very strong smell of baking soda. i
can’t stand the smell. I followed the measument given in yr recipe
except i used only 1 tsp of vinegar worried abt the smell.
Do you hv any suggestion that may caused the strong soda smell.
Sheila, I’m guessing maybe the baking soda did not blend well with the flour and it had lumps.
hi again,
why does the water need to be cold? what would happen if it were
lukewarm?
thanks.
Hi Madhuram,
I tried your recipe once again, and as always it never fails! I made them as chocolate muffins and it turned out just awesome! I had to bake it for almost 16 mins. I had also added some dark chocolate chips and walnuts. The taste was amazing. Personally, I’m not a big chocolate flavor person. But this was just great. thanks again for such a wonderful recipe!
Thanks Meena.