Chocolate Coffee Depression Cake
Chocolate Coffee Depression Cake is a moist and delicious, made from scratch cake recipe. It doesn't use eggs, milk, or butter, making it an allergy-friendly choice!
A long time ago, a friend told me she had made a Depression Cake. I was interested by it, so I looked into how to make one and loved that it was an easy cake made from scratch. However, I never got around to trying it until now.
From what I read, Depression Cake became a popular cake during the Great Depression and later WWII, when eggs and dairy products were scarce. People had to get creative to make ends meet. With food costs so high right now, we're having to do the same again, so we've got 10 Easy Ways to Save Money on Your Grocery Budget to help you out!
A Depression Cake is a cake made with no eggs, no milk, and no butter. It doesn't require a bowl, as all the ingredients are mixed in the pan you'll bake it in, so no extra dishes!
(Sorry about the shadows and the flour on the pan- I let the kids help me make the cake, and it got a little messy!)
I wanted to make a Chocolate Coffee Depression Cake, so I altered the original recipe, adding coffee and chocolate. Go here for the original Depression Cake or Wacky Cake.
Since making this recipe, chocolate coffee depression cake has become one of my favorite cakes! It is probably the most moist cake I have ever eaten.
I have a friend who doesn't like coffee, so she didn't want to try it, but when I convinced her that it doesn't really taste like coffee, she finally relented. We both agreed that the coffee simply deepens the chocolate flavor and makes it amazing!
If you're looking for an amazing cake recipe that's allergy-friendly, this is the recipe for you!
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Coffee Depression Cake
This Chocolate Coffee Depression Cake is moist and delicious, made from scratch, and uses no eggs, milk, or butter. Best of all, it's so easy!
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 ½ cups flour
- 3 tablespoon Cocoa
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 5 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil
- 1 cup room-temperature coffee
- Chocolate Frosting, Use your favorite recipe
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º. Grease an 8x8 pan (or double ingredients for a 13x9 pan).
- Measure dry ingredients into the pan and stir together.
- Make one large depression and 2 small depressions in the dry ingredients.
- Into the large depression, measure the oil.
- Measure vinegar into one small depression and vanilla into the other.
- Pour coffee over everything and stir until no lumps remain.
- Bake for 35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
- You can cool and then frost, or for a smoother look put the frosting on while it's hot.
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Have you ever heard of Depression Cake? Or have you heard of it by a different name? If so, I'd love to hear about it!
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The cake turned out beautifully! Sooo yummy! My mom and I really enjoyed it?
I have made this cake many times! It is moist and tastes so good! Trying to turn this into a depression Texas sheet cake. Wish me
Luck!
@Sher,
I'm planning to make this cake, and I also want to make it into a Texas Sheet Cake. I was wondering if you had any luck with your endeavor, and if you would mind sharing what you did?
Thanks in advance!
This is definitely a keeper. It's delicious and so forgiving. I poured myself a mug of coffee (10-12 oz) at the same time I was setting aside the cup of coffee for the recipe. Of course I poured the mugful into the recipe instead of the planned cup. But, an extra 5 minutes of baking and it turned out beautifully. I didn't have ingredients for icing so sprinkled 1/2 cup of chocolate chips on top of the batter. That little touch of creamy chocolate was perhaps better than icing.
I’m making this cake for my moms birthday during this Pandemic 2020! Hoping it turns out good!!
I hope your mom's birthday went wonderfully, Emily! What a crazy year this has been-- I hope that this cake helped relieve a little bit of stress, not having to try to find eggs or milk!
This cake turned out perfectly! My grandson who doesn’t eat sweets often, tried it and said it was his favorite cake ever! Granddaughter wants to know about the “Depression” and how good the food must have been!? History lesson coming up!
Made this today for Divali, eggless, and no milk, it is a hit, everyone says it taste great. I made it into cupcakes, double the recipe got 30 cupcakes. Have orders for 2 teenagers birthdays in November and December. Now have no excuses for making cupcakes. Thanks a million for this.
I'm so glad you enjoyed it! It is one of my favorite cakes ever! I'll have to try it in cupcake form!
I've never heard of this kind of cake before but this looks amazing. I like that you switched out the water for coffee. I need to make this ASAP!
This looks so good, I'd love a slice right now, as I have been craving chocolate cake.
It's so quick and easy to make! Too bad you aren't a bit closer- I'd invite you over for cake and coffee!
You're not terribly far.... 🙂
This sounds yummy, hard to believe there are no eggs, butter or milk!
I know! And it turned out so moist and amazing! It's quite possibly my favorite chocolate cake I've ever made!
I know! And it turned out so moist and amazing! It's quite possibly my favorite chocolate cake I've ever made!
What fun!!! Is it weird to say a "Depression" Cake is fun!! LOL! I bet the kids did enjoy, I have to try this with my grandbabies!!
lol! The name is pretty funny. I assumed it was due to the Great Depression, but as I made it I wondered if it had to do with the depressions that are made- I have no idea! But it really is fun!
It actually is a cake from the Great Depression era. Eggs and butter were scarce.
This coffee cake looks so decadent and delicious.
It is so delicious! I just can't get over how amazing it is for such an easy from-scratch cake!