Here's a recipe for a cake that's been in the family at least since my grandmother. I've always been told that the recipe originally came from the Great Depression. It doesn't use any milk or eggs, which supposedly were expensive and hard to come by back then. The lack of milk or eggs is also how it earned the name, "wacky." This cake has a very distinctive flavor, I suppose from using vinegar as the leavening agent, and it was the cake of choice for birthdays when I was growing up. I've heard some people say that you can mix this cake directly in the baking pan, but I've always made the batter in a mixing bowl, and then poured it into the pan. And, as pointed out on one website I read with a slight variant on this recipe, the cake is also vegan.

Wacky Cake Recipe

Ingredients

• 3 c flour
• 2 c sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 c + 2 tbsp cocoa
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tbsp vinegar
• 2 c warm water
• 1/2 c liquid shortening
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix dry ingredients. Add vinegar to warm water. Slowly add vinegar/water mixture to dry ingredients and mix well, but do not beat. Add shortening and vanilla. Bake in greased and floured 9" x 13" pan or two 8" round pans at 350ºF for 25 minutes or so.