Wacky Cake/Depression Cake

A few weeks ago one of the local newspapers where I live were asking for home cooks to send in their favorite "nostalgic" recipes.  Given that I have over 100 cookbooks (and counting) I busily got to work looking for my favorites.  The more I thought about it, the dessert recipe I remembered  the most from my childhood was a cake called, "Wacky Cake."  My mom would make the cake for our family because it was quick, easy and always delicious! When I called my mom to see if she could locate the recipe, she said she couldn't find it. The ingredients in Wacky Cake and a cake called, "Depression Cake" are pretty much identical.  You don't use eggs, butter/margarine or milk, because back in the Depression Era those ingredients could be hard to come by.  I adapted the Depression Cake recipe to make it like the Wacky Cake I remember from my childhood. I found the recipe in a cookbook put out by the American Slovenian Catholic Union, which my in-laws were members of. What are some favorite recipes from your childhood??

Ingredients:

1¾ cup white flour

¾ cup white sugar

¼ cup unsweetened cocoa

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon white vinegar

¼ cup canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup cold water

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease an 8x8 inch square pan.  In medium size bowl, add dry ingredients in the order given. Combine with spoon until well mixed.  With bottom of spoon press lightly into the dry ingredient mixture to make 3 small “holes.”  In one hole, put the vinegar, in the second  hole  put the oil and in the third hole  put the vanilla extract.  Pour the cold water over all the ingredients and mix thoroughly by hand (do not use electric mixer).  Pour into prepared  pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted  in the middle comes out clean.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.