Crazy Carrot Cake (a.k.a. Wacky Cake) is a Depression Era cake that is made with no eggs, no milk and no butter! One of the EASIEST, tastiest, budget friendly carrot cakes made with pantry staples – it’s super moist and absolutely delicious!
A Depression Era Cake
You will be surprised how moist this carrot cake is without eggs, milk and butter! I adapted this delicious cake from the Original Chocolate Crazy Cake. The original chocolate cake was created during the Great Depression, when eggs, milk and butter were hard to come by. It took some creativity and baking science to create a cake without eggs or butter – you don’t even need a bowl or mixer. Genius! And because this cake is egg and dairy free, it’s a great recipe for people with egg and dairy allergies.
Read great reviews from people who tried this recipe on Pinterest!
Original Post Date, October 25, 2015. Post updated, March 17, 2023.
TIPS FOR MAKING CRAZY CARROT CAKE
- For this Crazy Carrot Cake, it’s easier to mix everything in a bowl then pour the batter in a prepared baking pan. Unlike the other Crazy Cakes, you do not need to make depressions for the wet ingredients due to the thickness of the batter with the carrots, walnuts and raisins.
- Crazy Cake can be made with Gluten Free mixes! Many people have commented they have made this cake with Gluten Free mixes, and it’s wonderful.
- More cake flavors have been added since this post! Check out the whole list HERE! There are mug cake versions too!
- For a great dairy-free buttercream frosting, The Minimalist Baker has a great vegan recipe!
- Sugar Spun Run has a great Cream Cheese Frosting recipe – “The Best Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe”
- For a great go-to Basic Buttercream Frosting, check out Winterborn’s recipe shared on allrecipes.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
It is called Crazy Cake (aka, Wacky Cake, Depression Cake) because it doesn’t require any eggs, milk or butter, or mixers – which is kinda crazy for cake making!
Vinegar is part of the leavening process! The vinegar reacts with the baking soda, which is what makes the cake rise. You don’t taste a hint of the vinegar in the finished cake!
Yes! Just use a 9×13 baking pan.
The cake’s moistness comes from the oil, and it becomes so fluffy because of the chemical reaction between the vinegar and baking soda!
INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO MAKE CRAZY CARROT CAKE (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR FULL RECIPE)
- all-purpose flour
- granulated sugar
- baking soda
- salt
- ground cinnamon
- ground cloves
- ground allspice
- ground nutmeg
- carrots – peeled, finely grated
- walnuts, chopped
- golden raisins
- white vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
- pure vanilla extract
- canola oil (or vegetable oil)
- water
How To Make Crazy Carrot Cake
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and grease an 8″ x 8″ square baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.
In a large mixing bowl, mix the first 8 dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, nutmeg) and blend well.
Next, add carrots, walnuts and golden raisins – blend well. Last, add the wet ingredients – vinegar, vanilla and oil, then pour the water over top – mix well. Pour in greased baking dish.
Bake on middle rack of oven for *35 to 45 minutes. Check with toothpick to make sure it comes out clean, remove when ready. Allow to cool and top with your favorite vanilla, cream cheese or buttercream frosting. Enjoy!
Please Note: Oven baking times will vary, be sure to check your cake to make sure you do not over bake.
WANT MORE CRAZY CAKE RECIPES?
My daughter declared this her new favorite Crazy Cake flavor, next to chocolate. I hope this becomes a new favorite for you as well.
Crazy Carrot Cake (No Eggs, No Milk, No Butter!)
Ingredients
DRY INGREDIENTS
- 1 ½ cups plus 3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¾ cup carrots, peeled, finely grated
- ½ cup chopped walnuts
- ½ cup golden raisins
WET INGREDIENTS
- 5 Tablespoons canola oil (or vegetable oil)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and grease an 8″ x 8″ square baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix the first 8 dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, nutmeg) and blend well. Next, add carrots, walnuts and golden raisins – blend well.
- Last, add the wet ingredients – vinegar, vanilla and oil, then pour the water over top – mix well. Pour in greased baking dish.
- Bake on middle rack of oven for *35 to 45 minutes. Check with toothpick to make sure it comes out clean, remove when ready. Please Note: Oven baking times will vary, be sure to check your cake to make sure you do not over bake.
- Allow to cool and top with your favorite vanilla, cream cheese or buttercream frosting.
Notes
-
- For a great dairy-free buttercream frosting, The Minimalist Baker has a great vegan recipe!
- Sugar Spun Run has a great Cream Cheese Frosting recipe – “The Best Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe.”
- For a great go-to Basic Buttercream Frosting, check out Winterborn’s recipe shared on allrecipes.
kdburts
I made an up side down pineapple wacky cake (using the vanilla wacky cake recipe). I put sliced pineapple down first and mixed the batter in a different bowl, replacing water with pineapple Juice, then poured it over the pineapples….it was wonderful.
Anonymous
Has anyone substituted stevia/ trivia so other natural sweetner in place of the sugar?
Aim to avoid refined/ processed/ sugar.
Which is best to use.
Thank you
Suzanne
Anonymous
I hope you get a reply, was wondering the same as a type I diabetic
Anonymous
My step-son is vegan and loves carrot cake so my husband and I made this for his birthday cake. It came out great! We used the link for the vegan cream cheese frosting as well. He prefers almonds to walnuts so we substituted almond slivers and I love it. Might be worth it for anyone else who prefers almonds to walnuts.
granmacarol
this is pretty much a no-fail recipe…it's the reaction between the baking soda and vinegar that rises your cake…i have a good friend whose daughter is allergic to diary, even margarine that contains milk solids, so this cake was a winner for her. i will definitely try this carrot cake version… thanks so much for sharing.
Anonymous
Hi,
My sister gave me this recipe a few years ago. I think it's fantastic! I would like to try the lemon version. Do you think I can replace a part of water with lemon juice? I would also like to try an orange version,i'll let you know.
Angie
Anonymous
I have made the carrot cake twice in the last week using rehydrated carrots and drained 15-20 oz. can pineapple tidbits and pecans. everyone loved it and scarfed it down. I doubled the recipe and it will make 3 layers.
I have also made a similar spice cake for years which is equally as good. YUMMY! I frost both with cream cheese Icing.
svwiebe
I used a gluten free flour mix and it turned out great!!
Anonymous
I have been making the chocolate version of wacky cake for decades and have never made the 3 holes. I first learned about the cake when a classmate shared it as a demonstration for speech class in junior high and she just dumped all the liquid on top of the dry ingredients in the pan so that is how I've always done it as well. I lost the recipe at one point and found it again online years later when I had a dairy allergic kid, and that recipe had no mention of making holes in the dry ingredients either. I've never had any issue with the cakes not turning out. Anxious to try the carrot version. Thanks for sharing.
Rebecca Sager
My daughter requested a strawberry cake for her birthday. Because it needs to be dye-free and egg-free, I opted for your newest recipe and changing it up a bit. I doubled the recipe and changed the wet ingredients a bit. Instead of carrots, I used 2 1/2 (1 1/4 cup for the single cake version) cups of strawberry puree and 1 cup of water (1/2 cup for the single cake version). Then I added 1/4 cup of extra flour because the batter looked a bit thin. The cakes turned out great! The only issue was that the cakes turned a purplish-brown during baking, but I think that's because of the oxidization of the strawberries (I should have added lemon juice to save the color a bit). Thanks so much for your recipe idea! I thought sharing my experiment here might help create a new wacky cake version or help someone else who's trying to also make a strawberry cake. 🙂
marysweetlittlebluebird
Anonymous- Yes, you can leave out the walnuts and raisins, it will still be great!
Anonymous
Could you make this without the walnuts and rasins?
KatieB
This recipe is great~ thank you!
I had to make a few substitutions for family allergies.
I used a tried and true flour sub (I wish I could appropriately cite where I found it a few years ago…but many thanks to them).
For total flour 1/3 sweet rice flour, 1/3 brown rice flour, 1/3 ground almond.
And as I used cooked carrots I halved the water.
Many many thanks!
Katie
marysweetlittlebluebird
Hi Georgina, I replied to your question above, I think you may have missed it. "Hi Georgene! Many people have used GF flour with the other Crazy Cake flavors with success, so it should would work with this flavor too. I personally have never used GF with these recipes. If you go to my Chocolate Crazy Cake post, you can read what people said in the comments section: https://www.sweetlittlebluebird.com/2013/03/tried-true-tuesday-crazy-cake-no-eggs.html
Here is a link to a GF Chocolate Crazy Cake: http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes/crazy-cake/
I hope you have success. Please stop by and share your results if you make the cake GF! Thanks so much for stopping by!"
Georgene Svoboda
Nope, no one ever got back to me! I have replaced oil or butter with applesauce. Still am wondering about the gluten free flour though.
Anonymous
can you replace the all purpose flour with whole wheat flour and truvia for sugar? wondering if that person replacing the oil with applesauce every got back to you as well… thanks Danielle
marysweetlittlebluebird
Hi Nana, The pineapple might cause the cake not to rise due to all the moisture…but you could experiment. Be sure to drain as much of the fluid from the pineapple before adding. If you do try this cake with pineapple, you do not need to leave out the walnuts and golden raisins, you could maybe just reduce the amount of each. Happy baking! Thanks so much for stopping by!
Anonymous
Measure the pineapple juice and use for or some of her water. Bet it'd work. Tastier too!
marysweetlittlebluebird
Hi Georgene! Many people have used GF flour with the other Crazy Cake flavors with success, so it should would work with this flavor too. I personally have never used GF with these recipes. If you go to my Chocolate Crazy Cake post, you can read what people said in the comments section: https://www.sweetlittlebluebird.com/2013/03/tried-true-tuesday-crazy-cake-no-eggs.html
Here is a link to a GF Chocolate Crazy Cake: http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes/crazy-cake/
I hope you have success. Please stop by and share your results if you make the cake GF! Thanks so much for stopping by!
Georgene Svoboda
My friend is gluten, dairy free. While this doesn't have dairy (yey!!), I wonder if using gluten free flour would work in place of the all purpose flour?? Thanks in advance. Georgene
Georgene Svoboda
My friend is gluten, dairy free. While this doesn't have dairy, do you think gluten free flour would work in place of the all purpose flour? Thanks in advance. Georgene
TAMARA
I LOVE CARROT CAKE CAN'T WAIT TO TRY THIS. I AM PLANNING ON USING DRIED CHOPPED FIGS INSTEAD OF THE RAISINS. THANKS FOR SHARING.
Nana
I have always put crushed , drained pineapple in my carrot cake. Do you think this recipe could work with that addition.? Maybe leave out the raisins to accommodate more fruit.
Unknown
Nana was wondering if you ever tried it with the pineapple and iif so how did it turn out?
Anonymous
How much water
Unknown
I just made it for Easter dinner using a 15 oz can of crushed pineapple in juice and omitted the water. I used a 10 oz tube pan and it turned it perfectly!
marysweetlittlebluebird
Thanks, Julie! I made this cake during my trip to Alaska visiting my sister. My two year old nephew gobbled it up (he has a milk allergy). I am so thrilled how it turned out. My daughter actually made it again last night, all my herself, but she decided to skip the raisins and walnuts…still terrific! I hope you love it too.
marysweetlittlebluebird
Hi Anonymous – I have never used applesauce in place of the oil, but it might be worth an experiment in your kitchen. Many people have left comments on the other flavors of Crazy Cake stating they used applesauce in place of the oil and it turned out great- I don't see why it wouldn't work with this cake too. If you make the cake, please stop by and let us know how the applesauce worked out.
Anonymous
Can you substitute applesauce for the oil?
Patricia Hubbard
I will need to use rice flour and stevia. Will let you know how it turns out.
Julie
One word–AWESOME!! I'm making this cake on Wednesday for Jerry's birthday. Yay!
Yoyo Sypoz
Hi, I was justwondering if your Crazy Carrot Cake No Eggs No Milk or Butter is freezer safe?
I’ve just baked it and am tempted to freeze half of it.