Full disclosure, I hate mayonnaise. I don’t normally keep it in the house, but I bought some for a recipe that only required a few tablespoons. What would I do with the rest? Make cake! I’ve seen several versions of this cake in vintage books and sites. Essentially, since mayo is made of eggs and oil, it replaces them in a recipe. The end result tastes very similar to my grandmother’s eggless “crazy cake,” a moist, tasty American-style cake. Much like other vintage recipes, it uses leftover coffee to avoid waste and amp up the flavor but if you don’t have any, simply use water. As for the frosting? I used an ermine frosting one like this, but a standard American buttercream like this would pair well, too.
Makes one 8-inch cake
Ingredients
- 3 cups (390 grams) all-purpose flour
- 6 tablespoons (42 grams) cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 1 ½ cups (297 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 ½ cups (359 grams) mayonnaise
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups (360 grams) cooled coffee
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 8-inch cake pans, line with parchment and grease again. Set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk to combine the flour, cocoa and baking soda. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix the sugar, mayonnaise and vanilla with a mixing spoon or spatula to combine. In two to three batches, stir in the flour mixture and coffee alternating between the two until all combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for about 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool in the pans for about 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Level and frost as desired. Cake can remain covered at room temperature for up to 3 days.
