No wonder they were depressed.

My wife wrapped up her homeschooling session on WWI and the Great Depression today by having the girls help her to make a 'wacky cake'.

Historically, a 'wacky cake' is one of the many 'make do' type recipes that came out of rationing. It's an egg-free/dairy free cake.  The lift is provided by vinegar and baking soda, mixed together at the last minute, in the pan.  The result is...not good, but also not bad.

In defense of my wife and daughters...it's closer to being good, that it is to being bad.  Rather than call it bad I should probably say it is slightly...'bland' for a modern pallet.  It's flour, sugar and water, with a wee bit of cocoa powder and vanilla to give it a bit of flavor...but, I'm sure to kids back in the 30's and 40's...it was better than nothing. 

You could salvage this.  Add some more cocoa, maybe some chocolate chips, and some cinnamon/nutmeg...but then, it's not a pantry ready 'make do' style of cake.  It's not meant to be AS good as a normal cake...it's meant to be 80% as good as a 'real' cake, with the things you could get your hands on without a ration card. 

It's also meant to be a good history lesson, and something that will stick with the girls more than an extra paragraph or two in a history book.