Funfetti Wacky Cake (Vegan and Dairy-Free)
Funfetti Wacky Cake is a fun, sprinkle-filled celebration cake that’s perfect for birthdays. It also happens to be vegan and dairy-free.
I love me a wacky cake. It all started with chocolate wacky cake, but I’ve been creating other versions too. If you’re not familiar, wacky cake is a vintage type of cake that is made without any eggs, butter, or other dairy, and is leavened with baking powder, baking soda, and acid (typically vinegar). While it can be mixed right in the pan it’s cooked in, I prefer to mix it in a bowl.
The resulting cake is moist, soft, dairy-free, and vegan. Plus, it’s so easy to make, and the ingredients are affordable. Since I had already made a vanilla wacky cake, I figured it was only a matter of time before I added some sprinkles and made a Funfetti Wacky Cake. I did the first trial on my recent birthday.
While the initial version turned out okay (my family ate the entire thing), I thought it could use a little improvement, so I quickly made a second batch to try a few tweaks. After reducing the baking soda and almond extract, the second version of the cake was much improved. I frosted mine with an upcoming frosting recipe, and it was the perfect celebration cake. Keep reading if you want to learn how to make it too.
How to Make Funfetti Wacky Cake
Like all other wacky cakes, funfetti wacky cake is extremely easy to make. It uses only one bowl and does not require a mixer.
To start making this fun celebration cake, start by prepping your pan(s). You can make this cake in either two 9″ (8″ should work too) round pans or one 9×13″ pan. Line the bottom of the pan(s) with parchment paper.
Whisk together the flour, sugar, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Make three wells in the flour mixture with the bottom of a glass or measuring cup. Into the first well, pour the canola oil. Into the second well, the vinegar. And into the third well, pour the clear vanilla and almond extract.
Pour the lukewarm water over all of the ingredients in the bowl, and whisk everything together until it’s well combined with no more pockets of dry flour. Gently fold in the sprinkles, but avoid overmixing, which will increase the chances of the color bleeding from the sprinkles.
If using two cake pans, divide the batter evenly between the pans (use a kitchen scale for the most accuracy). If using a 9×13″ pan, pour all of the batter into the pan. Bake the cake(s) for 25-30 minutes, until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with crumbs clinging to it. Cool the cake in the pan for 15-20 minutes. If you baked the cake in a 9×13″ pan, cool the cake in the pan to room temperature, then frost the cake in the pan and serve.
If you’re making a layer cake, remove the cakes from the pans by running a paring knife along the edges of the pan, then carefully flipping the cakes onto wire racks. Cool the cakes to room temperature before frosting.
Add a layer of frosting/filling to the top of one of the cakes, then carefully place the second cake on top of the first. Add a thin crumb coat of frosting to the top and sides of the cake, then chill for 15-20 minutes to set the frosting. Add a second, thicker coat of frosting to the top and sides of the cake, and decorate as desired with piped borders and/or more sprinkles. Cut the cake into wedges and serve at room temperature.
Funfetti Wacky Cake Ingredients
- All-purpose flour – If you want your cake to be as white as possible (vs. yellowish), you can use bleached flour instead of regular (unbleached) flour.
- Granulated sugar
- Cornstarch – Adding cornstarch to cake recipes effectively reduces the protein content of the batter, which replicates using cake flour instead of all-purpose flour. Since I prefer keeping only one type of flour on hand, this is what I usually do. If you want to use cake flour instead of this mixture, you can use 3 ¾ cups cake flour instead of all-purpose flour and omit the cornstarch.
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Table salt – to substitute kosher salt, use ¾ teaspoon instead of ½ teaspoon.
- Canola oil – or you can use any other neutral-flavored cooking oil
- White vinegar – I don’t recommend replacing white (distilled) vinegar with any other type of vinegar, as most others will contribute noticeable flavors.
- Clear imitation vanilla – while you can certainly use regular (real) vanilla extract, using the clear imitation vanilla gives you the best classic funfetti flavor. It also helps get you the whitest cake possible for the best sprinkle contrast. You should be able to find clear imitation vanilla in the baking aisle of most well-stocked grocery stores, but if not, try specialty baking or cake decorating stores.
- Almond extract – Almond extract paired with vanilla extract contributes to that classic “funfetti” or “cake batter” flavor. Just be careful not to go overboard with it because it can become very overwhelming very quickly.
- Lukewarm water – Use whatever water you normally drink. I recommend using cold tap water and warming it slightly in the microwave or a kettle.
- Single or double batch of frosting – I recommend a classic vanilla buttercream, but you can use whatever flavor you want. If you plan to make a round layer cake, you will need a fairly large batch of frosting (two cans if using store-bought). If you’re just making a 9×13″ sheet cake, one regular batch (or one can) of frosting should be enough.
- Multicolor jimmies sprinkles – I recommend avoiding the small round (non-pareil) sprinkles in the cake batter, as these tend to bleed their color. Artificially colored (not natural-colored) jimmies give the best color for funfetti cakes. However, you can use whatever sprinkles you want to decorate the top of the cake, if desired.
Want more sprinkle recipes?
Funfetti Wacky Cake Nutrition Notes
The nutrition information in the recipe below includes a slice of cake with a generous amount of frosting (enough to fill, frost, and decorate the cake) if you cut your cake into 16 pieces. Generic vanilla frosting is used for the calculation, but note that different frosting types will vary in their nutritional contents. All will be high in sugar, and most will be high in fat. If you make your cake into a sheet cake with only a single layer of frosting on the top, calories, sugar, and fat in your serving will be less than shown here.
This cake is dairy-free and vegan as written, but many frostings will contain dairy.
Equipment
Ingredients
Instructions
- Prepare two 9-inch baking pans (or two 8-inch baking pans, or one 9×13" pan) by lining the bottoms with parchment paper. There is no need to grease the sides. Move the oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350°F.
- Whisk together 3½ cups (438 g) all-purpose flour, 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar, ¼ cup (32 g) cornstarch, 2 teaspoons (8 g) baking powder, 1 teaspoon (4 g) baking soda, and ½ teaspoon (3 g) table salt in a large bowl. Use a measuring cup or spoon to make 3 wells in the flour mixture.
- In one well, pour in ⅓ cup (75 g) canola oil , in another pour in 2 Tablespoons (32 g) white vinegar, and in the third pour in 2 teaspoons (8 g) clear imitation vanilla and ½ teaspoon (2 g) almond extract. Pour 2 cups (473 g) lukewarm water over the entire bowl and whisk everything together until well combined. Fold in ¾ cup (177 g) multicolor jimmies sprinkles until they're well-distributed.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared baking pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the cakes are golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with crumbs clinging to it. Place the pans on a wire rack to cool for 15-20 minutes.
- Run a paring knife along the edge of the cake pans, then place a wire rack over one of the cake pans and carefully but quickly invert the two together so that the cake pan is on top. Carefully remove the pan, and the cake should be left on the wire rack. Repeat this process with the second cake. Cool the cakes completely before frosting. Alternatively, if you used a 9×13" baking pan, feel free to leave the cake in the pan.
- To make a layer cake, spread a generous layer of the frosting or other filling of your choice on top of one of the cakes. Carefully place the second cake on top of the first cake. Add a dollop of frosting on top of the cake and use an offset spatula to evenly spread a thin layer of frosting all over the top and sides of the cake. Place the cake in the fridge or freezer for 15-30 minutes to allow this layer to set. Add another large dollop of frosting to the top of the cake, and spread it all over the top and sides of the cake to completely cover. Decorate with piped borders and/or additional sprinkles if desired.
Nutrition Information
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