1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1c. granular sugar (I've used Splenda too)
1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa
1/2 tsp. salt
1 T. white or cider vinegar (I prefer cider)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 c. oil
1 c. water
Confectioners' sugar or 1 c. chocolate or peanut butter
chips for topping
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour an
8-inch square pan only if you wish to unmold the cake for serving (mix ingredients
in a bowl), other wise you may serve the cake directly from the pan.
Combine flour, baking soda, sugar, cocoa and salt and sift
them together into the baking pan. Shake the pan to level the
ingredients, then with your finger or the back of a spoon make three small
holes in the flour mixture. Pour the vinegar in one, the vanilla in
another and the oil in the remaining hole. Pour the water over the
top. Using a table fork, stir the mixture very well, reaching all
over the bottom and corners of the pan to incorporate all the flour.
Mixing will take about 1 1/2 minutes and the batter will be almost smooth,
a few small lumps are ok and will disappear in baking.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in
the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove the cake from the
oven and if you are going to serve it unmolded, let it cool in the pan for
5 minutes before turning it out onto a rack. Otherwise let the cake
cool completely in the pan, before serving dust with confectioners' sugar
shaken thru a sieve.
