This Water Cake is a super-simple cake, even simpler than depression cakes, made with sparkling water, no eggs, no dairy and ready in just about 10 minutes of prep!
The sparkling water adds the salt taste and touch of acidity needed to create a buttermilk when in contact with the dairy-free milk.
While the whole recipe is just below, don’t miss all my tips further down, including ingredient swaps, my cooking tips, and step-by-step shots!
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Water Cake
This Water Cake is a super-simple cake, even simpler than depression cakes, made with sparkling water, no eggs, no dairy and ready in just about 10 minutes of prep!
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Servings: 8 slices
Calories: 234.1 kcal
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups Self-Rising Flour - (note 1)
- 1 cup Unrefined Sugar - (note 2)
- 1 cup Sparkling Water - (note 3)
- ⅓ cup Mild-Flavor Olive Oil - (note 4)
- 1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a 6-inch or 8-inch round or square pan with parchment paper. Slightly oil the bottom and sides of the pan with cooking oil spray. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the self-rising flour and sugar. Whisk to combine.
- Fold in the liquid ingredients: sparkling water, oil, and vanilla extract. Whisk until it forms a smooth batter.
- Pour evenly into the prepared pan and bake it on the center rack of the oven. For a 6-inch pan, bake for 50-60 minutes. For an 8-inch pan, bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the top is golden brown, and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Let the cake cool down for 10 minutes in the pan, then cool it down for 2 hours on a cooling rack before slicing.
- You can serve the cake plain or frost the cooled cake with my coconut frosting recipe or my dairy-free vanilla frosting.
Notes
Note 1: To make 1 1/2 cups of self-rising flour, stir 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour with 2 1/4 teaspoons of baking powder. For a gluten-free option, use my gluten-free converter
Note 2: Any granulated sweetener works in this recipe, like sugar, raw sugar, or coconut sugar. You can decrease the sugar to 3/4 cup for a less sweet cake, but the color of the cake will be paler.
Note 3: Sparkling water carbonation and minerals mimic the tenderizing and leavening effects of both the salt and apple cider vinegar that are usually added in an easy vanilla cake. You can swap for water, but you will need an extra 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice. You can also swap for a sparkling lemonade to add a lemon flavor to the cake.
Note 4: Or any low-flavor oil you like.
Storage: Store the cake leftovers in a cake box in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
Serving: 1slice (no frosting) | Calories: 234.1kcal | Carbohydrates: 34.6g | Protein: 2.8g | Fat: 9.4g | Saturated Fat: 1.3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6.6g | Sodium: 46.2mg | Potassium: 26.5mg | Fiber: 0.6g | Sugar: 13.3g | Vitamin A: 0.5IU | Calcium: 5.3mg | Iron: 0.3mg | Magnesium: 6.4mg | Phosphorus: 22.8mg | Zinc: 0.2mg
Ingredients and Substitutions
This paragraph gives you all my tips about picking the right ingredients. For the full recipe with measurements, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post!Go to Full Recipe
You only need 5 simple ingredients to make this recipe. Here’s how to pick and swap them.
- Self-Rising Flour – This serves as the base of the cake, providing both structure and the leavening agents needed to make it rise. You can easily make your own by mixing all-purpose flour with baking powder, or use a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend if necessary.
- Unrefined Sugar – It sweetens the cake and helps create a lovely golden crust. You can also use standard white granulated sugar or coconut sugar, though coconut sugar will darken the cake’s color.
- Sparkling Water – This is the magic ingredient; the carbonation acts as a natural leavening agent to make the cake light and fluffy without eggs. You can swap this for sparkling lemonade for a citrus flavor, or use regular water mixed with a splash of apple cider vinegar and salt.
- Mild-Flavor Olive Oil – This adds moisture and ensures a tender crumb. You can also use other neutral oils like avocado oil, canola oil, or melted coconut oil.
- Vanilla Extract – It provides a warm, classic aromatic flavor to this simple batter.
How to Make Water Cake (in Pictures)
Carine’s Baking Tips
Let me share a few more tips for a perfect cake.
- Adjust Baking Time – If you want a quicker bake, use a wider 8-inch or 9-inch pan. This spreads the batter thinner, reducing the baking time to approximately 30-35 minutes compared to a smaller, deeper pan.
- Lemon Twist – You can easily transform this into a lemon cake by swapping the sparkling water for sparkling lemonade and adding a teaspoon or two of lemon zest to the batter.
- Room Temperature Ingredients – Ensure your sparkling water is at room temperature, not cold from the fridge, to prevent the oil from solidifying when you mix the batter.
Looks delicious and easy, want to try it.
Just wondering , can you cook this in a Bundt pan? And if yes, what should oven temp be in a regular oven and do you grease it how ?
I don’t see why not, but I personally don’t like baking in a bundt pan because egg-free cakes often stick to it and it’s always a nightmare to release. Also, this batter is for a 6-inch cake pan, the volume of bundt pans are way larger. If you don’t double the recipe, the cake won’t be as tall, and bake super fast as well. Since I haven’t tried this option, I can’t recommend more, or guarantee success.