Julie Clark
Updated:
Mayonnaise Cake (No Eggs!)
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Old fashioned mayonnaise cake is moist and tender with no added oil or eggs. A from scratch chocolate cake with easy chocolate frosting!
Mayonnaise in cake? Yes. This old fashioned chocolate mayonnaise cake recipe comes from my grandma’s old church cookbook, but it is so appropriate for times when some supplies are running short.
This cake is a classic. Chances are at some point you ate a mayonnaise cake and didn’t even realize it. If you’re new to making homemade cakes, this cake recipe is a great place to start.
Here’s what you’ll love about mayonnaise cake:
- No eggs needed
- No oil needed
- No milk needed
- Makes a small 9×9″ cake
- Use canned or make our homemade frosting
- Moist, tender texture
Why put mayonnaise in a cake?
The mayonnaise added into this chocolate cake replaces the eggs, but it also adds much more than that. Mayo is made up of egg, oil, and vinegar. The oil in the mayo helps to make the cake tender, and the vinegar brings out the chocolate flavor.
Rest easy…the mayonnaise holds a very neutral flavor in baking so your cake will not taste like mayonnaise. It just adds moisture!
Mayonnaise Cake Ingredients
This cake calls for pantry staples, but here are a few key tips on some of the ingredients:
- Water: You can substitute the water for milk if you would like to. Or if you want to boost the chocolate flavor, use strong hot coffee.
- Mayonnaise: Use full fat mayonnaise for this. The fat in the mayo is what adds to the moistness of this chocolate cake.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder: I used a dutch processed cocoa powder for both the cake and the frosting, but you can also use the regular cocoa powder. This recipe will work for either type, just make sure it is unsweetened cocoa powder.
- Heavy cream: You can substitute milk, half and half or evaporated milk for the heavy cream if needed. Heavy cream makes it the creamiest though.
How to Make Mayonnaise Cake
There are 5 easy steps to making the chocolate cake:
- Prepare. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 9×9″ square pan with cooking spray.
- Mix wet ingredients. Whisk together sugar, water, mayonnaise, and vanilla.
- Make the flour mixture. In a separate bowl stir flour, baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt together.
- Then combine the two. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Bake. Pour batter into the prepared baking dish. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
What frosting to use on chocolate mayonnaise cake?
There are several options for what frosting to use on this cake. We share the instructions for a simple homemade chocolate frosting below. Remember…with frostings it is easiest to use a stand mixer since you’ll need to whip the frosting for several minutes. Or use a large bowl with an electric mixer.
If you’d like something other than chocolate, consider one of these:
- Powdered sugar dusting. This saves calories, too!
- Peanut Butter Frosting
- Whipped cream. Either Cool Whip or homemade whipped cream.
- Cream Cheese Frosting
- Chocolate Cherry Frosting
- Strawberry Frosting
- Vanilla Frosting
Storage Instructions
Your cake does not need to be stored in the refrigerator and can be stored at room temperature for up to 7 days.
You can freeze the cake too! Store any leftover mayonnaise cake in the freezer for up to 3 months. Wrap in plastic wrap, then place in a second airtight container to keep it fresh.
Other Recipes with Mayonnaise
Have leftover mayo? Try one of these:
- mayo chicken
- bacon cheddar egg salad
- cheesy garlic bread
- sweet potato fries with herbed mayo
- bacon spinach dip
Want other chocolate cake recipes? Try our mint chocolate cake, Reese’s cake or chocolate sheet cake.
Mayonnaise Cake (No Eggs!)
Old fashioned mayonnaise cake is moist and tender with no added oil or eggs. A from scratch chocolate cake with easy chocolate frosting!
Servings 9
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 1 cup granulated sugar 200 grams
- 1 cup water 8 ounces
- 1 cup mayonnaise 230 grams
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 5 grams
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour 293 grams
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda 7 grams
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder 25 grams
- ¼ teaspoon salt
For the Frosting:
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature, 4 ounces
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice 5 grams
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 5 grams
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder 25 grams
- 3 cups powdered sugar 390 grams
- ¼ cup heavy cream 2 ounces
Instructions
Make the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 9×9" square pan with cooking spray.
- Whisk together sugar, water, mayonnaise, and vanilla. Set aside. 1 cup granulated sugar, 1 cup water, 1 cup mayonnaise, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl stir flour, baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt together. 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda, ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow cake to cool completely before frosting.
Make the frosting:
- Make frosting by beating together butter, salt, lemon juice and vanilla extract until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. ½ cup unsalted butter, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Mix in the cocoa powder, 1 cup powdered sugar and heavy cream. Mix to combine. ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 3 cups powdered sugar, ¼ cup heavy cream
- Slowly add in the rest of the powdered sugar ½ cup at a time until all 3 cups have been incorporated.
- Turn your stand mixer on high and beat for the next 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Frost cake and cut into squares.
Notes
Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
The calories shown are based on the cake being cut into 9 pieces, with 1 serving being 1 slice of frosted cake. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information.**
Nutrition
Calories: 651kcal | Carbohydrates: 89g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 47mg | Sodium: 631mg | Potassium: 116mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 62g | Vitamin A: 429IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 20mg | Iron: 2mg
Actually, there are eggs in the cake because mayonnaise is made with eggs. I know you meant you don’t add eggs directly but I just wanted say that.
delicious, the middle was a bit wet after cooking the time and temp, so what I did was left it in an off oven for another few minutes. I sprinkled it with powder sugar. My picky teenager ate 3 pieces in one go.
I made this cake many times and my children ate it up so quick. I made a different type of frosting as I didn’t have heavy cream. I used cream cheese, butter and a bit of milk.
Do you think I could substitute Vegan Mayo?
My batter came out pretty thick. Is that normal? I’m a beginner at baking if you can’t tell.
Can I use an 8×8 or 13×9? If so, what would I change?
I also make this cake as a plain cake (eliminate cocoa powder) and as a spice cake (no cocoa, add a bit of favorite desired spice). Always delicious!
I’m making this cake for the second time except today I’m making it a red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting. The cake is very good and really easy to make. I used my Cuisinart toaster/convection oven to bake it so my house didn’t heat up. The cake itself is like a cross between cake and a fudgie brownie. I also made the chocolate frosting which was just ok to me. I think I would add more butter next time so it’s more of a butter cream frosting. I recommend trying this recipe it’s very good and easy!