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Cheap Sweets from the 1930s You Can Still Make
The 1930s were hard times, but people didn’t give up on dessert. When butter, milk, and eggs were out of reach, home cooks turned to creativity. The result? A bunch of simple, budget-friendly sweets that still taste good today.
If you’ve got a few pantry staples and a sweet tooth, these recipes are ready for a comeback.
What Would You Cook in Wartime?
Step back in time and discover what you could make with limited wartime rations
Wacky Cake
Also called Depression Cake, this one skips eggs, butter, and milk completely. But thanks to vinegar and baking soda, it still rises like a dream.
You only need flour, cocoa powder, sugar, oil, vinegar, baking soda, and water. Mix it all in one bowl—no mess, no fuss. The cake is soft, moist, and chocolatey without costing much.
Depression-Era Crazy Cake: The Chocolate Cake That Needs No Eggs, Butter, or Milk
Depression-Era Apple Candy Pie
This isn’t your regular apple pie. It’s more like a sweet apple crumble. You slice apples, sprinkle them with sugar, flour, cinnamon, and chopped nuts, then bake until bubbly and golden.
It’s simple, comforting, and doesn’t need a crust. Great for using up apples that are a bit past their prime.
Grandma Pruit’s Vinegar Pie
No fruit? No problem. Vinegar pie was the stand-in for fruit pies when fresh produce was scarce.
The vinegar gives a bit of tartness, while eggs and sugar create a smooth, custard-like filling. One bite and you’ll get why it stuck around—it’s tangy, sweet, and surprisingly rich.
Poor Man’s Cookies
These oatmeal cookies were built without eggs, butter, or milk. Instead, they relied on shortening, brown sugar, and water.
They’re chewy, sweet, and surprisingly satisfying. Toss in raisins or a handful of chopped nuts if you’ve got them. If not, they’re still a solid cookie on their own.
5 Vintage Wartime Ration Cookie Recipes Prove You Don’t Need Fancy Ingredients
Magic Brownies
No need for boxed mix or fancy ingredients. These use unsweetened chocolate, sugar, sweetened condensed milk, flour, baking powder, and maybe a handful of nuts.
The texture is more fudge than cake, and the flavor hits all the right notes. They’re cheap, rich, and easy to whip up.
Mock Apple Pie
This is one of the strangest—and most clever—recipes from the Depression.
No apples? Just boil butter crackers in sugar syrup with cinnamon and lemon juice. Somehow, the texture mimics real apple slices. You bake it in a crust, and it tastes like the real thing.
Sounds odd, but it’s a fun conversation piece that actually works.
Mock Apple Pie From WW2: Great Depression Delight
Potato Candy
This one proves how far people were willing to stretch ingredients. You mash a bit of plain potato and mix in powdered sugar until it forms a dough. Then you roll it out and spread peanut butter on top before rolling it into a log and slicing it into pinwheels.
It’s sweet, soft, and nostalgic. And no, it doesn’t taste like potato.
Why These Recipes Still Work
They use what’s already in your pantry. They skip pricey ingredients. And most of them come together in one bowl, no mixer needed.
You don’t need to be broke to enjoy them—they’re just that good.
Final Bite
The 1930s gave us more than just hardship. It gave us desserts that prove simple can still be sweet. These recipes aren’t just cheap—they’re timeless.