This is one of the oldest heirloom recipes I’ve found. Zetamae Williams contributed it to The Woodland Chapel Cookbook (c. ~1988), calling it “Mom Parker’s War Cake” and said it dates back to World War I, “when eggs, milk, and butter were difficult to obtain.”

Consequently, it’s completely dairy-free and egg-free, but not vegan. If you want to make a vegan version, you could try substituting a vegan butter, or maybe coconut oil. (Vegetable oil might change the consistency too much, but if you try it and it works, be sure to let me know in the comments!)

The result is something more like a quick bread than what we typically think of as cake. It’s actually very similar to my pumpkin bread (minus the pumpkin) due to the spices and raisins.

The tricky thing about making this is that a toothpick came out clean when I tested it at the end of baking, but not long after I took it out of the oven, the inside collapsed and it was underdone in the middle. This may be a quirk of baking without eggs. You might want to give it more time than you think it needs. If it does turn out underdone in the middle, toast individual slices to finish the baking before eating.

1 c. sugar
1/3 c. lard
1 c. water
2 c. raisins
2 c. sifted flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

In a saucepan over medium heat, boil the sugar, lard, water, and raisins for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.

While that’s cooling, mix together the rest of the ingredients. Add half of it to the saucepan, stir to combine, then repeat with the other half until you have an even consistency of batter.

Pour into a greased loaf pan and bake at 350F for approximately 35-40 minutes.