I like baking, but often don’t have the time… so I *love* using boxed cakes. Just like our favorite kitchen gadgets, they do all the work. All I need to do is dump and add a couple of other ingredients and viola. Cake.
10 Cake Tips to Bring Baking from Box to Amazing
Here are some cake tips of simple things that you can do to make your boxed cake taste like it came from the fancy-schmansy corner bakery.
Baking Hacks
1) Add an extra egg. Adding an extra egg to your cake mix will make your cake slightly more dense, more moist and less likely to crumble. Tasty.
2) Substitute any oil required with butter. Real butter makes your cake SO moist!! Check out the recipe – 1 Batter, 10 Cupcakes. Real butter is the secret!!
3) Create a Non-stick surface so cleaning pans is easier. After greasing your cake pan, dust it lightly with flour. Cleaning your cake pan will be a lot easier!
4) If you are looking for healthy fats, or for less fat, consider replacing the oil in your recipe with either applesauce or a mashed avocado. You now have a healthier cake.
5) Add 1/2 cup of Angel Fools Cake Mix, and 1 tablespoon of water, to any other cake mix. Your cake will become a lot more fluffy and spongy. And I just love the hint of a flavor the angel food cake gives!
6) Pudding. It will cure any dried out cake. Did you bake your cake too long? Or a day earlier than you needed it? Poke a BUNCH of holes into the top of your cake. Whip up a batch of pudding and as the pudding is still warm, pour it over your cake. Refrigerate for a couple of hours and you will have a super rich cake.
Thanks to Ginny for the image!
7) 2 Minute Single Servings of Cake – All you need is two boxed cakes (this Hot Chocolate Cake uses Chocolate and Angel Food), water and a microwave. It is perfect when you only are making for one person.
8) Drop your pan before you bake it. Not a big drop, just a half inch or so. The act of dropping the cake batter will force all the air bubbles out of your cake batter and your cake will bake more evenly now.
9) When whisking your cake mix, don’t wear it. Poke your electric whisks through a paper plate before turning it on. The plate will block the splatters.
10) Combine flavors. You can mix two flavors together by layering the batter, or by simply mixing the two flavors of batter together. We did that recently with two boxes of Betty Crocker Cakes. Strawberry chocolate is tasty!! As is French Vanilla Butter Pecan. Yum.
11) Make a boxed cake into cookies. Super easy to do! Somewhat Simple lets you know how she made hers. We usually add a tablespoon of flour when we mix up a batch of cake cookies.
Bonus Cake Hack:
Don’t have a cake mix, but you still want an amazing cake? Or did you accidentally leave the ice cream out on the counter till it became soup?
12) Here is a great recipe for Ice cream Cake. You dump the melted ice cream along with 3 Cups of self-rising flour and bake. Perfect.
And if you are taking your cake to school or a party, you will need something to carry it in. We love these Pie and Cake Carriers….and they come in fun and colorful designs.
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Dump a half a bag of instant vanilla pudding into your cake mix, makes it super moist
Love all your ideas. !!!
I replace the water with whole milk. Always come.out more rich in flavor. And taste sooo good more like bakery made !
I love your recipes. But I have1 question on one! And that is the Ice Cream Cake. And I was wanting to know is what size of Ice Cream it is that it is u use? Does anyone know?
I just need to find out what size of Ice Cream container for the Ice Cream Cake!
You can also use sour cream in the cake batter to make them come out super moist
I use sour cream in the cake batter to make it super moist
What can you do to make a larger cake since the contents of the box cake mix have been reduced?
Unsalted or salted butter?
If the box says 1/2 cup oil,then use 1 cup butter, right?
How much Apple sauce do you use instead of oil????
How much applesauce do you add instead of oil???
Great tips. Very helpful.
I use light coloured metal cake pans and bake at 325 deg. instead of 350. Cake is more moist. Higher temperature causes my cake to dry out,
Cake mix boxes used to have a “light” recipe. I still use it, and the cake comes out moist and delicious:
1 1/2 c. milk and 2 eggs. That’s it.
Love the idea of covering beaters with a paper plate before mixing. My batters usually ends up on my counter and whatever is near me. Thanks
Use a 1 teaspoon of instant coffee in the choc cake mix & also the choc frosting. Brings out the chocolate flavor.
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How much sour cream do you put I Your cake
I add 1 cup sugar, 1 cup flour, 1 extra egg and 8 oz. sour cream. Rest of instructions on box the same – this makes 7 cups of cake batter – it tastes like homemade and increases the yield for larger pans or extra cupcakes.
If you dust your greased cake pan with cake mix powder before you mix the cake, it will not leave a floury taste to the bottom of your cake and will still make for easier cleanup.