Editors of Adams Media - The 50 Best Cake Mix Recipes. Tasty, Fresh, and Easy to Make!

Avon, Massachusetts

Cakes are the food of celebration. People bake them for the special events in life, or just to celebrate the end of a particularly lovely meal. They can have the simple flavors youd expect from a basic cake, or they can surprise and delight the palate with unusual additions and creative ingredients. They can be homely in appearance or elaborately decorated. They can be a flavorful showcase of the cooks artistry or a fun collaboration for the kids. The possibilities are endless, and cake mix makes them easy enough for cooks of all levels.

The must-have list of ingredients in this book starts with one thing: cake mix. Some recipes call for a specific brand or flavor, but most allow a little wiggle room. Keep a stash of basic flavors and frostings in a cool, dry cabinet and youll be ready to bake when the event presents itself. Youll be amazed at the variety of desserts, breakfasts, snacks, and even dinners you can make starting with a simple cake mix.

Some feel that baking with cake mix is cheating and that a cake isnt truly home-baked unless the cook spent hours in the kitchen measuring, mixing, baking, frosting, and plating the picture-perfect slice. But home is where the heart is, and home-baked is anything baked with love. Most cake mixes are nothing more than basic ingredients that are simply pre-mixed for you. Why on earth not let a trusted brand do the measuring for you? It can mean a few more minutes spent living, loving, and laughing and a few less spent measuring, sifting, and sorting. Enjoying life is so much more than the icing on the cake.

Mandarin Orange Muffins

These make a delightful ending to an Asian-inspired dinner. Youll get a fresh pop of citrus in each bite!

Makes 16 muffins

Ingredients

1 18.25-ounce box white cake mix marked just add water

1 12-ounce can mandarin oranges

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease muffin tin or line with paper baking cups. Set aside.

2. Combine cake mix and oranges in a large mixing bowl. Mix until incorporated; do not expect a smooth batter. Fill muffin cups full.

3. Bake for 25 minutes.

Sugar and Spice Muffins

On a cold morning, these spicy muffins will warm you up! If you are serving these to guests, add a simple orange-sugar glaze to them to make them even more special.

Makes 24 muffins

Ingredients

1 18.25-ounce box spice cake mix

2 tablespoons flour

3 eggs

cup milk

cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 tablespoons each cinnamon and sugar to garnish

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Grease muffin tin or line with paper cups and set aside.

2. Mix all ingredients except cinnamon and sugar in a large mixing bowl using an electric mixer set to medium speed. Fill muffin cups full.

3. Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on top of each muffin. Bake for 20 minutes or until tops are golden. Serve warm.

Cake Mix Pancakes

Did you know that in a pinch, cake mix batter can be used as pancake batter? Its really all just a question of form one is thick cake and the other is many thin cakes.

Makes 12 pancakes

Ingredients

1 18.25-ounce box cake mix plus ingredients called for on box

cup butter or cup oil for frying

1. Make cake mix batter according to package directions. Melt 1 tablespoon butter or heat tablespoon oil in a skillet or griddle. Ladle cup pancake batter per pancake into skillet.

2. Flip when bubbles form on top of pancakes. Serve with fresh fruit, syrup, and/or whipped cream!

Get Creative

Dont be afraid to toss fruit, nuts, or even bits of candy bar into the mix on very special occasions. Make banana bread pancakes with walnuts and real maple syrup on top, white cake mix pancakes with blueberries and blueberry syrup, cherry cake mix pancakes with chocolate syrup, confetti cake mix pancakes for a birthday, and pineapple cake mix pancakes with blueberry syrup. Have fun!

Easy Cinnamon Rolls

From-scratch cinnamon rolls require lots of complicated steps, and store-bought tube rolls taste totally artificial. Thankfully, heres a happy medium thats as gooey as the original but very simple to assemble.

Makes 24 rolls

Ingredients

1 18.25-ounce box white cake mix

2 0.25-ounce packages active dry yeast

5 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups hot water

2 tablespoons butter, softened

Ground cinnamon

Granulated sugar

cup margarine

cup firmly packed brown sugar

cup light corn syrup

1 cup chopped nuts

1. Preheat oven to 375F.

2. Combine cake mix, yeast, and flour in a large bowl. Mix in hot water. Set aside to rise until dough doubles in size. Cut dough in half.

3. Roll half of dough into a rectangle on a floured surface. Coat with softened butter, then sprinkle with cinnamon and granulated sugar to taste. Roll jellyroll style and cut into 2" slices. Place into a greased 8" baking pan. Repeat with the rest of the dough.

4. Let cut rolls rise in the pan until theyve doubled again. Meanwhile, mix margarine, brown sugar, corn syrup, and nuts. Pour nut and syrup mixture over rolls.

5. Bake for 25 minutes. Let cool.

Rich Topped Coffee Cake

A decadent breakfast treat thats delicious when still warm and slathered with butter, or for a mid-afternoon snack, this coffee cake rivals anything you can buy at the bakery.

Serves 6

Ingredients

1 18.25-ounce box yellow cake mix

1 3.9-ounce box instant vanilla pudding

1 cup sour cream

4 whole eggs

cup canola oil

cup skim milk

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

cup sugar

1 tablespoon flour

1. Preheat oven to 350F.

2. Mix cake mix and vanilla pudding mix in a bowl. Add sour cream, oil, and milk. Lightly beat eggs and fold into mixture. Blend using electric mixer on medium speed for 10 minutes. Pour into a greased angel food pan or bundt pan.

3. In a separate bowl combine cinnamon, sugar, and flour. Pour into pan on top of cake mix mixture.

4. Use a knife to cut through batter at intervals to marble topping through batter. Bake for 50 minutes or until knife comes out clean. Serve with coffee.

Cake Doughnuts

Theres nothing like the taste of a homemade doughnut, still piping hot. This recipe demystifies the process of making them its not as hard as you may have thought!

Makes 24 doughnuts

Ingredients

cup whole milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups confectioners sugar

1 tablespoon yeast

2 cups warm water

1 18.25-ounce box white cake mix

4 cups flour