Five Alternate Uses for Yellow Cake Mix

Some of the most versatile instant dessert mixes include the quick bread mixes, instant pudding mixes and of course the cake mixes whether yellow, chocolate, or white. There are times when it is best to go with the homemade route when preparing the basic cake or brownies and avoid the hydrogenated fats present in the premade cake mixes. I am not implying that using butter is safe (as there are plenty of saturated fats with this type of shortening). Nothing is as good as going from scratch when it comes to nutrition; though I find that the store bought mixes all carry a consistently decent flavor that can be difficult to replicate for the novice home baker such as myself when going about cake baking using nothing but old school ingredients. (Besides….my specialties are sauces, meats and grilling).


Maybe it is the consistency of a Duncan Hines yellow cupcake or Pillsbury devil’s food cakes slice that triggers fond memories of childhood birthday parties and summer picnics. My own feeble attempts in the kitchen with bags of flour and confectioners’ sugar are not going to recreate such magic. I do find the spare boxes of yellow cake mix in the cupboard to be a lifesaver when considering whipping up a quick dozen or two cupcakes or small layer cake. The long time used yellow cake mix not only serves up a tasty sheet cake or box of cup cakes, but also can be a fantastic alternative as a base ingredient for these five other tasty desserts.

Cake Mix Cookies

The ingredients list is small for this surprisingly delicious cookie. There is a good chewiness consistency with this type of cookie and the prep time will be brief. I would recommend scouring allrecipes.com and food.com for some quality suggestions. There are even some great cake mix cookie recipes that include use of the chocolate mixes. Here is a sample recipe.

Apple Crisp

The apple harvest season of late summer/early fall is soon upon us. Apple season means several delicious treats such as cider donuts, pies, and crisps. I found a fun apple crisp recipe using yellow cake mix on the internet that can be found here.

Berry Cobblers

Cobber as you know it involves two major players: fruit, which is on the bottom of the dish and a crust or pastry on the top. It is like the fruit pie without the bottom or side crust. I have seen numerous cobble recipes that use such toppings as bisquick based toppings and biscuit toppers. Our good friend the yellow cake mix also makes an excellent cobbler topper with this recipe.

Pineapple Upside down Cake

This is one of the cakes I have to have at least once a year. It is a great finale to a summertime barbecue or even goes well in the cold winter with a nice warm cup of java with friends or family over. Even in back many, many years ago in scouts, we made a pineapple upside down cake using a dutch oven in a camp fire during a weekend campout. The results were marvelous. A Pineapple upside down recipe with yellow cake mix can be found here.
Punch Bowl Cake

AKA the trifle is a well known dessert that involves numerous layers of cream, fruit, cakes, lady fingers, puddings………you name it. In my opinion, this cake is a free for all and can be altered and down however the cook sees fit. Scan the available fruit available in your freezer, garden or farmers market. Prepare some cake bites using yellow cake mix and layer away for a fun tasty dessert that can be made right in the punch bowl. Here is a sample of one.

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