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Baker Posts Simple But Effective Tips On How To Improve Your Cakes
Baker Posts Simple But Effective Tips On How To Improve Your Cakes
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Baker Posts Simple But Effective Tips On How To Improve Your Cakes

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There are those who are masters in the kitchen, whipping up cakes and gourmet meals, seemingly, out of thin air. Then are their extreme opposites, those who manage to set a bowl of cereal on fire Homer-Simpson-style. And then there are us, mortals, with a decent amount of skill and experience to make a pancake, but not enough finesse to impress anyone (especially not Gordon Ramsay).

If you have ever tried baking a cake or a pan of cupcakes using a box cake mix you’ve snatched at the local grocery store, you might have come to a disappointing (but not surprising) result. It’s no news that box cake simply doesn’t cut it, compared to bakery goods that were made from scratch. They taste a little bland and dry out quicker than you can have a second bite. Well, the box mix game is about to change.

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    One Tumblr user decided to share some ingenious baking hacks using box cake mix

    Image credits: Dennis Sylvester Hurd

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    Tumblr user “docholligay” claims to be a state champion baker and whether her credentials are credible or not, this lady has some practical baking tips to turn your box cake mix into a gourmet dessert.

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    Image credits: Matthew Bland

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    Doc’s simple set of tips, to replace water with milk, vegetable oil with melted butter and toss in an extra egg, started an avalanche of replies with people not only swearing that this “hack” works, but also sharing their own tips and tricks. And for those still questioning why should they doctor their box mix if they can just make something from scratch, there are legitimate arguments to sway them to the box-cake-mix-hacked side.

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    Image credits: Rebecca Siegel

    After all, making a decent cake involves a set of tools, skills, and patience. And that’s only the biscuit part! Why bother so much with the creation of complex chemical reactions to make your cake have a fluffy and moist texture when you can pour your heart out into icing? Or decorating?

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    Image credits: Andy Melton

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    Giedrė Vaičiulaitytė

    Giedrė Vaičiulaitytė

    Author, Community member

    Read more »

    As a writer and image editor for Bored Panda, Giedrė crafts posts on many different topics to push them to their potential. She's also glad that her Bachelor’s degree in English Philology didn’t go to waste (although collecting dust in the attic could also be considered an achievement of aesthetic value!) Giedrė is an avid fan of cats, photography, and mysteries, and a keen observer of the Internet culture which is what she is most excited to write about. Since she's embarked on her journalistic endeavor, Giedrė has over 600 articles under her belt and hopes for twice as much (fingers crossed - half of them are about cats).

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    Giedrė Vaičiulaitytė

    Giedrė Vaičiulaitytė

    Author, Community member

    As a writer and image editor for Bored Panda, Giedrė crafts posts on many different topics to push them to their potential. She's also glad that her Bachelor’s degree in English Philology didn’t go to waste (although collecting dust in the attic could also be considered an achievement of aesthetic value!) Giedrė is an avid fan of cats, photography, and mysteries, and a keen observer of the Internet culture which is what she is most excited to write about. Since she's embarked on her journalistic endeavor, Giedrė has over 600 articles under her belt and hopes for twice as much (fingers crossed - half of them are about cats).

    What do you think ?
    LuckyL
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    In Germany cake mixes already ask for butter, eggs and milk on the package.

    TrailerMix X
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    In the US it depends on the mix but generally require eggs (her tip was to add an extra egg) and usually vegetable oil instead of butter. Some call for water while some call for milk. Some call for water but also advises you can replace it with milk.

    Load More Replies...
    madcow 3417
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    "Once you realize that you don't need a special occasion to buy a cake, the second part of your life begins." -Simon Holland. I will be testing this, not at the next friend/family birthday, but tonight.

    Gemma Lees
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'm a relatively competent baker and I can bake a lot of stuff from scratch but if I can save money by using a packet mix, I will. The discounters usually have boxes of cake mix for 50p which even with the added stuff is cheaper and quicker if I'm not in a baking from scratch mood. I think most bakers and cooks use a combination of packet mixes and from scratch ingredients.

    Something
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Box cake tastes pretty good no matter how you bake it.

    Bunzilla
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    My family has been doing this all along, since, why would you want to add oil and water when you can be adding milk and butter? It makes such a huge difference on the flavour and texture of a cake, as well as how moist it is.

    Sanne H.
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Self rising flour, butter, eggs and sugar. That's all you need for a simple cake. And a bit of practice. With cake mix, it's easier, but also more expensive.

    knittin' kitten
    Community Member
    6 years ago

    This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

    Thank you for saying that I refuse to use a box it's not only gross but cheating and that's just lazy and if you weigh your flour you don't need to sift just dump in and go. I make perfect and beautiful cakes from scratch and never once used a sin box

    Load More Replies...
    Foxxy
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I have made many cakes (different recipes) from scratch and for some reason they don’t turn out that good so my go to is box mixes or pre made cakes that I decorate myself. I might attempt making cakes from scratch in the future but for now box and shop bought cakes do the job.

    Gipsy Kings fan
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    When cake mixes first came out in the 1950s, they contained powdered milk & powdered egg, so only water had to be added. Women didn’t buy them because they didn’t feel like they were really making the cake themselves. So the manufacturers changed the mixes so that the consumer had to add milk, oil, and an egg. The rest is history!

    Load More Comments
    LuckyL
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    In Germany cake mixes already ask for butter, eggs and milk on the package.

    TrailerMix X
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    In the US it depends on the mix but generally require eggs (her tip was to add an extra egg) and usually vegetable oil instead of butter. Some call for water while some call for milk. Some call for water but also advises you can replace it with milk.

    Load More Replies...
    madcow 3417
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    "Once you realize that you don't need a special occasion to buy a cake, the second part of your life begins." -Simon Holland. I will be testing this, not at the next friend/family birthday, but tonight.

    Gemma Lees
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'm a relatively competent baker and I can bake a lot of stuff from scratch but if I can save money by using a packet mix, I will. The discounters usually have boxes of cake mix for 50p which even with the added stuff is cheaper and quicker if I'm not in a baking from scratch mood. I think most bakers and cooks use a combination of packet mixes and from scratch ingredients.

    Something
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Box cake tastes pretty good no matter how you bake it.

    Bunzilla
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    My family has been doing this all along, since, why would you want to add oil and water when you can be adding milk and butter? It makes such a huge difference on the flavour and texture of a cake, as well as how moist it is.

    Sanne H.
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Self rising flour, butter, eggs and sugar. That's all you need for a simple cake. And a bit of practice. With cake mix, it's easier, but also more expensive.

    knittin' kitten
    Community Member
    6 years ago

    This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

    Thank you for saying that I refuse to use a box it's not only gross but cheating and that's just lazy and if you weigh your flour you don't need to sift just dump in and go. I make perfect and beautiful cakes from scratch and never once used a sin box

    Load More Replies...
    Foxxy
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I have made many cakes (different recipes) from scratch and for some reason they don’t turn out that good so my go to is box mixes or pre made cakes that I decorate myself. I might attempt making cakes from scratch in the future but for now box and shop bought cakes do the job.

    Gipsy Kings fan
    Community Member
    6 years ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    When cake mixes first came out in the 1950s, they contained powdered milk & powdered egg, so only water had to be added. Women didn’t buy them because they didn’t feel like they were really making the cake themselves. So the manufacturers changed the mixes so that the consumer had to add milk, oil, and an egg. The rest is history!

    Load More Comments
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