Ok,I have read where many of you enhance your boxed cake mixes with pudding and an extra egg, Why? What does it do to the mix?
I only make cakes for my immediate family, but I find the Pillsbury mixes are great! They are always moist and have a nice flavor. They claim on their boxes they already have pudding in the mix.
Others of you won't use a cake mix and prefer making your own. Again why?
Just trying to figure out if there is a better way to be doing this. I personally like the cakes I make. They are way better than a couple of "professional" decorators in the area. Their cakes are always dry and wow the icing is aweful! I've had some requests to do cakes because the cake is good.
I'm making another cake tonight and thought about enhancing it but what is the best way to do it.
Thanks

I use the enhancer recipes because it makes a moist, sturdy cake. Straight box mix cakes seem to crumble more, IMO. There are some cakes that I will only make from scratch, like red velvet and carrot. I guess it just comes down to personal preference though. If you're happy with using just a box mix, and others like your cakes, then keep on using that. No one way is right or wrong. Use what you like.

I agree on the red velvet and carrot cake. I would only make those from scratch. However, what about the basic cakes of chocolate, white, and yellow. I don't add any filling as I don't particulary like fillings in cake. I think they should be cake and icing.

I always dr because it makes them taste better. But I make alot of cakes for people who demand filling, lol. They don't want a cake without filling and I usually torte so there are 4 layers of cake and 3 layers of filling.

I like to be creative with the flavors too.....I add sour cream and coffee to my chocolate and it tastes alot different then straight cake mix from the box. It's also more sturdy..

It does come down to personal preference. If you are happy with what you make, so be it. Sounds like you are and so is your family. Mine has gotten so used to my chocolate cake that if I make anything else, they have a fit! Same with the french vanilla cake.

But I'm sort of an anal-retentive nut when it comes to baking. I don't want it to be good - I want people to swoon, lol. And I will use whatever weapon I can find to make it happen!

I always use the extender recipe. 1) it makes 1 box almost double in size. 2) I used the mix as an ingredient. I love the way they taste, they are great to work with-torting ect. Then I don't really consider them a box cake....but that is just me.

Stephanie

So adding the pudding or sour cream will make a cake more sturdy?? Hmmm I am curious as to what and how much you are adding....I have a carved cake coming up and I think any added stability would help...Thanks for bringing up the question cakes4ck

I dislike cake...well I dislike everyone else's cakes. I make my cakes the way I want them to taste and a box mix just doesn't cut it for me. Again my personal preference. I guess that makes me a snob, but I want my cakes to be so good people "swoon," as Cakediva put it.

As for fillings, with a straight box mix, I feel it is a must. I enhance all the cakes I make. My chocolate cake has chocolate pudding and melted chocolate in it. My white cake is basically the WASC with only vanilla extract. They're both yummy, and could stand alone, without filling, if that's what someone wanted. I prefer filling in all my cakes though.

Mandie -- try the WASC. It's a very sturdy cake. Or this recipe, given to me by butterflywings was very good too and you can change up the box mix and pudding flavors to fit your needs:

French vanilla box mix (betty crocker, i think)
box of french vanilla pudding mix
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup water
1 cup sour cream
4 eggs

ok, so is 1 extra egg and a box of pudding mix all you add? I see some use sour cream too. What is the best extender recipe? I think I may play with it and see if anyone in the family notices.

Thank You amia1024....The cake I have coming up is chocolate...So I can just take that recipe and switch it out with choc cake and choc pudding....Thank you soo much...I was a little worried about carving just a plain ole cake!!

I add 1 cup sugar, 1 cup flour, 1 cup sourcream (you can add yogurt) 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp vanilla 1/2 tsp salt and 1 egg. I add them to the ingredients listed on the box.

If you are making a chocolate cake, you have to add more cocoa powder or it dilutes the flavor. I add about 1/2 cup.

Stephanie

Thank you smbegg...I never really knew what to add, and never really thought about it until this post...I feel much more confident now knowing it will hold up a little better...You guys/gals are the best

I agree it's all about personal preference. No more ... no less.

I put fillings in my cakes to hold the two layers together, not because it's dry or anything. My sheet cakes never have fillings, so I guess you can say they can stand alone. (I've never comprehended the idea of adding a syrup to cakes to make them moist ... if your cakes always come out so dry that you have to add a liquid to them, then don't you need a new recipe? )

I used straight cake mixes for 25 years ... only recently did I start adding an envelope of dream whip and an extra egg. Beautiful texture! My cakes never had a "crumbling" effect.

I tried the add-pudding-and-an-egg thing once and sent it to work with hubby to my official taste testers. They told me to NEVER do that again and to go back to making my GOOD cakes. They said the pudding-and-an-egg made it taste "....just like every other bakery cake in town." Well, THAT was the worst insult you could give one of my cakes!

So it's all personal preference .... personal taste ..... and your talent and style of baking. What works for some won't work for others.

thanks indydebi and others for your input. I started using your bc icing, which I like but had problems with. However, you helped me with that as well. So, I am going to try it again for this cake. Since I don't make many cakes, every cake is important and I hate to screw it up by trying something different. I never have enough time for redoing it if something goes wrong. I probably should experiment with more cakes and see what works.
Christy

If you guys want a super moist and deliciously decadent chocolate cake, try this:

1 box DH Dark Fudge mix
2/3 C all purpose flour
1/3 C dark cocoa (Hershey's Special Dark works well)
1 C sugar
1 C water
1/3 C International Delights white choc mudslide coffee creamer
1/3 C oil
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
1 C sour cream

Mix well and bake at 325. This cake is SOOOOOOOOOOOOO Awesome!!

I guess it is all about personal preference. One thing that sets me apart from many on this forum is I'm really not a cake person. Now don't get me wrong, I will enjoy a good piece of cake now and then. And if it is lousy I will throw it in the trash. But, one piece is all for me. I prefer pies and other desserts over cakes. And even those I eat in moderation.
I just like to decorate cakes as a little hobby for my kids. It also lets me be somewhat artistic as my only other artisitc ability is scrapbooking and photography.