Hi, I am new here. And I am new at baking cakes.

I want to own my bakery shop some day. I will have to go back to school for certification and all after I give birth to my first child.

I have a question about cake mix. Do you guys use cake mix from the store like Phillsbury & Betty Crocker or do you guys make cake from scratch? Which is the best?

I want to make my first cake for my sister's birthday. I want to make strawberry cakes. I just need your opinion since you guys have better knowledge than I do.

Thank you and I appreciate it.

You will get many replies to this inquiry. Many people prefer scratch baking, many prefer commercial mixes, and many prefer to "doctor up" their cake mixes with additional ingredients. It really is a personal preference. There is no one method better than the other. A lot of the time, it is what we are brought up with and used to eating. Trial and error will come into play when deciding which method works best for you.

My, my this is a topic of much debate here at CC. Everyone has their own ideas and preferences on this subject.

Personally, I use doctored cake mixes. You start with a cake mix and then add ingredients to it. The cake doctor is a great source for these kind of recipes. I only hobby bake, so it's not an issue for me.

Congratulations on the baby and welcome to CC

I think it's personal preference. You can use the box or scratch. Here is a link to a wonderful strawberry cake that I've used. It is a doctored box mix. Hope it works for you.

http://cakecentral.com/recipes/4683/scrumptious-strawberry-lemonade-cupcakes

I am also fairly new to this biz, but when I went through my Wilton courses, the instructor recommended using Duncan Hines mixes. She said they give the most amount of batter and are the most consistent in baking. I know that other CCers use other mixes though, too. Also, I always use an extender if not making a true "doctored" mix recipe. It makes 1 1/2 times the batter and it tastes more like homemade.

This is the extender recipe I use:

You add all of your normal ingredients for your cake, then you add these. So if your recipe calls for 1/2 cup of oil, you put in 1 cup total.

Cake Mix Extender

1 cup flour
2/3 cup sugar
½ cup oil
2/3 cup milk or water
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 egg

This will make a light fluffy cake. For chocolate, you can add a heaping tablespoon of cocoa powder or include hot chocolate mix as part of your sugar. For other cake flavors, feel free to add extracts to taste. Bake according to directions.

I like the scratch cakes, but my dad thinks they are too dry, my mom only makes box cakes and god love her can't follow a recipe to save her life....lol I have tried some of the doctored mixes that some of the CCers have posted......the Snickerdoodle is one of my favs.......so I agree it's just a matter of choice.
I have heard that putting a simple syrup on the scratch cakes is suppose to make them more moist. I haven't tried it yet, but at the end of the month I'm making my bff a b-day cake and I'm going to try the simple syrup thing to see if it really does make it more moist.

Hi LalaTx,
I love baking, but just do not have the time. So, I use pillsbury cakemix. The first time it turned out fine, and I kinda stick to pillsbury now. Anyway, instead of water, I use milk. I split the eggs, adding the egg whites last.
Beat the egg whites in a sperate bowl with a clean mixer, untill stif (don know if this is the right word for it ) and carefully mix with batter.
Ow and for an extra moist cake, add a spoonfull fresh mushed fruit or marmalade to batter (before adding the beaten wgg whites of course).
greetz