I used mixes in the beginning and doctored them up. As I grew in the business and personally, I made the choice that I wanted to offer a product that was free of preservatives (half the ingredients in a box mix cannot be absorbed or digested by the human body!) and a cake that was of a higher quality. Not to say that those who do use mixes aren't putting out quality cakes, but rather I began using only the highest quality chocolate and ingredients...cage free eggs, etc. I think that when you make the choice to go that route, you do have to charge considerably more and thus you lose any clients that may be on the bubble of going with a non-grocery store cake v.s. a grocery store cake. I hope that makes sense!

I do both now, started out using doctored mixes only. They are fabuloso, and I am just now finding scratch recipes that I would actually sell to customers. I will give my customer the best cake I can make, whether scratch or mix. It is really hard to find a GOOD scratch recipe in my experience.

I also use a mix for most of my cakes. I worked at a bakery and they too get mixes in for their cakes. I have on ocassion made from scratch but i find most do not want to pay for the price of a scratch cake(especially for bigger sizes). I do make m icing/fondant from scratch.
I've never heard of adding to mixes but i will try.

Thank you so much to everyone for your responses! I am feeling much better now about experimenting with the different mixes! I truely appreicate the imput!


Jenn

I use mixes. I'm not much of a baker - I'm more into what I can do with the decorating. Most of the time I have my partner-in-cake do the baking and the crumb coat and I do the rest. Talk about cheating huh?

My cakes are all made from doctored cake mixes. I do make my own icings, frostings, fondant, etc.

The Cake Mix Doctor books are great for ideas in using cake mixes instead of scratch recipes. There is a website also to get ideas of some of the recipes www.cakemixdoctor.com.

Hope this helps.

I use doctored cake mixes except for chocolate cake. Someone here suggested the Hershey's cake on the back of the cocoa and it is fantastic.

I use box mixes but I almost always doctor them in some way. Either extender or add a couple of things to them. For frostings, I always make them from scratch. Fondant will probably be the same too if I like the MMF!

I make everything from scratch except for fondant and gumpaste (although the gumpaste I buy is made from scratch). I am going to try to make the fondant and gumpaste from scratch soon though.

I find that you can tell the difference from scratch and boxed (although it highly depends on the recipes used; I'm stating this from my experiences).

I know what I'm about to say is going to really sound stupid, but I find I can pride myself more when I can say I made it from scratch.

I don't think any of the bakeries I've ever seen make the cake from Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker, but maybe they have an industrial mix or mix all their dry ingredients beforehand?

We use box mix, walmart brand. We never intended to turn this into a business and basically feel they get what they get. We were very surprised when people started raving about the taste of the cake.

I make everything from scratch also...but now that I've read some of these responses, I may just take a load of of myself and do some boxed cakes every now and again!

I always use a box mix and make my BC from scratch. I have never tasted a scratch (i've had many) cake that i liked so i will keep using boxed mixes.

For my two most popular cakes (chocolate and french vanilla) I use a box cake mix and an entire tub of sour cream along with pudding, vanilla, dutch processed cocoa, buttermilk, chocolate sauce, etc.... It's not that it's easier (it's not) or cheaper (it's not that either) but I have tried every scratch cake recipe I can find and when I have a 'taste off' with friends and family, they always pick the one with the box base. So I was stressing but then I just decided who cares? I think it is ridiculous to NOT use a certain product because then it won't be 'homemade'.

My friend, who is also a cake decorator, gave me such a ration because I use a cake-mix base for my chocolate cake...kept saying "Well, anyone can make a cake from a mix"...mind you, I was adding a bunch of extras. Well, on the sly her husband told me that my cake was so much better and more moist then hers.....then, of course, swore me to secrecy.

Now by all means, if you have scratch recipes that beat all, use them. But for those two flavors, using the cake base is the tastiest. Another thing is people talking about preservatives.....well, sometimes scratch baked goods are so dry and blech after a day or two, so I often add powdered instant vanilla pudding, etc. to things to give them a bit of extra 'staying power'.

LOL - I'm sure there will be many that don't agree but I truly think you need to bake what tastes best and suits your needs rather then what you or anyone else 'thinks' you should be baking. Most people are amazed when they find out my base is box cake - they say 'My cake never comes out like this!". Well adding all those extra ingredients make a big difference.

First, you should try searching through the posts under Cake mix/scratch or something like that You will find the same as you do here and A lot more... I am sure you will find interesting things there as well...

i agree that making a cake mix with an extender isnt any easier, cheaper or faster. some of the cakes i make , like carrot cake, for example, you just cant copy the real thing with a mix, so i bake scratch on that one. when i do use a mix w/ extender, it is because of the individuals preferences. most people i bake for think the scratch cakes are too dry or dense. i dont like the way a straight mix tastes, too fluffy, too bland. the extender i use, i kind of came up with after seeing what worked for me....and i am happy with it because it is truly a happy medium. the extra ingredients add more flavor, yet it is dense enough to hold up to fondant and stacking.

1 mix
1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup liquid (water, milk, coffee, fruit puree)
4 eggs
1/3 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla (or other flavoring suited to your cake)
1 box of pudding (suited to the flavor of your cake)

i seriously desire to learn to be a better scratch baker, to use less preservatives and things i cant pronounce, and will strive to....but it takes time to learn.

at this point i do mostly this extender and a few occasional scratch batters, i make all my bc with real butter, pure extracts and fresh fillings/ purees etc...i do buy satin ice ready made fondant, love that stuff! all combined, i have people trying to convince me that my cakes simply can not come from a mix....i am pleased that they enjoy it, but it is true that america in general has lost touch with what a scratch recipe cake is anymore.

I use recipes from The Cake Doctor . They usually have dry pudding mix, sour cream, an extra egg and vanilla or almond extract. I always get rave reviews. Very moist and denser than just a mix.

Use whatever makes you happy.

I only do scratch cakes and am having trouble keeping up with the work load, so I must be doing something right.

I guess I don't understand the theory that boxed mixes take a shorter time. I've got my dry ingredients measured ahead of time and just do the butter and egg thing. Seems like doctoring takes just as much time. But I've never done it so I don't actually know.

I'm also of the mind that I didn't want to offer anything that had preservatives in it or that could have been contaminated, with milk products or nuts, when processed. I posted that DH was running their cake mixes on the same lines as they do products that contain milk or nuts. I just didn't want to go there and that was my personal preference. With so many people so worried about allergies and allergic reactions I didn't want to chance it.

I have tried and tried and TRIED many scratch recipes for yellow and white cakes and can never get them moist. They seem heavy and dry. Not what I'm going after. It must be me; I'm not able to achieve a moist scratch cake (yellow or white). I do make a scratch chocolate cake and of course, carrot, but for white or yellow, I use a mix with an extender. I think they are quite yummy and everyone seems to really like them. Originally, I had wanted to do only scratch baking, but it just didn't work out!

Julie

I use mix too. I can't stand everything leading up to the actual decorating, so to make a cake from scratch would be additional pain!
What is a cake mix extender? Enlighten me you great cake bakers of the world!

It uses a cake mix but also additional items. Here's the one I use:

http://www.cakecentral.com/cake_recipe-1977-0-Cake-Mix-extender.html

I use a mix as a base for the yellow, chocolate and white, but I have a great strawberry from scratch. I add so much to the mixes though that I really don't consider them premixed at all! Everyone loves how they turn out! As I think everyone else on here does, I make scratch icings and fillings. I have used premade fillings if someone requests something specifically, but as a rule, I like to do my own. I will not use premade fondant unless acustomer requests it and it's a higher end quality (NO WILTON!) because it tastes so bad that I won't serve it with my name attached to it. I will either make mmf or the wilton homemade recipe. They both turn out tasting good.

Sarah

There was another thread on this subject which was also very interesting. I mainly use box mixes, but always add to them & everyone raves about the cakes. I have one sponge cake that I make from scratch. Also a gingerbread recipe from scratch. Other than those, I love the doctored cake mixes. I always make my own frostings & filling, but I do love Satin Ice.

I've used box mixes and made my own from scratch. I don't bake for a living though. If I did, I don't think I could use a mix. I'd have to come up with good scratch recipes.

I make all of my icing and want to try to make my own fondant. I'd also like to try Satin Ice. I've only ever tried Wilton so far.

Personally I don't think most people are going to know the difference. I've had people rave over how a cake tastes whether it was all from scratch or all from a mix.

people won't care about the difference in cake mixes, but they will care about whether or not they're eating Wilton fondant or Satin Ice! Satin Ice is SO MUCH better!

I use mixes. Sometime I doctor, sometimes I don't. All my icing is made from scratch. I have not really done much with fondant and have not tried to make MMF yet, but hope to do that soon.
Bradymom

I, too, use doctored mixes for my white, choc, and yellow cakes. All the others are scratch. I have been trying desperately to find good scratch recipes for the above mentioned cakes. But I just don't like the texture of most scratch cakes. It sounds like many of you are having trouble finding a good scratch recipe, too. If anyone finds one and would be willing to share, I would very much appreciate it!!

I feel a little guilty offering doctored cakes, but am afraid to change because everyone raves about them.

I make scratch with the exception of lemon

when I find a good lemon recipe, they'll be all from scratch! for now DH lemon supreme does a fine job filling in.

the majority of the people that get cakes from me are wanting something different in looks. as long as the cake tasted good, i don't think they would give two shakes how it was made.

Thanks everyone for keeping this on a positive side and giving such wonderful help and suggestions...you are the greatest

Anyone have a good recipe for sour cream pound cake that can be made from a box mix? The recipe that I have is from scratch and take to long...I'm a box mix person

WASC recipe - starts with a box, but still adding scratch ingredients. I play around with it, made an awesome chocolate cinnamon cake by substituting cinnamon applesauce once when I ran out of sour cream. I've found few true scratch recipes which work well for me, and it's just as cheap to buy DH for $.82/box and KNOW it will turn out.

Thanks again everyone!!! I so many suggestions now that I am acually excited to try some doctored up box mixes!!!