LOL, I found an old box of Betty Crocker cake mix in my pantry that expired in 2003, and just for grins, I made it (added a box of pudding and an extra egg, as usual). Imagine my surprise when it baked up tall and delicious! I expected the leavening agents in the mix to be no longer active but I was pretty surprised, and it tasted great too. Go Betty! Heehee!

Just thought I'd share!

LOL now if you grow any extra limbs we wanna know about it !

lol, hmm 3 years huh? i'm not as brave as you, i'll tell ya that!!

you'll be fine

my dad had one for a while and when we made it..it was a no go. flat and awful.

well.... ....I sure hope your Pepto isnt expired as well!

It does not surprise me in the least. Those mixes are so full of sugar (which is a natural preservative) and artificial preservatives that you can probably keep it well into next decade and it would be fine. Whatever they use for baking soda/powder would probably be the main concern past the date.

Btw, expiration dates are just guidelines by the FDA. I have consumed milk and sour cream well past the date, smelling it first of course with no foul stench present, and all was dandy.

I don't know how many others go crazy like I do when I see Duncan Hines Cake Mix on sale. Last week Wal-Mart had it for 82 cents. Well,
I bought 60 boxes. I always keep my cake mix and pudding mix in the
freezer, so I always have some on hand. That way all I have to buy are
the eggs, sour cream, .....
I don't think I've ever used a box that old, but I do know that somewhere
sometime I heard the comment that mixes keep better in cold.

[quote="
Btw, expiration dates are just guidelines by the FDA. I have consumed milk and sour cream well past the date, smelling it first of course with no foul stench present, and all was dandy.[/quote]

You're a hoot!

Gotta love those preservatives!!!

LOL, I had no concerns about any of the ingredients being rancid or anything (or I wouldn't have eaten it!). The ingredients are non-perishable and shelf-stable, and like someone else said, sugar is a great preservative.

What actually suprised me is that the leavening agents (baking soda, baking powder, or whatever chemical leaveners they use in their mixes) were not dead.

The cake was tasty! LOL

I've eaten sour cream months past its expiration date too.

my neighbor just gave me 2 boxes of dh cake mix and the packaging looks a little different than the ones i have so im assuming they are a little (or alot) old but i cannot find an experation date on the box can anyone help me?

I am soooo glad I a sitting here having dinner reading this thread

Some of the boxes have a code number for when they made it instead of an expiration date. It will start with, say, "2131...... " and the 2 means 2002 and the 131 means May 10th , or the 131st day of the year. You can go online to the co. or call them, they'll tell you this. That's how I found out. They're old if the box doesn't list a web address!

I'm with rodneyck on this one! I lived in Canada's north iin some very remote, isolated locations for an excess of 11 years. During that time, we had to order our dry good and frozen grocery supplies for the year in time to meet with sealift ships or barges. If you missed the cutoff, you were "hooped" for the year. Imagine trying to figure out what you will need for virtually every grocery item for the year...canned goods, dry goods, frozen goods etc.....Anyway....long story short, believe me, expiration dates are "mere suggestions"!!!!! OK...some stuff will go rancid, but for the most part if things are stored in proper conditions, they'll last a very long time. I and my family lived to tell the tale some 10 years later . I'm not suggesting I would arbitrarily use things beyond their expiration dates, but certainly within reason. Cake mixes.....if the leavening agents haven't gone flat...what else could possibly go wrong???/ I'm al for a good deal and will stock up when I see an opportunity. God love freezers.....I baked bread last week using yeast I had while living in the north over 10 years ago..... I keep it and most of my baking supplies in the freezer. Extends lifetime for a very long time....

Just my two cents worth...can't see myself throwing something out without experimenting first.... Happy baking