Has anyone compared just a plan old Betty Crocker with a plan old Duncan Hines cake mix? Do they taste much different or does one raise higher than the other?
TIA

I personally like DH better. I find it holds up better than BC as well. I tried both several times to compare and those were my findings. Hope that helps.

I like BC. Ive had problems with DH falling apart because its way too soft.

I usually only use BC. DH seems to soft for me and it falls apart. However, I put 1 box of DH white with 1 box BC white together in the Kitchen Aid and it really made a fantastic cake!

Don't know why, but it just worked great for me. I think I will have to try a couple of other combo's out.

I only ever use Duncan Hines, I love the texture and the flavor is awesome. I do like Betty Crocker fudge brownies though. I never use Pillsbury, that stuff is gross.

I love the light texture of DH but I find too that it's very soft so I use it only for sheet cakes and two-tiered cakes. I use BC for 3D cakes since it already has added pudding and so it firms up nicely for carving, etc.

I usually use DH or BC. I stay away from Pillsbury though. All of my cakes are super moist as I put cellophane on them as soon as they come out of the oven to lock in the moisture, once they cool, I place them in the freezer until I'm ready to use them. I'll pull them out an hour or so before I need them so they are still semi-frozen in the middle so I'm able to handle the cakes without them falling apart. Hope that makes sense.

I've used Pillsbury for 18 years. Occasionally I have used DH but recently had to use BC. Maybe it's what we get used to but I won't use BC again. Pillsbury just works better and tastes better to me.

I LOVE DH..... I will use BC in a pinch, but I learned my lesson with the Pillsbury..... not good!

I just saw this test on America's Test Kitchen yesterday!

They did a blind tasting on a plain yellow cake - 1 was scratch, 1 was a King Arthur mix, 1 was Betty's, 1 was Duncan's.

The results -

scratch was best

Betty was the best of the mixes
Duncan was #2
King Arthur was last.

Just reporting what I saw. Although between Betty and Duncan, I'm getting better results from her than I do from him, as of late.

Theresa

I use Pillsbury, too. DH is a close 2nd - never again will I use BC. One more than one occasion I made BC and it baked up beautiful....only to cool and shrink to half the size. So, I just stick to Pills or DH as I've never had a problem with them.

Thanks everyone so far it's really close. Did anyone notice if one bakes higher than the other?

I make DH white cake and I beat it on high with the paddle attachment on my Kitchen Aid for about three to five minutes. I love the texture I get from that and it bakes nice and high. It does bake soft but if you mix in a white chocolate pudding it firms up nicely.

I have used BC for 24 years now and wont used anything else... Dh waaayy to fluffy

I use Pillsbury white with whole eggs but use BC for a chocolate cake. I don't like DH- don't get the results I like. I'm curious about the post saying they beat the mix 3-5 minutes with their KitchenAid. If I did that I would have nothing but huge tunnels. I only beat about 1 1/2 minutes and I get nice raising with no holes. BTW my birthday present to myself this year was a new KitchenAid. My old one was about 30 years old and would not beat on slow. I got really tired of everything flying out of the mixer!

pillsbury and duncan hines are my favorite... we are all different.. and we all like what we like... right? that is good.

I prefer Duncan Hines. I will use Betty Crocker when I do not have Duncan Hines. I like them both truth be told. I don't care much for Pillsbury though.

I love duncan hines,I have had nothing but problems when I use betty crocker,and pilsbury is gross to me!

I will use only BC - have for over 16 years - my mom did cakes for over 30 years & only used BC

I found a recipe from the Cake Doctor Cook Book. When you use Duncan Hines substitute the water on the box for 1 cup whole milk and the oil for 1 stick of butter and always use whole eggs. It makes the cake moister and slices much firmer than when following the normal box instructions.

I only use DH myself, and I get great compliments. I guess I should maybe try BC since some many people like it. This past weekend I did use Pilsbury Strawberry and I didnt like it at all. It ended up falling apart on me and I had to bake a whole other cake. And is it me or does it have a weird smell. Both me and my mom thought so. To each their own I guess, everyone is different!

First, BC and Pills both have pudding in them. DHines does not. Therefore, BC and Pills should rise higher and be a lighter fluffier texture (and more crumbs). DH does not have pudding in it, so it should be a firmer less crumbly texture. (That is the theory anyway). That is why, as far as I can remember, that Wilton has their seal of recommendation on the box, It is a bit easier to work with hence the firmer texture and less crumbs. BUT, overmixing, overbaking, and humidity will affect every cake, no matter which brand.

I wonder how much the humidity here in south Florida affects us who bake here. I know our gingerbread houses go soft instead of stale,(thank goodness we mostly make them in Dec), in my Wilton classes we were lucky to get 1 hour out of our royal icing, and it takes forever for gumpaste to dry. We just had tropical storm Faye go through. Right at the time I am working on a 4 ft. wide 3 ft. high haunted gingerbread house for a store display, as well as covering a 6 ft high wire and foam tree with fondant. Can't even tell you how much fun that is with 6 inches of water in the yard, rain everyday, and it is a sauna everytime you open the door. All this is to say, no surprise our cake mix experiences are not the same.

I wonder why no one likes Pillsbury????

Another vote for Betty! I will use Duncan Hines in a pinch, or if I need to make red velvet, but, otherwise, I am very loyal to my BC