can I freeze my cake batter? will it change the way it bakes once its thawed? i just really hate when a pan calls for 6 cups batter when a box makes 5 cups so you have to make 2 boxes and end up with a lot of left over batter! i know i can make cupcakes or something with the leftover batter but i thought freezing it would be nice if its possible

I don't know much about boxed cake mixes as I bake from scratch, but I'd never freeze an uncooked cake batter. It's my understanding (and I'm happy to be corrected) that there is a chemical reaction between the wet ingredients and any raising agents (baking powder/soda) which could be messed up with the time it takes to freeze and thaw.
I think making cupcakes or smaller cakes and freezing them is the way to go.
HTH
Emma

Makes sense Just thought i'd ask to be sure! thanks!

Just bake the extra layer and, when it's cooled, wrap tightly in plastic wrap x2, then foil, then a ziploc if appropriate...whatever it takes to seal it completely against air, and it'll keep forever in the freezer once it's baked. There was just a thread on here the other day, a CCer just thawed a YEAR-OLD cake with perfect results!

Just a thought - instead of making 2 mixes, have you tried just 1 mix plus a cake extender recipe. There are a couple of extender recipes on this website and on other recipe sites - just Google "cake mix extender". These add 1.5-2 cups of additional volume to your mix. So 1 mix plus extender now yields 5.5-6 cups and you have no left over batter to worry about.

Here's a quick one given to me by a friend - it yields about 2 cups but I think you could cut it in half if you just want 1 extra cup.
1 cup flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup oil
2/3 cup water
Add the dry ingredients to the dry mix, and blend a little to combine. Add the wet ingredients to the wet ingredients listed on your mix and beat as directed on the box.

As long as you're using a mix or your cake batter recipe uses double acting baking powder you'll be fine freezing cake batter.

Here are threads with more info on refrigerating/freezing cake batter:
(Includes the science of baking powder.)

http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopicp-5914137.html

http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-580334.html

http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-606527-.html

HTH

I could be wrong but I thought you shouldn;t freeze uncooked eggs due to salmonella??

Never really thought of it before, but it makes perfect sense. People freeze cookie dough all the time with no adverse effects. Thanks for the links JanH!

I don't know about how the mixes do but, I often make extra batter intentionally. Portion it out in prepared(sprayed, lined, sprayed) pans...cupcakes or layers. Place in deep freezer(I have one designated) until SOLID. Quickly, bop them out of their tins and place them in containers with parchment between....layers, I usually just leave them in their pans. When ready to bake, simply preheat oven to same temp as called for in recipe, remove desired pans/portions and place in the appropriate tins(referring to cupcakes. cakes will already be in their tins) . No thawing necessary. Place them in the preheated oven and bake. They usually require about 5 or so minutes extra bake time.

ETA: I've not tried it with EVERY cake I make...just the most popular ones. If able, everyone should try it with what they use the most...even if it's just a cupcake worth of batter left over...it's enough for an experiment.

I do it sometimes, I haven't tried it with my white cake mix but it worked awesome for my chocolate! I bake from scracth but can't see why it would work differently for either... Freezing raw eggs would not lead to salmonella, many recipes use raw eggs and I believe the sugar and oil content stops bacteria growth....

http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-580334-batter.html

great tip, all4cake!

I've never done it. When I have extra batter, I make cupcakes. They can then be for friends and family, or can be given to your postal carrier, gas station attendant, etc. They'd love it!

Hey, lookit this one too! http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-652980.html