Duncan Hines cake mix @#!%&

[elaineandmichaelsmommy]

We had the birthday party for DD and DS tonight. DD is 4 and DS is 1. I made 2 cakes.I used the duncan hines mix that you put a stick of butter and 3 eggs in and I've never been angrier.I followed the directions to the letter. Not only was the cake incredibly dry , but it fell apart when I iced it. No turning back since i didn't ice it till after dinner had been served.The kids birthday cakes looked and tasted like total CRAP!!!! DD didn't even finish her slice and ds wound up having a meltdown in his highchair. I attribute that to the number of guests though,not the cake.

So just a warning to you other moms and dads who bake-forget this mix!!! Go with something else or make it from scratch. I know I could have done better from scratch tonight and I've NEVER made one from scratch in my life.
Let me know if you've had similar experiences making something.


Jen

[buddyleebaby]

I just used this mix for the first time and we loved it. It was seriously the best box cake I ever had, and I actually got compliments on it- so I am shocked.
But I had a mishap with my dd's first birthday cake so I feel your pain. Mine looked like crap because I dropped it during transport, causing the bottom layer to fall apart. I had to shove globs of chocolate cake back under fondant icing in an attempt to make the cake somewhat even and do my best to wipe off the icing fingerprints I was leaving behind. And of course, we couldn't serve to bottom layer.
The rest tasted good though, and we all had a good laugh about it. Luckily my dd was having a mad tea party so people thought I made a lopsided cake on purpose.
Don't let a little bit of bad cake get you down, it happens to everyone. Hope your kiddos day was great otherwise!

[jestagrl79]

A stick of butter and 3 eggs? I haven't ever seen that one before, does it have a specific name, so I can be sure to stay away from it? I always use Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe cakes mixes, and have never had any issues.

Sorry the party wasn't what you wanted. :(

Meg
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[buddyleebaby]

The one I used was one of the moist deluxe mixes called "butter yellow cake."

[elaineandmichaelsmommy]

Aside from the cake the party was great. DD had an absolute blast.DS not so much.He was totally overstimulated and had to go upstairs for several breaks. but that happens when you're 1. dd wanted to put on her gifts as she opened them. by the time she got to her last gift she had on the original dress she put on for the party, a robe, pink cowgirl boots and a purple feather boa. Yes,we took pictures. Hope to get them online eventually. The party was great and everyone except me is asleep right now. I'll clean tomorrow.



JEn

[KrisM]

I've used that mix with no problems. I wonder if you got a bad batch? I'd call Duncan Hines and give them the info on the box. You might get free coupons or something.

[SnuggleBuggles]

Did you use real butter or margarine?

Was it able to cool a while before frosting?

How about the methodology (order of when to add ingredients/ which to add to each other)? I screwed up muffins recently by doing the method wrong and they were pretty bad.

Oven temp? Bake time? Does your oven cook evenly? I found that keeping a pizza stone in the oven works great for evening things out and maintaining temp.

Just trying to think of the different things that could have affected it.

I always bake from scratch. I have a great chocolate cake recipe that is super easy if you ever want it. No methodology- just basically dump all the ingredients together and mix.

What a bummer. :( So many kids don't finish their cake at parties so I wouldn't take that as a sign. :) At the end of the day they should know they have a mom who rocks because she made their birthday cake. :)

Beth

[mom to little e]

I just used this same mix for bday cupcakes for ds to take to school. I thought it was really odd when making it since the batter was SO thick. Taste-wise it came out okay but I went back to the mixes requiring oil for the actual bday cake.

Maryann

[Wife_and_mommy]

Would love your cake recipe, please!




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[StantonHyde]

Do you live above 5,000 feet? They really aren't kidding when they give the high altitude directions--as I have found out :-)

I am impressed that you found time to bake TWO cakes for a combined party with young kids. yeesh--I just buy mine. So kudos to you for doing it!

[sarahsthreads]

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience - we really love that mix here! I've baked easily 20 cakes from those mixes (well, if you count batches of cupcakes) and not had any problems.

One thing I *have* found is that I have to use the lower temperature for coated pans (which I have) but not add the 3-5 minutes they say to add. But the extra time just makes it darker outside, not really dry inside.

My latest cake disaster was when I tried to make cut cakes and cover them with poured fondant. They looked horrible - nothing like the picture showed. Luckily I was making them the day before the baby shower they were for and was able to quickly make some fancy-looking cupcakes and nobody was the wiser.

Sarah :)

[bensmom243]

I can't believe this, I tried that cake mix for a Halloween Party and had to toss 2 dozen cupcakes! The batter was almost like whipped frosting or something and the cake was sticky... I thought I had done something wrong and was so frustrated!

[elaineandmichaelsmommy]

tell me about it, afterr 2 min of mixer the vconsistancy changes and the batter was almost the consistancy of frosting. weird. i pamed the snot out of the pan and it still stuck. and when i iced it the cake came up with the icing.so i had a pink cake and a white cake both with black specks.but i thought the batter was weird too. no more making cakes the day of the party,i learned my lesson.they reccomend 4 minutes of mixing,i did that. i wonder if i shouldn't have mixed it as much.



jen

[dawell0]

It probably was a mix of the cake mix and the humidity that did it. Sometimes, the humidity in our condo gets such that box desserts don't turn out as well as I would like (I took a cake decorating class and always used the same box mix for cake only to have to taste terrible sometimes and great others, who knows???) I wouldn't worry about it too much as kids likely enjoyed the party and didn't worry about the cake.

[oliviasmomma]

I bet the mixing was part of it--4minutes is a really long time for a box cake. (Especially if you have a good mixer...) FWIW, the store I used to run was next to a gourmet baker. She said that most bakers use mixes and doctor them up--90% of them. There is one wholesale brand most bakers use which is why so many bought cakes taste the same. Her recommendation, and the one she used, was Pillsbury, not with pudding, just plain. Her cakes were fabulous!Ever since then that's all I buy when I make a box cake.

ETA--that stinks, though--all the work and mess of two cakes and they didn't come out right, I'd be bummed too!

[Sillygirl]

Did you melt the butter first before adding it? My cookies from scratch come out great if the butter is softened, but once I got impatient and microwaved the butter to a liquid, and the cookies came out like sand.

[psophia17]

I just have to say, every time I come over to the BP, I see this thread, and all I can do is think "yum, cake made with butter."

I'm sorry it didn't turn out, but I'm going to have to find that mix, bake it, and eat it all in one fell swoop.

[daniele_ut]

>Do you live above 5,000 feet? They really aren't kidding when
>they give the high altitude directions--as I have found out
>:-)

I live at high altitude and I have never followed the high altitude directions on anything! We've never had a problem, but maybe cakes would be even better if I did!