I just had that question. I've done both a cake from scratch and I also use cake mixes from the store. But I was wondering...in the long run..what is more money saving?? I actually like the taste on both the box and from scratch. Does anyone have any favorites bewteen scracth and box mix. My hubby love carrot from scracth and that's about it. Thanks guys.

JMO

I hate boxed mixes. I prefer scratch butter cakes. But you'll get a bunch of people who are the other way around, too.

Walmart has DH cake mixes from .86 to .97....... I can't buy all the ingredients for that price.....

I think if you are making cakes for others or to sell, and you have several to make that unless you have your scratch ingredients pre-assembled/measured/whatever, it would be easier to use box mixes.

agreeing with grama. DH is the best boxed cake to me. i have never made a scrath so i cant help you out there. but with DH i have never had any complaints.

Since my scratch cakes are practially inedible (I can't TELL you how many of them have been thrown out after the first few slices) boxed cakes are definitely better for me. I keep trying this famous person's cake recipes and that famous person's cake recipes...to no avail.

It's whatever works best for you - and what your customers/family/friends like best.

I'm definitely a DH boxed mix girl.

Hmm, well, if you are going on cake mix alone, definately the box would be cheaper. But if you are "doctoring" it, it can get pretty pricey too. I personally love both box and scratch but lean towards scratch becasue ALL box mixes (including doctored mixes) still TASTE like box mixes. Nothing wrong with that, but I don't want my cake to taste like everyone elses either. I think overall, scratch cakes are more expensive. If you are using a recipe that calls for dutch process cocoa, or some other specialty ingredient like a lot of them do, it's not cheap.

I go for box mix because you can't beat .89 - $1 per box on sale and using coupons and such. I personally get a better result from box. I'm in awe of people that can get a good scratch cake, but I really can't tell the difference.

It depends on what you like and what the people you're making it for like. I actually use both. I make a butter cream cake from scratch and I use the chocolate cake box extender whenever I need a chocolate cake that is similar to a suzy q. I make it for people at work and I always say I made it from scratch. They can't tell the difference.

Duncan Hines for me all the way. All of the other cake mixes didn't do nearly as well as DH. Plus, after all of that, I'm afraid to try anything else. Knock on wood, but I have never had a complaint with the taste of my cakes. (well except from my hubby, who was the taste test dummy for all of the other cake mixes). And besides, I worked in a grocery store bakery and a box mix tastes a whole lot better than defrosted....at least that's what I've heard : )

I know I'm a Duncan Hynes girl too!! I love the boxes. But you're right I think I should go with what people tell me they like.I've made my carrot cake out of a box and never received a compliment...but when I made it out of scratch they loved it. Goes for Vanilla of DH they loved it but when I made it out of scratch they didn't finish it no matter how many 20 recipes I've tried...go figure!! I know what you mean. My poor DH is my test taster too so he's gone from tummy aches to I can't eat one more cake ever again...hahaha!!! Thanks so much guys you are simply the best!!

I'm a Betty Crocker Girl.....Scratch is much more expensive to make and I have yet to make a scratch cake that tastes as good as the box ...however there are some that swear by scratch and vise versa.My customer loves the box mixes so I always say...stick with what works for you and don't fix it if it ain't broken!!!

Well, I go both ways!!! I love cakes like banana nut, carrot and chocolate from scratch. All my white cake recipes are just too sweet. For white cake, I like the box with just a little something special added for an extra kick!!

The box is of course easier. Nothing to melt or chop!!

I prefer the mixes, I get whatever is on sale. I spent way more making my cakes from scratch. I also will add stuff to the mixes to give it the homemade feel and make it special. I think the mixes are time saving and I feel I get a better result as well..

I make a scratch carrot cake and it's good , but the carrot cake mixes are yucky. I finally figured out a way to make a pretty darn good carrot cake from a mix.

Take 1 DH box of SPICE mix and sift it. Add eggs, oil, and then crushed pineapple plus grated carrots. I go by the looks wheather I need to add a little water (the juice from the can of crushed pineapple is what I use for the water--but sometimes I need to add a smidge more) If the mixture looks too runny just add all purpose flour to it a little at a time. Fold in whatever other ingredients you want such as walnuts, raisins or coconut. I've only done this in the mini-muffin pans and they are always snapped up quick. My clients love them and order them often. I'm sure it could work in cake form too! I top with a cream cheese icing. YUM! This has to be made with the DH spice cake mix, do not use the carrot cake mix it will ruin it!

I'm a scratch baker . . . and in terms of cost, I figured out that my cost for baking a cake is less than a mix. But, I think it is really your preference, and it depends on your recipes. So, my suggestion would be to do what you prefer.

I have often wondered about box vs. scratch myself. I know the question was in regards to cost, but the question of quality has also come up before. So this past weekend I put them to the test. I made a white and lemon cupcakes from scratch. Both tasted great, but but were a bit on the dry side (and we're talking two sticks of butter!). The lemon was especially dry as soon as it finished cooling down.

So then, I made another lemon cake, tripple wrapped it in plastic wrap, and froze it the moment it was cool. The next day I torted and filled the layers with curd and that took care of the dryness, however, the texture was almost like cheese. So I decided the recipe is a keeper, only not in the form of a cupcake and not suitable for freezing.

The white cake's moistness held up better than the lemon by a longshot, but the moistness did not sustain overnight or in the fridge. I decided, the recipe is a keeper, but needs to eaten the day it is baked. Moral of the story, trial and error. If you are going to use a recipe for cakes, experiment before it goes on the market. Now with that being said...

I did a tasting with the lemon. I made one cake from scratch and one from DH. The client supposedly knew her stuff, loved a good lemon cake, but unknowingly picked the DH. I remembered someone here once said that many people are accustomed to box mixes and I think there's some truth to that. I have learned which DH brands taste less "boxy", but I tell you one thing, I have never gotten a complaint from my box cakes. But the cakes from scratch have been known to get tossed out. What can you do? You try to put out a quality product with care and pride, but the people I have served still like boxy spongey goodness.

YAY!! THANKS..DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY TRICKS OR TIPS ON WHAT TO ADD ON BOX MIXES??

If you read just a few posts above, I explain how I do my carrot cakes from a box mix.

There are only a couple that I make from scratch. The rest come from box cake mixes that I do the added extra ingredients. I made a from scatch pineapple upside down cake earlier this week... it was TERRIBLE!!! I through it out and made one from a DH pineapple cake mix with, of course, the added extra ingredients

I'm right with mlrojas! I have tried them both and everyone always prefers the boxed cakes that I doctor a little.

Actually, this past weekend I took a class with Kim Morrison and she was giving me and another lady a hard time about using boxed cakes. I feel that the additional time and ingredients should be reflected in price, but since I live in such a small town I can't charge much more than what I do so that is my reasoning anyway. And she completely understood that.

But she brought us each a cake she made to cover in fondant and when I took it home and had everyone taste it..they didn't like it as much as mine. It just isn't the same and people are used to boxed cake mixes. My family and friends, I should say. My niece said the white tasted like a pancake and my sister said it tasted like a muffin. But anyway, she gets tons of orders and people pay a lot for her cakes so people do like them. I guess we are all just different!

Her fondant however tastes great. I really liked it!

I'm going to keep using cake mixes but if I get a request for scratch I will definitely do that as well. That is just my two cents

Yes I agree. I don't live in a big town where people spend a fortune on cakes. Everyone here goes down to their local grocery store to buy their cakes for every occasion. So I need to stay in the inexpensive side. I think I should stick to scratch recipes for Diabetic cakes...we do have alot of diabetics in our little valley.

I have never made a scratch cake that tasted better, had the moistness, and was as quick and easy as box cake. I have always used Betty Crocker but am wondering about trying DH now that I saw so many comments on it. Is it flavor or cost why everyone seems to love it?

Until recently I pretty much only liked chocolate cake. But then I made DH Butter Recipe Golden and it was the best "yellow" cake I ever had. I'm nut sure if it was because I added a little plain yogurt, but the flavor was out of this world.

The only scratch cake I made was very dry and flavorless. Then I finally broke down and bought a box of cake flour. Yesterday I made a sour cream cake with the cake flour and it was great - even the next day. I think the key was not to overmix it. Now I'd like to find a scratch butter recipe that resembles DH Butter Recipe.

I prefer scratch cakes. Today was my first time buying a box mix and I am thinking about not using it. I have to agree with the other post about scratch baking being more expensive (cake flour, eggs, pure extracts, milk, baking powder, etc). It depends on what the client wants.

Sumkat- I prefer DH to BC b/c to me, most BC does have that "box" taste. The only BC I would use with confidence is the Triple Choco Fudge. I normally use Hershy's recipe for choco cake, but that one taste just as good. As for DH, as someone above posted, the Butter Recipe Yellow is to-die-for. Everyone I make it for gets addicted to it. To me, not a hint of box flavor, just buttery and good. DH Dark Chocolate is also good, I used to love the Lemon, but after this past (scratch) lemon cake with the curd, I think I have a new favorite. I have tried adding lemon Jello and lemon pudding to DH's Lemon, but it did not burst with lemon flavor as the cake from scratch did. It's good, clients still choose it over the scratch version, but now I know better. DH French Vanilla is also very good. I like it better than Classic White. Oh, and Strawberry also gets people coming back for seconds. That's another one that I prefer from scratch, but folks seems to like the box mix better.

I think the reason I perfer box over scratch is ultimately the moistness. I enjoy making cakes from scratch, so it's not an issue of easier (though it is), but I always know what I'm going to get from box mixes. I think as I find scratch recipes that are the same if not better than their box counterparts, then I'll eventually phase out box mixes all together. To me, I feel better selling cakes from scratch and I can better justify my prices, but for now, I'll keep making what the customers want.

Oddly enough this topic seems to come up in different threads every week.
It is a matter of preference. If you like it then go with it.
However, it is like any craft, if you are really into the taste of food some people can tell the difference.
It is like any other art. When I was a quilter I knew what to look for and man I saw a lot of poorly handmade quilts etc.
As for cost, a box is a convenience cake. If you actually costs out your supplies you would find that your scratch cake is cheaper. They make them to make money. No other reason. It works out the same way as I can bake a hand made loaf of bread for roughly less than 50 cents. That is an organic whole wheat loaf not the white one that my kids use for glue in crafts. I can pay anywhere from $2.39 to $4.50 for that same similar loaf in a grocery store.
It is just preference. Happy Baking!

I make everything from scratch. We do most of our business at the farmers market and so we can advertise a "scratch bakery." I personally prefer the scratch cakes and I know exactly what is in what I bake (no preservatives, etc). We buy 50 lb bags of flour so the cost is alot lower than if you were to buy the cake flour boxes at the grocery store. I also buy large quantities of baking powder/soda etc. We buy our ingredients at a store called "Cash & Carry," a restaurant supply store, with the exception of a few things like butter and vanilla which are really low-priced at Costco.

I also use a scale for measuring flour. Cake flour is 4 oz per cup and AP flour is 5 oz per cup. Everything else is pretty easy to measure. During the busy season (summer/farmers market), I prep my dry ingredients ahead. I mix them all up and then store in zip-loc bags for baking day. That way, I have my own mix.