I'm ashamed to say that I have never baked a cake from scratch. So, now I have my first order and am wondering what to do. I was going to start experimenting with different recipes so I'd be ready when I started making cakes for people...I just got an order much sooner than I'd dreamed. Would it be wrong to use a mix? She's been eating my mix cakes I did for class (DH takes them to work...he works with this woman) so she knows what I use.

I only use boxed mixes. I use Pilsbury Classic yellow for my practice cakes and EVERYTIME my husband takes them to work people RAVE. I've only sold a few cakes and they have all been mixes.

I only use D.Hines. Not professionally since I'm not one, but never had a problem or complaint! Then again, with my cakes, who would ever complain about a free cake! LOL. I think if this woman has already tasted your cakes, then that's what she is expecting! Unless it's for cost reasons, go with what you like. Why change now?

Do what you are comfortable with. Many people sell cakes made from mixes.

I too use boxes. Especially if you get them on sale you can't beat the price of the box mix vs. the price of all the ingredients AND your time to measure each ingredient.

good luck with your first order!
tara

I use mixes all the time too! Why change now? Go with what you are use to using! Good Luck!

I agree with everyone. She's already tried your cakes and loves them, so why change anything? There's no reason to feel guilty at all.

Good luck on your cake order!
angie

I use boxes. It's something I started with from the classes. I had originally planned to find some scratch recipes, but everyone is happy with what I offer now. So, why change what works. My mom swears up and down that what makes the difference is the icing.

Here is the box recipe I use and EVERYONE loves it!!! I think the key is the freezing, it makes them so moist!!!!

1 Box Cake Mix (any flavor)
1 small Box INSTANT Pudding (do not use the cook and serve)
1 ¼ cups water
½ cup vegetable oil
4 eggs

Oven at 350 degrees.
Mix all ingred. Together at medium speed for 3 minutes (2 minutes with the stand-up mixer).
Bake for about 30-60minutes. Done when toothpick inserted comes out "JUST" clean. Remove from pan onto tin foil and IMMEDIATELY wrap and put into freezer. Can be frozen for a few months.
Pull from the freezer. Remove tin foil and IMMEDIATELY ice the cake. This will lock in the moisture. Some condensation on the top of the iced cake is normal, just leave it, the water will absorb. DO NOT try and wipe it off!!!

Yeah for box cakes, they are so easy!!! And I agree with everyone up above, if she has tasted and loved your cakes I certainly wouldnt do anything different at this point!!!

I use Duncan Hines only. Everyone loves my cakes. Wouldn't change.

Don't feel guilty-you said it yourself...she already loves your cakes. If I found a scratch cake I loved as much as Pillsbury, I would use it. I bake scratch carrot, spice, and red velvet because I don't think a box can do them justice, but the "plain" cakes I leave to the experts in the box.

I also use box mix, and use this recipe "Enhanced Cake Formula" with the box mix. It makes the cake firmer and still moist , makes torting easy.
the recipe is here on this site. here is the link: http://www.cakecentral.com/cake_recipe-1599-Enhanced-Cake-Formula.html

All my customers rave about how moist my cakes are.

Thanks, I feel better. For those that use mixes, do you dr them up at all or just use them as-is? I think this lady would be totally fine with just the plain old mix...she's so easy-going about the whole thing. Just wondering for the future (though I'm going to work on some scratch recipes).

I doctor all my mixes. I also wrap them tightly while they are still very warm and stick them right into the frig to seal in the juices ().

If she's had your undoctored mixes that's probably what she's expecting.
I use plain mixes all the time, I don't sell many cakes but I stick to the same thing for that too and have been told how good they are.

For a decorated cake I use the plain mixes, for deserts (black forest, pina colada, etc) I use doctored mixes. Hardly never sell a cake bakes from scratch, people prefer a cake when is moist an easy to cut and not to mention the flavor, and I haven't found a recipe to bake from scratch that can emulate those qualities.

I've used cook n serve pudding when I didn't have instant. I didn't notice a difference, and I used the large box!

also, wrapping the warm cake in saran wrap and putting in the fridge...such a great tip!

I use Duncan Hines and I have done different 'doctoring' techniques and wouldn't change a thing........everybody loves them!

I know this has been a topic discussed many, many times in the past. But, as a person who is used to baking from scratch, I can never understand the comments about scratch cakes being dry and box cakes being moist.
We don't have the same mixes in Australia as you have in the States, and here they can be very expensive, but aside from that, box mixes here are dry and basically just yuck!
I wish one of you could bake me one and ship it over so I could find out what all the fuss is about

KittiKakes, I agree with your mom. It's the icing. I'm a mix baker and people who are self proclaimed cake haters luv my cakes.

It's the icing. And the passion. And the luv that we put into it!

i started out with both dh and scratch and i mainly do dh now.. i have moved from a home biz to a shop biz and i still use box.. i tell them i do both if they ask,, and i also reply to those who have tudes about box mixes that what makes the difference, either the person at the factory adds ingrediants or i add ingrediants.. it's the same ingrediants either they do it or i do it.. but thiers is consistant and is tested just for this.. so you go girl and use dh all you want!!!!!

I only use boxed cakes, but I always doctor them. I have made many cakes from scratch when I lived in Africa. When I started baking there were no such things as boxed cakes, then when they did finally arrive in Africa, they were as Fran says very dry...yuk.
Here in America, they are fantastic & I wouldn't use anything else. Fran, my son goes to Australia every year to play golf, maybe I can get him to take a few over for you.I'll ask him if he is going to be anywhere near Melbourne.

just because it comes from a "bakery" doesn't mean it is scratch.

try googling "cake mix bulk" --

lots of options for bakeries.

Every cake that I have ever sold or given away has been a boxed mix. I've never doctored them but I'm not opposed to the idea in order to create a new flavor combo.

I have been told by a couple people that if I ever plan to go into business that I better learn how to make cakes from scratch. I have made cakes from scratch and I don't like how they turn out at all, and I would not want my name to be associated with something I was not proud of, which is one reason I don't make scratch cakes. I much prefer the consistent results and flavor that I get from the mixes. The folks who I have sold cakes to in the past said that my mix cakes tasted way better than any grocery or scratch cake, but I've never told them they were mixes. So I take that as a compliment that I'm doing something right. If someone doesn't like the fact that they're not scratch cakes, they can go elsewhere.

In fact, I used to work at one grocery until recently that made all their cakes from mixes and they were the best grocery cakes I have eaten in my life.