Homemade Strawberry Cake Mix

Warning: This post contains words that are not actually bad, but that you might not enjoy explaining to your kidlets. Continue at your own peril. I don't have a choice; this is my life

Did you guys know that I apparently have a really sexy phone voice? I always thought I sounded like a small child, but apparently that's not the case. Practically the first time G and I met, she informed me I had a "porn" voice. Just recently, an exec she's friends with was in her office when I called him to tell him his visitors were in the lobby. He hung up with me, turned to G and said, "You know, she could make a lot of money as one of those phone sex operators."

I told G she should ask him what his basis for comparison was.

But these are both people I know and work with and attempt to embarrass me on a regular basis. I take what they say with a grain of salt, you know? It's the random strangers that have finally convinced me. This one time, I had a guy call in to ask for the company's website (because he didn't know how to Google?), and he told me I had a "pleasant accent" and then lingered on the phone telling me all about his exciting job as a Macy's buyer in upstate New York, then followed that up with, "Are you about medium height? 5'3", 5'4"?"

W.T.F. Also, no. (He even tried calling back, but the phone was really busy at the time, and I had an excuse to keep him on hold until he hung up)

And the other day, I had this caller that I was getting annoyed with, because he would not accept the fact that the person he was looking for was not listed. He asked for my name, and I thought he was going to ask to speak to my manager (they do that sometimes, because I'm obviously lying to them for my own nefarious purposes), and said, "Kim, your voice is so sweet."

Umm, thanks?

He then asked for my cell phone number. I tried to let him down gently, I did, but he kept pushing, telling me how "sweet" my voice was, and about how he's an account manager, "Your voice is just so sweet, I would really like your cell phone number, please, or your email address."

I finally told him that I had a call on the other line and I had to go (lie, but if Bossman has a problem with that, he can deal with it), and the guy laughed and started to say something else, and I just hung up. SO CREEPY.

PRO-TIP: Trying to pick up the phone operator makes you seem kind of pervy.

What does this have to do with cake mix? Absolutely nothing. I just thought you'd be amused.

Anyway, strawberry cake mix: whaaaaaaaaaaat. I think I've outdone myself this time.

This cake mix utilizes powdered strawberries. Not strawberry flavored powder. Not strawberry drink mix. Real, actual, organic strawberries that were freeze-dried, and then ground up. Now this is a real specialty item, but you can totally make it yourself using this tutorial from the Cupcake Project, or this method from I Run For Wine. I haven't tried either since stores near me don't really carry that much in the way of dried fruit, and leaving the oven on overnight to dry my own kind of freaks me out, but you've got options if you can't find the powder.

I, on the other hand, have a homemade mix obsession, and therefore if I see a powdered ingredient, I snatch it up, no questions asked.

Now, don't go thinking this mix is going to be like Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker strawberry cake mix. It neither tastes not looks the same (I did add a little powdered red food coloring that I had leftover from the Red Velvet Cake Mixes, but you can see that it still leans more towards brown than the hot pink of the boxed mixes). This is a strawberry-flavored buttermilk cake, moist and light, and not too sweet. I adapted it from my Strawberry Cupcakes to make it a little more mix friendly, and it's good.

The strawberry flavor isn't huge, but you can't miss it, and it's a lot deeper and more real than from the boxed mixes. If you want a real strawberry punch, I'd suggest mixing in about a cup of diced fresh strawberries.

Strawberry Cake Mix

Yield: Approx. 6 cups dry mix

Ingredients

2½ cups flour
2 cups sugar
⅓ cup powdered strawberries
2½ tbsp. dry buttermilk powder
1 tsp. red food coloring powder (optional)
¾ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 cup butter-flavored shortening*

Directions
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all ingredients except the shortening. Using a pastry cutter (or pulse in a food processor) cut in the shortening until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place up to 3 months. (To extend the shelf life, store in the refrigerator or freezer).

To bake: Combine the mix with 1⅓ cups water, 2 eggs, and ½ tsp. vanilla extract. Bake at 350 degrees F 20 minutes for cupcakes, 30 minutes for 2 9-inch round cakes. Cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting and serving.

*If you'd prefer, cold butter can be used in place of shortening. Just store the mix in the freezer.

Recipe by Kim

Homemade Fudge Brownie Mix

No need to by a boxed mix at the store. Save time and money by making your own brownie mix right at home

April's here! And you know what that means: it's time for Camp NaNoWriMo! With all new adjustable word count goals. I'm taking it easy on myself this session with a 30k goal (trust me, 1000 words a day is a lot easier than 1556) and a couple of fanfic ideas that have been rattling around in my head for a while.

You know what else that means? The closing date for my new condo is at the end of this month. Add into all this the fact that a key bridge in my area has been closed for repairs, doubling my normal commute time. And another bridge flooded out this weekend, so now my commute time has tripled until that's cleared up. So my free time has been streeeeeeeetched a bit thin.

So you know what I decided I needed on hand? Some more homemade mixes. But not just any old mixes. When I don't feel good, or I've had a bad day, there is nothing I want more than a good, fudgy brownie. You know I'm not usually a fan of box mixes, but brownies are one of the things that I will actually go for a mix for because I hate chopping and melting unsweetened chocolate-- which is a step many of the best and fudgiest recipes calls for-- and Ghiradelli makes some awesome brownie mixes.

But I can't help but feel like a complete and total fake using a box mix, so I decided to make my own.

Something I've learned in the course of my homemade mix obsession is that you can substitute 1 square (1 oz.) of unsweetened baking chocolate with 3 tbsp. of unsweetened cocoa powder and 1 tbsp. of vegetable oil. Who knew, right? Once you've got that information, all the rest is easy.

All that remained was to find a good, properly fudgy, brownie recipe to mixify. Well, where else would I go but to Old Reliable?

This fudge brownie recipe is intense. Rich, chocolatey, so fudgy it's like candy, and even with the chopping and the melting of the chocolate, it's one of the simplest brownie recipes that I've ever made. But that didn't mean I couldn't simplify it further. Now I can have the batter mixed and in the oven in minutes the next time I want them. It might be the perfect first dessert to bake in my brand new oven.

Homemade Fudge Brownie Mix
Yield: Approx. 3¾ cups dry mix

Ingredients
2 cups sugar
1 cup flour
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ tsp. salt
Optional: up to 2 cups mix-ins (the original recipe recommends chopped nuts, I went with a mixture of peanut butter and chocolate chips)

Directions
Sift together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Make sure it's evenly mixed. Add to a jar or airtight container. If adding mix-ins, layer them on top, using plastic wrap to keep them separate. Store in a cool dry place up to 1 year.

To bake, add 1 cup melted butter (or vegetable oil), 4 eggs, ¼ cup vegetable oil, and 1 tsp. vanilla extract to the dry mix. Mix well. Stir in mix-ins, if using. Add the batter to a greased 9x13 inch baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30-33 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely before cutting. Dust with powdered sugar, if desired, before serving.

Based on the Fudgy Brownie recipe from The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook

Gifts from the Kitchen Round Up

Hey guys, I'm giving myself a little holiday break. Not from baking, since I'll be doing plenty of that. Mostly from photographing and editing pictures and trying to be witty as I tell you anecdotes from my life. (Although, we recently had a theft at work. Someone stole a tin of... cookies. And I've had to scour security camera footage to see if I can nab the thief red handed. Can anyone confirm the Cookie Monster's alibi? I'm starting to suspect the Borrowers, though. #caseofthemissingcookies)

But I won't leave you high and dry. If you're like me, you're not done with your holiday shopping yet. So here are some posts from the blog that make thoughtful (and great last-minute) presents. (Collages are clickable)

Homemade Red Velvet Cake Mix ● Homemade Devil's Food Cake Mix ● Apple Cheddar Scone Mix  Homemade Peanut Butter Cookie Mix ● Homemade Yellow Cake Mix ● Homemade Spice Cake Mix  Easy Homemade Gift Sets

Homemade Gummies ● Strawberry Cake Batter Fudge ● Pumpkin Spice Marshmallows

Piña Colada Marshmallows ● Raspberry Red Wine Sauce ● Cookie Dough Truffles

Graham Cracker Marshmallows ● Raspberry Nutella Marshmallows ● Spicy Chocolate Spread

Cherry Almond Oatmeal Cookies (Gluten Free) ● Chocolate Peppermint Sandwich Cookies

Peanut Butter Cookies ● French Butter Cookies ● Zucchini Brownies (Vegan) ● Mini Chai Tea Cakes
Sweet & Salty Nutella Brownies ● Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies ● Fudge Frosted Brownies

Peanut Butter Nutella Slutty Brownies ● Peanut Butter Blondies ● White Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars  Jammie Dodgers ● Banana Cookies (Vegan) ● Chocolate Pudding Brownies

Homemade Yellow Cake Mix ~ #SundaySupper

I've found I have a problem communicating about foodie things with non-foodies. I mean conversations with them sort of go like this:

Them: These cookies are really good, where did you get the recipe?
Me: No where. I made it up.
Them: Really? How do you do that?
Me: I dunno, I just kind of... do.

Or they go like:

G: Kim makes marshmallows.
Co-worker: You make marshmallows?
Me: I make marshmallows.
Co-worker: How do you make marshmallows?
Me: Oh, it's easy. You just cook some sugar to the soft-ball stage, add it to the softened gelatin, then whip it until it's nice and airy.
Co-worker: ... Right.

Or like recently:

Co-worker: And you make everything from scratch? You don't use mixes?
Me: I actually make my own mixes.
Co-worker: To sell?
Me: No, just... cause. It's fun.

You can't beat a mix for convenience when baking, I will freely admit to that. But a boxed mix tastes like a boxed mix. You can't beat homemade for taste.

That's right: the convenience of a mix plus the taste of homemade. And it's so easy to make your own mix; it only takes a few minutes, and then you can whip up an entirely homemade cake easy-peasy next time you need it. Seriously, there's no downsides here. Plus, in the cake batter All THE THINGS era we live in at the moment, you can use homemade mix instead of the preservative-laden, pricey boxed alternatives.

Now, I use butter-flavored shortening in my mixes because it's shelf-stable. I know a lot of people are weirded out by shortening, and I've already been over the reasons that you shouldn't be (non-hydrogenated shortening is available if you're worried about trans fat, and shortening actually contains less saturated (bad) fat and more unsaturated (good) fat per serving than butter.), but you're not likely to change your minds on my say-so, so you can use cold butter, you just have to store the mix in the freezer.

(And please, do not suggest coconut oil to me. That is a pet peeve of mine when people assume something is healthy just because they use it. It's great for cooking, but I've done the research and it's most certainly not health food. Although, if you want coconut cake, that might work as a substitution)

That's Cupcake 'Bot, the cupcake-inspired robot I designed and got 3D printed. Isn't he sweet? (I may or may not have been completely at a loss as to how to photograph cake mix and so broke out the toy robots)

Anyway, yellow cake is one of the most basic staples in any baker's repertoire, and the best for getting that real cake batter flavor. I based this mix off of my favorite yellow cake recipe (bet you can't guess from where), and doesn't have any weirdy powdered ingredients like powdered peanut butter or powdered food coloring. (Although I did see powdered vanilla at Candyland today, and I was tempted to buy it)(I seriously may have a cake mix making problem). So take 5 minutes out of your day and make this mix. Next time you need to bake a cake, you'll be so glad that you did.

Yellow Cake Mix

Yield: Approx. 5½ cups dry mix

Ingredients

2¼ cups flour

1½ cups sugar

½ cup powdered milk (optional)

2½ tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

¾ cup butter flavored shortening

Directions
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all ingredients except the shortening. Using a pastry cutter (or pulse in a food processor) cut in the shortening until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place up to 6 months.

To bake: Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease and flour, or line with parchment paper, two 9-inch round cake tins. Combine the mix with 3 eggs, ¾ water (or milk, if not using powdered), 1 tsp. almond extract, and 1 tsp. vanilla extract. Mix well until no lumps remain. Divide the batter equally between the 2 prepared pans, and bake 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on wire racks.

Based on the Yellow Cake recipe from The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook

This week's #SundaySupper, hosted by DB of Crazy Foodie Stunts, has got you covered, both literally and figuratively. I've got you covered with the convenience of a mix but without having to go boxed. The rest of the group has got your back with the recipes below.

Covered Appetizers and Entreés

• Slow Cooker Cheesy Party Mix from Hot Momma's Kitchen Chaos
• Personal Steak Pot Pies from The Foodie Army Wife
• Slowcooker Bean and Ham Soup from Jane's Adventures in Dinner
• Butternut Squash & Cheddar Potatoes Au Gratin from Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• Salmon en Croute from Curious Cuisiniere
• Excellent Beef Stew from Noshing With The Nolands
• Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy from Food Lust People Love
• Pigs in a Blanket (Cabbage Rolls) from Cindy's Recipes and Writings

Covered Desserts

• Banana Coffee Cake with Chocolate Chip Streusel from Killer Bunnies, Inc
• Bacon Cinnamon Rolls with Maple Frosting from Bobbi's Kozy Kitchen
• Streusel Topped Apple Pie from A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures
• Dark Chocolate Cake Batter Truffles from Take A Bite Out of Boca
• Chocolate Satin Pie from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Banana Butterscotch Muffin-Cake from What Smells So Good?
• Chocolate Banoffee Pie from Happy Baking Days
• 1 Easy Chocolate Macaron Recipe, 3 Japanese Wine Fillings from NinjaBaking.com
• Chocolate Covered "Party Popcorn" from Ruffles & Truffles
• Caramel Apple Bundt Cake from Pies and Plots

Not Sure What To Do? We Got You Covered

• Cilantro Turkey Salad with Farro and Mango from Shockingly Delicious covering turkey leftovers
• Back to Basics: How to Truss a Chicken for Roasting from Crazy Foodie Stunts covering a cooking technique
• Peppermint Whip Cream from Peanut Butter and Peppers covering a vegan and dairy-free dessert topping
• Gluten Free Lego Cookies from Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks covering a gluten-free dessert
• Mexican Coffee Bun from The Urban Mrs covering a dessert with an uncommon ingredient
• Cranberry Walnut Crumble Bars from Magnolia Days covering an idea for fresh cranberries
• Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake Bars from Alida's Kitchen covering a quick and easy cheesecake fix
• Prosciutto covered Rosemary Pork from Family Foodie covering a holiday meal on a budget
• Homemade Yellow Cake Mix from Treats & Trinkets covering a cake mix without the chemicals from store-bought ones
• Waffled Cranberry Cream Cheese Turkey Sandwiches from Neighborfood covering turkey leftovers
• Apple Cider Doughnuts from The Texan New Yorker covering a dish made at home so you don't need to wait in long lines for it

Join the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. Check out our #SundaySupper Pinterest board for more fabulous recipes and food photos.

Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy! You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.

Homemade Red Velvet Cake Mix

I know, I know, it's kind of early to be doing a Christmassy themed post. But I have my reasons, and they're good ones too. Most importantly is that if you make your gifts like I do, now is the time to start.

Also, I was invited to be a part of a Christmas Round Up over at Cake Whiz, and I wanted to do something super awesome. I mean, have you seen Abeer's cakes? Hello gorgeousness! And I've pinned a bunch of her decorating tips since we all know that's my weakness. I certainly didn't want to provide anything substandard, you know?

When I got to thinking about and researching Christmas treats, I was seeing a lot of red velvet recipes, made with cake mix. I also saw a lot of gifts from the kitchen. Cookie mixes, drink mixes, scone mixes. Cake mixes.

Me and my homemade mix obsession decided that I was going to mixify red velvet cake.

But apparently, mixifying red velvet cake is not a thing that people normally do, because I couldn't find a recipe for a mix online. And my Old Reliable cookbook didn't have a recipe for me to adapt. *GASP*

Red velvet cake isn't a thing I usually make. The epic amounts of food coloring in it have made me a bit wary of trying, (most call for 2 oz. That's 4 tablespoons. A quarter cup of food coloring) so I didn't have a reliable base recipe. I found this Waldorf-Astoria Red Velvet Cake recipe online that had consistently good reviews and nothing out of the ordinary in terms of ingredients, so I baked it up, unmixified, to test it.

(Instead of two oz. of food coloring, I used 2 tbsp of LorAnn's Red Velvet Bakery Emulsion and 2 tbsp vegetable oil. As you can see, the color did not suffer at all, and the emulsion gave it a slightly fruity undertone)

That mouse is my favorite ornament since I was little

It was good, moist and tender. I usually prefer a little more cocoa flavor, so I'd probably increase that if I ever make it again. I whipped up some cream cheese frosting, which refused to stiffen, so I crumbed a couple of the cupcakes to edge it in. And then I added holly sprinkles, since it kind of looks like a wreath.

And then I mixified it.

Pretty common in terms of mix ingredients: flour, sugar, shortening, buttermilk powder. I added food coloring powder, which can be found in candy making and cake decorating specialty shops, like my favorite place in the world, Candyland Crafts. I think Wilton also makes some, so you might be able to find it in Michaels or JoAnn's. Or you can order it online.

The only thing I had trouble substituting was the vinegar. I ended up using cream of tartar, since it's acidic as well. The internet was little help in that regard, but it told me that I could substitute vinegar for cream of tartar in meringues so I figure the opposite should work in a cake mix, right?

Right.

Red Velvet Cake Mix
Yield: Approx. 5 cups dry mix

Ingredients
2¼ cups cake flour
1½ cups sugar
4 tbsp. dry buttermilk powder
2 heaping tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tbsp. red food coloring powder
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. salt
½ cup butter-flavored shortening

Directions
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all ingredients except the shortening. Using a pastry cutter (or pulse in a food processor) cut in the shortening until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place up to 3 months. (To extend the shelf life, store in the refrigerator or freezer)

To bake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Combine the mix with 2 eggs, 1 cup water, ¼ cup vegetable oil, and 1 tsp. vanilla extract. Line 2 muffin tins with paper liners, and fill about ⅔ of the way (about 2 tbsp.) with batter. Bake 15-20 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes our clean. Cool completely on wire racks. Makes 24 cupcakes

Tip: If you can't find food coloring powder, replace 2 (or more) tablespoons of the vegetable oil with regular red food coloring

Based on the Waldorf-Astoria Red Velvet Cake, found via Food.com

Homemade Spice Cake Mix

This spice cake recipe is a favorite among my family, (even Needy McSnuggles loves this recipe. When I'm eating a piece, he'll get as close to my face as possible and stare at me until I crumble off a little for him) and it's totally season appropriate. So thanks to my weirdo backwards insomnia, I had some time on my hands one morning and decided to mixify it. That way the next time I want it, I can whip it up easy-peasy. Also, because I'm slightly obsessed with homemade mixes, and it would make a great gift.

This time of the year, there are so many short cuts out there using boxed spice cake mix for things like pumpkin bread or spice cookies. I guarantee you, this recipe tastes so much better than boxed. You can have your shortcuts and eat it too. Or something like that.

I did use powdered milk in the recipe because POWDER ALL THE THINGS I had it on hand, but you can totally skip it. Just use milk instead of water when mixing up the cake.

(Slightly relevant) Side Note: my brother asked me the other day what spices were in allspice. I just kind of blinked at him and said, "umm, allspice." I sometimes forget that foodie knowledge does not equal common knowledge.

Secondary Side Note: Sorry if I seem a bit absent lately. 20k words into NaNoWriMo, I don't have many other to spare.

Spice Cake Mix
Yield: Approx. 4½ cups dry mix

Ingredients
2 cups cake flour
¾ cup granulated sugar
½ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup powdered milk (optional)
2½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. allspice
½ tsp. ground cloves
½ tsp. nutmeg
½ cup butter flavored shortening

Directions
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all ingredients except the shortening. Using a pastry cutter (or pulse in a food processor) cut in the shortening until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place up to 6 months.

To bake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour, or line with parchment paper, two 8- or 9-inch round cake tins. To the mix add 2 eggs, ¾ cup water (or milk, if you didn't use the powdered), and 1 tsp. vanilla. Mix well. Divide the batter equally between the two cake tins and bake 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on wire racks.

Based on the Spice Cake recipe from The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook

Homemade Devil's Food Cake Mix

So, I kind of have a new obsession.

I have a lot of those, don't I? Icebox cakes, silicone ice cube trays, Benedict Cumberbatch...

(My mother and I have decided that he would make the perfect Mr. Rochester. So, Hollywood, can you make a non-sucky movie version of Jane Eyre and cast him? I would be very grateful. Kthxbai)

But this new obsession is actually super useful. It's easy, it saves time in the kitchen, it makes for great gifts, and it's pretty frugal. It's all about the homemade mixes, baby.

I've made homemade mixes in the past, but the obsession really started with my peanut butter cookie mix. Even the most adamant of scratch cooks can agree that mixes are convenient and so much easier. But unless you buy the super expensive, all natural, organic, gourmet, hand crafted cake mixes from fancy shops, they also tend to taste pretty artificial and are loaded with mystery ingredients and preservatives. And there are so many recipes out there for cake mix "fixes" and making cake mix taste "homemade," that I think we can all agree that cake mixes don't stand up to the real thing.

But there are also a lot of really cool recipes that use mixes for things completely other than their original purpose. Honestly, how many cake batter recipes are there out there? Cake batter ice cream, cake batter cookies, cake batter marshmallows, cake batter fudge. The original inspiration for making my peanut butter cookie mix came from a pin I'd found on Pinterest about how to make any cookie mix into cookie dough frosting. I thought that would be really cool to do with peanut butter cookie dough, and I decided to do research to see if I could find a recipe for a homemade mix (mostly because I didn't feel like going to the store). When I couldn't find one, I decided that had to be rectified, and an obsession was born.

The main issue with mixes is that you can only use dry ingredients, and it needs to be shelf-stable. This is why most mix recipes are just flour, sugar, salt, and leavenings. But if I'm making a mix, I want it to be comparable to the ones you buy at the store. I don't want to still have to cream the butter; I want to make it in a bowl with a whisk. So I cut in butter-flavored shortening. Now, I know shortening weirds a lot of people out, they don't like the taste, they're worried about trans fat, they think it's made by the devil. You can buy non-hydrogenated shortening if you're worried about trans fat, and shortening actually contains less saturated (bad) fat and more unsaturated (good) fat per serving than butter. Of course, any fat that's solid at room temperature is high in saturated fat, but I never claimed I was giving you health food.

Besides, the recipe I based this on, from- you guessed it- Old Reliable, calls for shortening and not butter.

If it's simply a taste/texture issue, then you can use cold butter instead, but you'll have to store the mix in the freezer.

Then, whenever you want devil's food cake, it's just as easy as the ones you get from the store. Mix, oil, eggs, water, and some ninja vanilla extract. Regular vanilla is fine if you can't find the ninja.

Get it? Get it? I made a funny.

Mix, mix, mix. The batter is pretty liquidy. I would suggest only adding half the water at first, so you can make sure all the lumps are out.

Pour, pour, pour.

Bake, and you got cake! XD This cake rises like nobody's business, so you could potentially get three thin layers out of it, but I only have two cake tins, and I was too lazy to make a third layer. I ended up splitting the layers anyway.

I usually make a kind of "Fauxstess" cupcake/cake with this recipe. Fill with Marshmallow Whoopie Pie Filling, frost with Fudge Frosting.

Or just eat as is. This cake is rich and moist, but still manages to be super fluffy. This is seriously the only Devil's Food recipe that I've ever used, and now that I've got the mix, I can whip it up at a moment's notice.

Just a note: because of the powdered buttermilk, I wouldn't keep this more than 3 months unless storing in the refrigerator or freezer. But I don't think it will ever last that long.

Devil's Food Cake Mix
Yield: Approx. 5 cups dry mix

Ingredients
2 cups flour
1½ cups sugar
9 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
5 tbsp. dried buttermilk powder
1½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. baking soda
½ cup butter flavored shortening

Directions
In a large bowl, whisk together all ingredients except the shortening. Cut in the shortening using a pastry cutter, or pulse in a food processor, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Store in an airtight container up to three months.

Based on the Devil's Food Cake recipe from The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook

Devil's Food Cake
Yield: 1 2-layer cake

Ingredients
1 recipe Devil's Food Cake Mix
1¼ cups water
3 eggs
3 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease and flour, or line with parchment paper, two 9-inch round cake tins.

In a large bowl, mix all ingredients until well blended. (Tip: only mix in half the water at first to eliminate lumps, then mix in the rest. This is recommended, but not necessary.)

Divide the batter equally between the two pans. Bake 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean. Allow to cool completely on wire racks.

Tip: Reduce the bake time by 10 minutes for cupcakes

Based on the Devil's Food Cake recipe from The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook