How To Make A Cheap And Tasty Chocolate Cake
By SweetiePie
When I was growing up my mother made everything from scratch and I still like to do this from time to time. However, when I am running short on time I have no problem with buying a simple cake mix and topping it with a store bought frosting. Not only will a cake made at home taste better than the store bought variety, even if it is from a mix, but it will also be fresher and cheaper.
Step One: Buy An Affordable Cake Mix And Container Of Frosting
Today I bought a cheap cake mix and frosting container at Walmart and I paid about just two dollars for both. Some people feel that more expensive name brand cake mixes and frosting taste better, but in my humble opinion I think they all taste the same. One time I even made a cake for friends who swore they would only eat the name brand varieties of cake mix with a generic variety, and they did not even notice the difference until I mentioned which brand I really used. So however you decide to spend your money is up to you, but I find I save a lot of money buying generic and on sale brands.
Step Two: Decide On The Type Of Eggs To Use For The Cake
I enjoy making omelets several days a week, so I used a more expensive organic variety of brown eggs. However, this is what I had on hand so you can use anything you like. I try to use up all of the contents of my refrigerator before I go out and buy something new, which I find is a great way for planning small mini-shopping trips around what I already have on hand.
Step Three: Measure Water Needed For the Recipe
Sometimes I use non-fat dried milk to make the cake taste richer, but today I just used water like the recipe called for, but do not be afraid to use milk as it adds moisture to the cake. The final cake was a little bit more dry than the last one I made, so next time I will add milk where the recipe calls for water.
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Step Four: Measure The Oil
Lately I have been using soybean oil for baking cakes. However, I like to use different oils to enhance different recipes and dishes, such as using corn oil for frying corn chips, and using olive oil for making baba ganoush and pasta sauces. However, any type of oil can be used for baking. Another choice is the use apple sauce if you want to cut the fat content of the cake.
Step Five: Mix All Of The Ingredient
Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl until there are no more lumps. First I add the cake mix and then the oil and water. Finally, I crack one egg at a time and mix in each egg before adding another. A mixer can be used if you do not want to mix the cake by hand, but I find it is fun and a good work out for the arms to mix manually.
Step Six: Pour The Cake Mix Into A Baking Pan
Pour the cake mix into a baking pan and preheat the oven at 350 F degrees before placing the pan in the oven. I usually preheat the oven before I begin mixing the cake, which helps the cake to bake more quickly. Turning the oven on when putting the cake in will require more time than if the oven is already preheated.
Step Seven: Allow The Cake To Cool For At Least Two Hours Before Frosting
I made this short YouTube video showing how easy it is to frost a cake. However, I was not able to show much as it is hard to film myself frosting a cake, but this short video shows the basics behind frosting a cake. The most important thing to remember is to allow the cake to cool at least two hours before frosting, or the frosting will be absorbed into the cake.
Step Eight: Add The Finishing Touches
Sometimes I put sprinkles on top of a cake to make it more festive, but today I decided to sprinkle cinnamon on top to give it a distinctive look. Also, sprinkling cinnamon on top of a chocolate cake gives the frosting a unique flavor, which is similar to that of Mexican hot chocolate. Use any supplies on hand to decorate the frosting, or just leave it plain. The choice is yours.
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Step Nine: Enjoy!
Simple cake mixes are not only tasty, but these make an easy and affordable gift for mother's day. You can buy some fancy frosting tips and create a beautiful cake for your mom, which she will enjoy. Have fun and happy cake baking.
Comments
Thanks for the comments Tiffany :).
I like homemade best. I have often bought a packet mix and added more flour and little extra butter and then you cannot taste the difference.
I agree Eileen, homemade does taste better. Your tip for the mix packages and adding flour is great. Thanks for stopping by.
Funny. I was expecting a homemade recipe.
Tip: The next time you make brownies -from the box -use extra virgin olive oil instead of the vegetable oil called for. Delish!
Soybean is my oil of preference for baking. Actually I said at the beginning of the hub I make homemade things at times, but with this recipe I was using a boxed mix. Soybean oil is lovely for baking, whereas olive oil is to be used sparringly in recipes such as baba ganoush and pasta :). However, I have also used applesauce the cut the fat content and this actually results in a tasty cake. I am such a talented baker when I make both boxed and homemade recipes :).
Sorry if this message shows up three times, but I haven't been able to get it to go through. Nice hub!
No worries Karen, it only came through one time, but I had that same problem where I accidentaly posted the same thing three times. Thanks for stopping by :).
Mmm, Looks very tasty and you sure make it look easy to make!
I also like your video addition,,Very nice aswell as your Winnie the Pooh and Eeyore Shakers vid;)
Thanks for the comments Compu-smart! I am glad someone finally watched the videos :).
Thanks for stopping by Vondre.
SweetiePie, i will have just subscribe to your youtube videos and added that vid to my favorites..My very 1st fav:)
I am honored Compu-smart! Thanks for doing that. I liked your blogs by the way.
really nice job. information provided is interesting and systematic.
I tired to do this but I ate all of the frosting somewhere between picking my eggs and measuring the oil....now what do I do?
Funnebone,
In that case you could buy a cake at a local bakery, just make sure not to eat it all on the car drive home LOL. You make me smile :).
Premsingh,
Thanks for the comments.
Your idea certainly does save a lot of money, but youve got to admit, the quality doesnt begin to compare to that of a choclate cake made with fine godiva, lindt or nobolesse choclate...
I will agree to disagree with that Annette, but thanks for sharing. Many low cost chocolates taste great.
Wow, really huge amounths of content in your lens. It must have been quite a bit of work.
Very cool lens.
Thanks for commenting How to chocolate guru. I liked your squidoo lense also. Come join us here at Hubpages :).
Hello [Name],
Just a quick note of thanks for the beautiful cake and it was delicious and admired by all. I will indeed pass on your name to anyone who needs this recipe. Thank you so much for sharing..
Well, I too have a cake related hub page as well. Just click on my picture to check it out when you have time or go to http://freecakebook.com to get my free cake book
Happy Baking!
Vondre
LOL, to me making a cake from the box is making it from scratch. I do however make most cookies from scratch, except Sugar, for that I buy the refrigerated stuff. I do a whole lot of baking at Christmas time. I may make some pumpkin bread this week, haven't decided yet.
As a young kid we made everything from scratch, scratch with the chocolate, flour, and it is so yummy :). I actually was planning to make a scratch, scratch chocolate cake again soon, but I like the mixes also. Anything in the oven tastes good to me :). Sugar cookies are also easy to make from scratch and it is cheaper. I think I have a recipe around somewhere if you are interested. Actually the sugar ones are the easiest to make from scratch in my experience. You just have to have a rolling pin :).
We have just added a link from our hub "Chocolate for all Occasions" - hope this is okay. If this link business does what it is supposed to , you might get some new interest in your hub.
Thank you soooooo much... You helped me a bunch. I could not find any ingrediants from google that come straight from the box. Your the only one I have found and I think you for helping prevent me from getting mad at my computer.
@2Patricias!
Thanks for the link back to my cake hub!
@Cheyenne
Thanks!
Well, I wouldn't be caught dead using a cake mix, but I have to hand it to you - you have mixed a lot of very good, common sense cooking tips into your instructions that people can generalize into all kinds of cooking. There are so many people today who don't know the first thing about cooking. These kinds of step-by-step instructions and simple tips are very valuable, and you have presented them nicely! :)
justmesuzanne,
I do not always use cake mixes, but the idea for this hub was to give people an idea about how it would be easy and cheaper to make their own cake. I appreciate your comments.
It's a good place to start, too! The ideas you put in about how to use oils, and such are helpful to folks who don't know much about cooking. It'll make them feel a little more at home and confident in the kitchen! :)
SallyTX,
Yes, this is good introductory info for those who have never baked. Thanks for commenting!
nice recipe
TiffanyDow 4 years ago
I never thought about adding cinnamon on a cake! Yum!!
tiff