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Did anyone ever try this trick on how to make boxed cake taste like it came from a bakery?
Step 1: Look at the directions on the cake mix
Step 2: Add one more egg (or add 2 if you want it to be very rich)
Step 3: Use melted butter instead of oil and double the amount
Step 4: Instead of water, use milk.
Step 5: Mix well and bake for the time recommended on the box.
Makes sense if you think about it but I'm wondering if anybody here has done this.
Most (not all) but most bakeries tend to use more commercialized items in their bakeries to cut back on costs. So they wouldn't use real butter or fresh milk etc. Usually it's shortening, powdered milk etc. They also use a lot of extracts/flavorings. If they do use butter, it's most often blocks of unsalted butter in the better ones. I adore a French one locally here that uses European butter. Mmmhmm.
So I would add extra extract to the mixes, whatever flavor it is. If lemon, I would add lemon extract and zest of a lemon. I agree with adding an egg. Instead of adding milk, I would add powdered milk.
Most (not all) but most bakeries tend to use more commercialized items in their bakeries to cut back on costs. So they wouldn't use real butter or fresh milk etc. Usually it's shortening, powdered milk etc. They also use a lot of extracts/flavorings. If they do use butter, it's most often blocks of unsalted butter in the better ones. I adore a French one locally here that uses European butter. Mmmhmm.
So I would add extra extract to the mixes, whatever flavor it is. If lemon, I would add lemon extract and zest of a lemon. I agree with adding an egg. Instead of adding milk, I would add powdered milk.
I actually adore buttermilk based cake recipes.
I've used buttermilk in cake recipes and I agree, it's delish!
I've also found that many bakeries use lard or shortening in their cakes (and even in frostings). While I can always detect it in a piece of bakery cake, most people don't. I prefer butter all the time.
I don't generally like bakery cakes if it's from, say, a grocery store bakery. Specialty, stand-alone bakeries, in my experience, are more likely to have products that taste like real food and less like synthetic chemistry sets. My favorites are a patisserie in my area run by a small order of French nuns who donate the bulk of the proceeds to charity, and a Mexican bakery that makes glorious tres leches cakes.
I prefer to bake my own but in a pinch I'll use all-natural/organic cake mix, because the conventional ones are loaded with artificial additives and flavorings - especially the 'flavoured' ones like the fake butter pecan, blech! Dr Oetker makes a very good all-natural one. It's very good as is, but I remember trying a recipe to dress it up - I believe instead of the water and butter it called for an extra egg (so like 3 total I think) and some amount of sour cream. The result was a much richer, denser cake that was really good, however I probably prefer the original version as it's lighter and fluffier.
European butters and even Australian/New Zealand butters are da bomb.
Anchor, Presidente, Lurpak, Kerry Gold, Plugra (not a fave though) or Elle vire.
The Elle Vire is what they use at the french bakery near me. So good!
I use European butter, I'm no baker but I use it for every day, being a Brit I find all American butters taste like margarine , same as American frosting , taste like air .
I usually make cakes from scratch but when I use a commercial mix I add pudding mix for a taste boost and richer consistency.
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