If you’re not making your own homemade yellow cake mix, you should be! There are so many scrumptious dessert recipes that calls for “yellow cake mix” in the world. Cake mix makes dessert making so much more simple. But the list of ingredients in cake mix isn’t all that great, so I’ve avoided cake mix and recipes calling for cake mix for years.
BUT not any more.
I was on the phone with my sister Julie, chatting about a certain beloved cake my mom makes (which calls for a box of cake mix) and how I’d love to make it because it has been forever-and-a-day since I have tasted it. Julie knows I don’t like to use pre-made cake mixes because all the artificial ingredients, blah, blah, blah, so she then she tells me “Laur! I have a recipe for homemade yellow cake mix!” and then she instantly emailed me her recipe. She can’t remember the source of where she found it, but she has used it for many recipes and truthfully I don’t even care because THIS is genius.
I love that it can be made a week or so in advance, if kept in the fridge, OR it can be frozen for a few months. Which means you can have cake mix at your fingertips.
Which translates to having cake at your fingertips… who doesn’t like the sound of that?
To make this homemade yellow cake mix you will need:
- unbleached cake flour (see recipe notes for substituting all-purpose flour)
- granulated sugar
- baking powder
- fine salt (sea salt or Himalayan)
- unsalted butter
See there’s no reason not to make your own cake mix, you probably have these things in your fridge and pantry already. Plus you can pronounce all of these ingredients.
Start by measuring and leveling the cake flour.
What Is the Best Way to Dry Measure Flour?
Give the flour a quick stir to fluff it up a tad. Spoon flour into measuring cup and then level it off with a knife.
In a mixing bowl add 2¾ cup of cake flour. Please read the recipe card notes for substituting all-purpose flour.
Measure and pour in 1½ cups of sugar.
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder.
And 1 teaspoon fine salt (sea or himalayan).
Stir to combine…
Drop in 4 tablespoons (or a 1/2 stick) of softened unsalted butter.
Use a pastry blender to work the butter into the flour and sugar.
Until the butter basically disappears into the dry ingredients.
Next, pour the cake mix into a container with a tight-fitting lid. Then store in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 weeks. Or store in the freezer for 2 to 4 months (maybe more!). You’ll just want to pull it out 25 to 30 minutes before you use it in a recipe.
Give Homemade Cake Mix As A Gift:
If you want to give homemade chocolate cake mix as a gift, omit the butter and store all the dry ingredients in a glass jar with a tight fitting lid. Write out the remaining ingredients (include the butter!) and then recipe instructions (start by creaming the butter, vanilla, eggs and adding the dry ingredients, water, oil etc.) out onto a note card and tie it around the jar with string.
Make The Cake:
The recipe for making the cake is below, however if you want to see a step-by-step for the cake and frosting, click here!
Other Homemade Cake Mixes:
Enjoy! And if you give this Homemade Yellow Cake Mix recipe a try, let me know! Snap a photo and tag me on twitter or instagram!
Homemade Yellow Cake Mix
Ingredients
- 2¾ cups cake flour, see notes
- 1½ cups sugar
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon fine salt, sea salt or Himalayan
- 4 tablespoons softened unsalted butter
Instructions
- In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add in the butter and use a pastry cutter to blend the butter into the dry ingredients.
- Store in a container with a tight fitting lid in the fridge for a couple weeks or in the freezer for two to 4 months.
- Use in replace of store-bought yellow cake mix.
Notes
Can you Substitute cake flour for all-purpose?
Yes! If using all-purpose flour instead of cake flour, you will only need 2½ cups all-purpose flour. However the cakes crumb/texture will be different.Nutritional Value Is for the Entire Cake Mix.
Homemade Yellow Cake with Whipped Chocolate Frosting
Ingredients
FOR THE YELLOW CAKE RECIPE:
- 1 recipe homemade yellow cake mix
- 1 cup water
- 2/3 cup grapeseed oil
- 3 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
FOR THE FROSTING:
- 1/2 cup softened unsalted butter
- 2½ cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3 tablespoons half & half, see notes
- 2½ tablespoons buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
FOR THE CAKE:
- Preheat your oven to 350°. Generously grease two 9-inch cake pans with butter and dust with flour, tapping out any excess flour.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer add the homemade cake mix. Withe the mixer on low, pour in the water and oil, mixing until incorporated. Add one egg at a time, mixing after each egg. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl before adding in the vanilla, mix on low until combined.
- Divide the batter (2-1/2 cups per cake pan), tap to release any air bubbles and slide into your preheated oven. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center of each cake.
- Allow the cakes to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before running a knife along the edge of the cakes. Place your hand on the tops of the cakes before slowly flipping the pans upside down to remove the cakes. Peel back the parchment paper and carefully flip the cakes right side up, placing them on a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
FOR THE FROSTING:
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, add the butter and mix on low until creamy (about 2 minutes).
- In the meantime, sift together the powdered sugar and cocoa powder into a large bowl.
- Combine the half & half, buttermilk and vanilla.
- Add a few large spoonfuls of the cocoa mixture alternating with the liquids. Mix on low speed until just combined. Increase the speed to high and mix for 4 to 5 minutes or until the frosting is light and fluffy.
- Place the first cake layer onto a cake stand and top with 1/3 of the frosting. Starting at the center, spread the frosting out to the edge, leaving a little extra frosting overhanging the edge of the cake. Place the second cake layer on top of the frosting and top it with the remaining frosting. Spread the frosting out from the center and down around the sides of the cake.
Notes
Buy the Cookbook: Simply Scratch : 120 Wholesome Homemade Recipes Made Easy Now available on Amazon »
THANK YOU in advance for your support!
This makes me so happy! I am totally a fan of making my own cake mix!!!
I’m so glad Stacey! 🙂
Sounds wonderful! My question though is what do you add to it to make it in to an actual cake? As is works well for dump cakes and the like but would love to use it to make layer cakes. Thanks!
Hi Tami! I have plans to share the recipe for a homemade yellow cake soon! So stay tuned! 🙂
Hooray! I’m always looking for a way around the box as well. Thank you for sharing!!
waiting for the rest of the recipe.
It’s coming tomorrow Vicky! Thanks for being patient 🙂
As always, I love the photos on your post. Thanks for sharing your “outside the box” mix.
Thank you Eron! 🙂
Why couldn’t you make this mix up minus the butter and put in jars or bags and vacuum seal and take out when needed and add the butter if using in a recipe that calls for a yellow cake mix or if wanting to make a cake add the butter and other ingredients for a cake (eggs, milk??)
I don’t see a reason why you couldn’t Carolyn! 🙂
So how much of the mix do you use? What other ingredients are needed for the cake, ie eggs, milk, oil?? Kinda need that info.
Yes! I agree! I’m actually posting the cake recipe tomorrow, so stay tuned 🙂
Add 1 1/4 C Water and 2 eggs to make the cake. Found it on her site!
Actually this cake recipe is different from the cupcake post on this site 🙂
Hi Laurie,
WHile i love this idea, the reason I am contacting you is….I see your last name is Mc Namara. That is my Maiden name!! 🙂 I wonder if we are some how related!!
Ha! That’s awesome! It’s always a possibility! 🙂
So happy you used AP flour! I was scrolling down your blog with the side-eye that you’d make me go buy cake flour. Then I got to the measuring pic and see “all purpose”! Woot! Definitely giving this a try v. soon!
I wonder how much cocoa/sugar you would need to make your own ‘chocolate cake mix”???? hmmm I bet that you will come up with that next!!!!
Hi Laurie,
This recipe worked perfectly! My recipe called for a box of yellow cake mix, which I didn’t have on hand – discovered this after my bundt pan was greased and floured. Bundt cake was spot on! I’ll be using this recipe from now on. Thanks.
What do you add into the mix to make it into cake batter?
Here’s the link Kimberly! http://www.simplyscratch.com/2015/05/homemade-yellow-cake-whipped-chocolate-frosting.html
OMG!!! this recipe is the best! I made a cake using your cake recipe with this mix for a party and everyone loved it! Thank you so much!
If my recipe calls for 18.25oz cake mix do I use one recipe of this or should I measure out the 18.25?
Hallelujah! Thank you so much! I too prefer to make things from scratch rather than use “ingredients” from boxes/jars. I have amazing recipes that call for “yellow cake mix”, but I prefer to have everything I make have real ingredients (not a bunch of things I can’t pronounce). So, this is exactly what I was looking for! Thanks again!
Made this cake today and we love it! It tastes like pancakes which is a very good thing. Thanks for the recipe!
Do you have to use grape seed oil or would most other oils do…for instance coconut oil or vegetable oil?
Do I use the whole cake mix for one recipe that calls for yellow cake mix?
Hi Joseph! Yes, you sure can!
I own your cookbook (awesome), but didn’t see this recipe in it. It is exactly what I need! Thanks!
Thank you for purchasing a cookbook, Renee! I hope you enjoy this recipe 🙂
Can I use bleached all-purpose flour? I read online that the main difference is that Unbleached flour provides better support of the cake, and even then the difference isn’t that big.
Absolutely!
Why is it yellow? Is cake floor for wedding cakes?
Yellow cakes are made using egg yolks, while white cakes are typically made with only egg whites. Enjoy!
Hi! Could cake flour be used instead of all purpose for this recipe?
sure!
Yeah thats what inquiring minds want to know. ME TOO.
I’ve been trying to figure that out with cake boxes too when they shrank due to cake company’s cutting corners on our old hand me down treasured recipes.
Thank you!!! You just made my 1st day of Coronavirus of quarantined DAY! You are a gem!
So glad! Stay safe!
I’ve been trying to figure that out with cake boxes too when they shrank due to cake company’s cutting corners on our old hand me down treasured recipes. Do you have a chart for the originals that went from 18.25 to 16.25 to 15.25 for a basic yellow cake recipe?? Also what about adding instant from scratch pudding for the cake recipe.
I would like to use this recipe for an apple cider donut cake which calls for a box yellow cake mix. My question is would I omit the butter from your recipe since mine calls for butter also?
Never having seen yellow cake mix and not knowing how much a box contains would I use the whole of your recipe to make apple dump cake, Or can you tell me what weight is in a box? Thank you in anticipation.
Hi Ann! My recipe uses real butter so the weight will not be equivalent. I haven’t tested this recipe with dump cake, so I can’t say with certainty. However I would think so. If you try it, I’d love to know how it works for you!
Hi,
Please tell me, 1 cup is how much in grams?
depends on what you are measuring. AP flour is 120 grams
What is the yield in comparison to a box of cake mix? I gave recipe calling for a box of mix so I need to know how much of your recipe to use… thank you!
The recipe above reads as this 4 teaspoons of baking power but under one of the pictures it calls for 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking power . Which one is correct for this YELLOW CAKE MIX ?
Hi Connie!
They are the same, as 3tsps = 1 Tbsp.
Hope this helps!
-A fellow baker
Under the cake mix directions you say this makes 4 1/2 cups cake mix (weighing 1lb 13 ounces). Is this supposed to be 1lb 3 ounces? Boxed mixes used to be 18.25 oz, but have been reduced to 15.25 oz which is why Im asking. 1lb 13oz is 29oz almost 2lbs?
So if I made this mixture i could substitute it for recipes that use a cake mix like cake mix cookies or brownies or stuff like that?