Mark Thorson wrote:

> This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
> cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
> cake mix.
>
> http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>
> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
> He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
> on the box results in even better cakes. He cites a
> book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
> describes some of these methods.
>
> Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
> verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
> boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. Most of
> the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
> developed worked very well.
>
> I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
> that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
> than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.

Pastorio used to say that consumer surveys would consistently
return rather interesting results in the box vs made from
scratch issue

1> When asked whether they would prefer box or scratch cakes, scratch
would consistently win

2> When boxed vs scratch were blind taste tested, boxed would
consistently win

I don't doubt it, but I'd like to see some real data.

--
Mort

In article >, says...
>
> This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
> cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
> cake mix.

> I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
> that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
> than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.

The flaw in his argument is that he only tested box mixes against other
box mixes. He may well have identified which box cake is the least awful,
but he hasn't proved it was better than made-from-scratch because no such
comparison was made.

I don't have any problem weighing ingredients exactly.

Janet

This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
cake mix.

http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html

His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
and they use ingredients that you can't get.

He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
on the box results in even better cakes. He cites a
book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
describes some of these methods.

Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. Most of
the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
developed worked very well.

I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.

Mark Thorson wrote:
> This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
> cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
> cake mix.
>
> http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>
> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
> He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
> on the box results in even better cakes. He cites a
> book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
> describes some of these methods.
>
> Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
> verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
> boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. Most of
> the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
> developed worked very well.
>
> I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
> that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
> than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.

"MOST" bakers may be the key point. MOST people are lousy cooks in general.
That doesn't mean that a good cook cannot prepare a dish that outshines
something produced in a mediocre restaurant or a boxed mix. If people bake
cakes from scratch using lousy technique, ingredients, recipes, and
equipment, then indeed a box might be better, because it has been
contstructed to be more or less idiot-proof.

I can assure you that I can bake a cake that is better than boxed mixes. I
use cake flour and superfine sugar, I use real butter, and I use the
excellent recipes and techniques found in The Cake Bible and some Maida
Heatter books. I measure precisely. I use good cake pans and magicake
strips. I am careful to remove the cake from the over when it is just done
rather than letting it sit for another 5 minutes to dry out. And so forth.

"Janet" > wrote in message
...

> "MOST" bakers may be the key point. MOST people are lousy cooks in
> general. That doesn't mean that a good cook cannot prepare a dish that
> outshines something produced in a mediocre restaurant or a boxed mix. If
> people bake cakes from scratch using lousy technique, ingredients,
> recipes, and equipment, then indeed a box might be better, because it has
> been contstructed to be more or less idiot-proof.

I've found MOST people to be good cooks in general, but I'm older so
probably a lot more from scratch cooks around me.

Cheri

On Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:00:19 -0800, Mark Thorson >
wrote:

>This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
>cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
>cake mix.
>
>http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>
>His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
>He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
>on the box results in even better cakes. He cites a
>book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
>describes some of these methods.
>
>Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
>verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
>boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. Most of
>the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
>developed worked very well.
>
>I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
>that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
>than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.

As a market researcher of 35 years' experience, I say hooey to the
broad conclusions.

The major flaw is that most folks were raised on mix cakes - doctored
or otherwise - and that sort of taste and texture is what gets
established as the gold standard in the mind of these beholders. Same
reason that McD's usually wins in French fry contests.

Boron

On 3/13/2011 10:00 AM, Mark Thorson wrote:
> This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
> cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
> cake mix.
>
> http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>
> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
> He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
> on the box results in even better cakes. He cites a
> book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
> describes some of these methods.
>
> Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
> verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
> boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. Most of
> the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
> developed worked very well.
>
> I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
> that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
> than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.

My favorite cake does indeed come in a box but it's a frozen Pepperidge
Farms coconut three-layer cake. It's tasty and delicate and the right
size - small. My mom used to buy frozen cakes back in the old days but
it never occurred to me do such a quaint thing. I don't know what the
hell they put in those cakes but I'm pretty much hooked. The lemon cake
is good too. :-)

On Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:00:19 -0800 in rec.food.cooking, Mark Thorson
> wrote,
>His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>and they use ingredients that you can't get.

It's not that people can't get cake flour, but why bother when they
already have "all purpose"?

"David Harmon" wrote in message
...

On Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:00:19 -0800 in rec.food.cooking, Mark Thorson
> wrote,
>His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>and they use ingredients that you can't get.

It's not that people can't get cake flour, but why bother when they
already have "all purpose"?
Janet replies to David: All purpose will make a far coarser cake than cake
flour. If you want a fine cake, use cake flour. If you want to make carrot
cake, or applesauce or zucchini, go ahead and use all purpose. Those cakes
were never meant to have a fine texture.
Janet

David Harmon wrote:

> On Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:00:19 -0800 in rec.food.cooking, Mark Thorson
> > wrote,
>> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
> It's not that people can't get cake flour, but why bother when they
> already have "all purpose"?

Because AP has a higher gluten content and will
make a less tender crumb.

--
Mort

Open a box of cake mix and take a sniff. There's a peculiar sweet perfume -
perhaps arsenic?
Polly

"Mort" <> wrote ...
> David Harmon wrote:
>
>> On Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:00:19 -0800 in rec.food.cooking, Mark Thorson
>> <> wrote,
>>> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>>> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>>
>> It's not that people can't get cake flour, but why bother when they
>> already have "all purpose"?
>
> Because AP has a higher gluten content and will
> make a less tender crumb.
>
> --
> Mort

On Mar 13, 9:46*pm, Mort > wrote:
> David Harmon wrote:
> > On Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:00:19 -0800 in rec.food.cooking, Mark Thorson
> > > *wrote,
> >> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
> >> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
> > It's not that people can't get cake flour, but why bother when they
> > already have "all purpose"?
>
> Because AP has a higher gluten content and will
> make a less tender crumb.

I think that David's question was rhetorical, and he, and nearly
everyone who posts here, or even lurks here, already knew what you
wrote. I guess that cake mixes that had only the dry ingredients pre-
mixed might be fine, but I don't think they'd save much work anyway.
Cakes are easy if you follow instructions and use only great
ingredients. The Cake Bible water bath method is pretty fool proof
for the easiest cakes. The cakes where you separate the eggs require
a little know how. Anyone who uses Duncan Hines, Betty Crocker or
Pillsbury cake mixes is worthy of nothing better than ridicule.
>
> --
> Mort

--Bryan

David Harmon wrote:
> On Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:00:19 -0800 in rec.food.cooking, Mark Thorson
> > wrote,
>> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
> It's not that people can't get cake flour, but why bother when they
> already have "all purpose"?

ISTR, that one can replace 2 Tbsps per cup of flour with
cornstarch to approximate cake flour?

--
Jean B.

On 3/13/2011 4:01 PM, David Harmon wrote:
> On Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:00:19 -0800 in rec.food.cooking, Mark Thorson
> > wrote,
>> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
> It's not that people can't get cake flour, but why bother when they
> already have "all purpose"?

I've used cake flour but didn't like the results. You get a finer
texture which I think is proper for a pound cake but not good for a
regular cake. I stopped using cake flour decades ago.

On Mar 13, 4:00*pm, Mark Thorson > wrote:
> This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
> cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
> cake mix.
>
> http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>
> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
> He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
> on the box results in even better cakes. *He cites a
> book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
> describes some of these methods.
>
> Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
> verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
> boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. *Most of
> the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
> developed worked very well.
>
> I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
> that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
> than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.

Maybe they used lousy recipes for the from scratch cakes. The best
from scratch cake is going to be loads better than a comparable cake
from a mix.

Mark Thorson wrote:
> This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
> cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
> cake mix.
>
> http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>
> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
> He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
> on the box results in even better cakes. He cites a
> book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
> describes some of these methods.
>
> Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
> verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
> boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. Most of
> the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
> developed worked very well.
>
> I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
> that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
> than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.

I have read that in many places. So back when I used to bake cakes, the
only one I ever made from scratch was chocolate tweed because there was no
such mix. But now that I think about it, I'll bet if I were to add grated
chocolate to a yellow cake mix, it would taste the same.

Cheri wrote:
> "Janet" > wrote in message
> ...
>
>> "MOST" bakers may be the key point. MOST people are lousy cooks in
>> general. That doesn't mean that a good cook cannot prepare a dish
>> that outshines something produced in a mediocre restaurant or a
>> boxed mix. If people bake cakes from scratch using lousy technique,
>> ingredients, recipes, and equipment, then indeed a box might be
>> better, because it has been contstructed to be more or less
>> idiot-proof.
>
> I've found MOST people to be good cooks in general, but I'm older so
> probably a lot more from scratch cooks around me.

Most people here do not cook! Or not what I would call cooking. Yes, they
can buy some kind of Hormel precooked meat in sauce or gravy and then cook
some pasta or potatoes or rice to go with it. And that's as close to
cooking as they'll ever get.

Boron Elgar wrote:
> On Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:00:19 -0800, Mark Thorson >
> wrote:
>
>> This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
>> cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
>> cake mix.
>>
>> http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>>
>> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>>
>> He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
>> on the box results in even better cakes. He cites a
>> book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
>> describes some of these methods.
>>
>> Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
>> verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
>> boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. Most of
>> the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
>> developed worked very well.
>>
>> I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
>> that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
>> than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.
>
> As a market researcher of 35 years' experience, I say hooey to the
> broad conclusions.
>
> The major flaw is that most folks were raised on mix cakes - doctored
> or otherwise - and that sort of taste and texture is what gets
> established as the gold standard in the mind of these beholders. Same
> reason that McD's usually wins in French fry contests.

I actually know quite a few people who say they prefer the type of bakery
icing that has Crisco in it. Blech!

dsi1 wrote:
> On 3/13/2011 10:00 AM, Mark Thorson wrote:
>> This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
>> cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
>> cake mix.
>>
>> http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>>
>> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>>
>> He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
>> on the box results in even better cakes. He cites a
>> book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
>> describes some of these methods.
>>
>> Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
>> verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
>> boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. Most of
>> the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
>> developed worked very well.
>>
>> I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
>> that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
>> than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.
>
> My favorite cake does indeed come in a box but it's a frozen
> Pepperidge Farms coconut three-layer cake. It's tasty and delicate
> and the right size - small. My mom used to buy frozen cakes back in
> the old days but it never occurred to me do such a quaint thing. I
> don't know what the hell they put in those cakes but I'm pretty much
> hooked. The lemon cake is good too. :-)

I used to buy the chocolate layer cakes. I too liked them for their small
size. I don't eat cake but I would take them to work for parties and
things. We didn't have a lot of people in our office. If I were to bake a
cake, it would be too much.

David Harmon wrote:
> On Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:00:19 -0800 in rec.food.cooking, Mark Thorson
> > wrote,
>> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
> It's not that people can't get cake flour, but why bother when they
> already have "all purpose"?

Because they're not the same! Yes, you can use all purpose flour in some
cakes. But if the recipe calls for cake flour then that is what you need.
It won't work to substitute the other.

Polly Esther wrote:
> Open a box of cake mix and take a sniff. There's a peculiar sweet
> perfume - perhaps arsenic?

It's called vanilla.

"Mark Thorson" > wrote in message
...
> This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
> cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
> cake mix.
>
> http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>
> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
Who can't get the ingredients for cake?

> I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
> that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
> than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.

Mark, I've always thought you were a bit paranoid. I have some perfectly
good cake recipes handed down from my aunt that are absolutely delicious.
They bake up wonderfully. The problem is, some people don't care about
baking cakes. Cupcakes, maybe

"Julie Bove" > wrote:
> Polly Esther wrote:
>> Open a box of cake mix and take a sniff. There's a peculiar sweet
>> perfume - perhaps arsenic?
>
> It's called vanilla.

Are you sure it is not "Almond" flavoring?

--
Enjoy Life... Nad R (Garden in zone 5a Michigan)

"Nad R" > wrote in message
...
> "Julie Bove" > wrote:
>> Polly Esther wrote:
>>> Open a box of cake mix and take a sniff. There's a peculiar sweet
>>> perfume - perhaps arsenic?
>>
>> It's called vanilla.
>
> Are you sure it is not "Almond" flavoring?

That would tie in with the 'arsenic' comment.

--
--

https://www.shop.helpforheroes.org.uk/

Ophelia wrote:
>
> "Nad R" > wrote in message
> ...
> > "Julie Bove" > wrote:
> >> Polly Esther wrote:
> >>> Open a box of cake mix and take a sniff. There's a peculiar sweet
> >>> perfume - perhaps arsenic?
> >>
> >> It's called vanilla.
> >
> > Are you sure it is not "Almond" flavoring?
>
> That would tie in with the 'arsenic' comment.

You're thinking cyanide...

Julie Bove wrote:
> Boron Elgar wrote:
>> On Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:00:19 -0800, Mark Thorson >
>> wrote:
>>
>>> This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
>>> cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
>>> cake mix.
>>>
>>> http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>>>
>>> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>>> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>>>
>>> He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
>>> on the box results in even better cakes. He cites a
>>> book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
>>> describes some of these methods.
>>>
>>> Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
>>> verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
>>> boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. Most of
>>> the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
>>> developed worked very well.
>>>
>>> I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
>>> that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
>>> than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.
>> As a market researcher of 35 years' experience, I say hooey to the
>> broad conclusions.
>>
>> The major flaw is that most folks were raised on mix cakes - doctored
>> or otherwise - and that sort of taste and texture is what gets
>> established as the gold standard in the mind of these beholders. Same
>> reason that McD's usually wins in French fry contests.
>
> I actually know quite a few people who say they prefer the type of bakery
> icing that has Crisco in it. Blech!
>
>
Oh, ick! I'd rather have no cake.

--
Jean B.

"Jean B." wrote in message ...



ISTR, that one can replace 2 Tbsps per cup of flour with
cornstarch to approximate cake flour?

--
Jean B.
Yes, in a pinch.
Janet

"Nad R" > wrote in message
...
> "Julie Bove" > wrote:
>> Polly Esther wrote:
>>> Open a box of cake mix and take a sniff. There's a peculiar sweet
>>> perfume - perhaps arsenic?
>>
>> It's called vanilla.
>
> Are you sure it is not "Almond" flavoring?

Yes.

"Pete C." > wrote in message
ster.com...
>
> Ophelia wrote:
>>
>> "Nad R" > wrote in message
>> ...
>> > "Julie Bove" > wrote:
>> >> Polly Esther wrote:
>> >>> Open a box of cake mix and take a sniff. There's a peculiar sweet
>> >>> perfume - perhaps arsenic?
>> >>
>> >> It's called vanilla.
>> >
>> > Are you sure it is not "Almond" flavoring?
>>
>> That would tie in with the 'arsenic' comment.
>
> You're thinking cyanide...

Ahh bingo! )
--
--

https://www.shop.helpforheroes.org.uk/

On 13/03/2011 4:05 PM, Boron Elgar wrote:

> As a market researcher of 35 years' experience, I say hooey to the
> broad conclusions.
>
> The major flaw is that most folks were raised on mix cakes - doctored
> or otherwise - and that sort of taste and texture is what gets
> established as the gold standard in the mind of these beholders. Same
> reason that McD's usually wins in French fry contests.


My mother usually made cakes from scratch, except for chocolate. She
figured that she would have had to pay extra for chocolate to flavour
the cake, so chocolate cake mixes were a bargain.

"Julie Bove" > wrote in message
...
>
> Most people here do not cook! Or not what I would call cooking. Yes,
> they can buy some kind of Hormel precooked meat in sauce or gravy and then
> cook some pasta or potatoes or rice to go with it. And that's as close to
> cooking as they'll ever get.

How about precooked hamburger patties? Quoting from one of your posts today:

"That's what happened to me with hamburger patties. I kept buying these
boxes of precooked ones at Costco. 12 patties to a box ... When I cleaned it
[the freezer] out I gathered them all up and there were enough patties to
fill three boxes!"

Felice

"Felice" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Julie Bove" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> Most people here do not cook! Or not what I would call cooking. Yes,
>> they can buy some kind of Hormel precooked meat in sauce or gravy and
>> then cook some pasta or potatoes or rice to go with it. And that's as
>> close to cooking as they'll ever get.
>
> How about precooked hamburger patties? Quoting from one of your posts
> today:
>
> "That's what happened to me with hamburger patties. I kept buying these
> boxes of precooked ones at Costco. 12 patties to a box ... When I cleaned
> it [the freezer] out I gathered them all up and there were enough patties
> to fill three boxes!"

How about them? That's not cooking either. I didn't say that it was.

On Mon, 14 Mar 2011 11:00:46 -0400, Dave Smith
> wrote:

>
>On 13/03/2011 4:05 PM, Boron Elgar wrote:
>
>> As a market researcher of 35 years' experience, I say hooey to the
>> broad conclusions.
>>
>> The major flaw is that most folks were raised on mix cakes - doctored
>> or otherwise - and that sort of taste and texture is what gets
>> established as the gold standard in the mind of these beholders. Same
>> reason that McD's usually wins in French fry contests.
>
>
>My mother usually made cakes from scratch, except for chocolate. She
>figured that she would have had to pay extra for chocolate to flavour
>the cake, so chocolate cake mixes were a bargain.


I think cake mixes are a bargain, and so are those cans of frosting.
And so is the dollar menu at McD's. I am not being snobbish, just
truthful. If those are things you like a lot, you can eat quite
inexpensively.

Boron

On Mar 14, 3:38*pm, Boron Elgar > wrote:
> On Mon, 14 Mar 2011 11:00:46 -0400, Dave Smith
>
>
>
>
>
> > wrote:
>
> >On 13/03/2011 4:05 PM, Boron Elgar wrote:
>
> >> As a *market researcher of 35 years' experience, I say hooey to the
> >> broad conclusions.
>
> >> The major flaw is that most folks were raised on mix cakes - doctored
> >> or otherwise - and that sort of taste and texture is what gets
> >> established as the gold standard in the mind of these beholders. Same
> >> reason that McD's usually wins in French fry contests.
>
> >My mother usually made cakes from scratch, except for chocolate. *She
> >figured that she would have had to pay extra for chocolate to flavour
> >the cake, so chocolate cake mixes were a bargain.
>
> I think cake mixes are a bargain, and so are those cans of frosting.
> And so is the dollar menu at McD's. *I am not being snobbish, just
> truthful. If those are things you like a lot, you can eat quite
> inexpensively.
>
> Boron- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

I tend to agree with you Boron. I have recipes that start with a
mix and I have recipes that start from scratch....all are valid and
all are yummy.

Some people don't have the time or expertise to bake from scratch.
There is room in the universe for all kinds of cakes and all kinds of
cooks.

We should not be so judgemental of others, we don't know their
circumstances or level of expertise.

On 14/03/2011 7:22 PM, ImStillMags wrote:

> Some people don't have the time or expertise to bake from scratch.
> There is room in the universe for all kinds of cakes and all kinds of
> cooks.
>
> We should not be so judgemental of others, we don't know their
> circumstances or level of expertise.


Time?? How much time do you save by making something from a mix compared
to baking from scratch. You might save a couple minutes.

Expertise? I sometimes came home from work to find my teenage son
baking cookies.

On Mar 14, 1:41*am, "Julie Bove" > wrote:
> Polly Esther wrote:
> > Open a box of cake mix and take a sniff. *There's a peculiar sweet
> > perfume - perhaps arsenic?
>
> It's called vanilla.

More likely artificial vanilla flavor.

--Bryan

jmcquown wrote:
>
> "Mark Thorson" > wrote in message
> ...
> > This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
> > cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
> > cake mix.
> >
> > http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
> >
> > His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
> > and they use ingredients that you can't get.
> >
> Who can't get the ingredients for cake?

The author of the web page was referring to all those
ingredients like emulifiers with long scientific names
you see on ingredients lists.

> > I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
> > that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
> > than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.
>
> Mark, I've always thought you were a bit paranoid. I have some perfectly

I'm compiling a list of people who say that about me,
and now YOU'RE ON IT!

On Mar 14, 1:35*am, "Julie Bove" > wrote:
> Mark Thorson wrote:
> > This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
> > cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
> > cake mix.
>
> >http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>
> > His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
> > and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>
> > He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
> > on the box results in even better cakes. *He cites a
> > book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
> > describes some of these methods.
>
> > Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
> > verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
> > boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. *Most of
> > the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
> > developed worked very well.
>
> > I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
> > that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
> > than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.
>
> I have read that in many places. *So back when I used to bake cakes, the
> only one I ever made from scratch was chocolate tweed because there was no
> such mix. *But now that I think about it, I'll bet if I were to add grated
> chocolate to a yellow cake mix, it would taste the same.

To you, perhaps. With all the stinky stuff you put on your body,
flavor subtleties would get lost, and of course to your shelf stable
milk drinking husband.

--Bryan

Bryan wrote:
>
> On Mar 14, 1:41 am, "Julie Bove" > wrote:
> > Polly Esther wrote:
> > > Open a box of cake mix and take a sniff. There's a peculiar sweet
> > > perfume - perhaps arsenic?
> >
> > It's called vanilla.
>
> More likely artificial vanilla flavor.

Synthetic vanilla is the same molecule as the one
from vanilla beans.

Bryan wrote:
> On Mar 14, 1:35 am, "Julie Bove" > wrote:
>> Mark Thorson wrote:
>>> This web site makes the bold claim that most home bakers
>>> cannot make a cake from scratch better than from a boxed
>>> cake mix.
>>
>>> http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/cake.html
>>
>>> His reasons are that the ingredients are better measured,
>>> and they use ingredients that you can't get.
>>
>>> He also says that making certain changes to the recipe
>>> on the box results in even better cakes. He cites a
>>> book, _The_Cake_Mix_Doctor_, which agrees with him and
>>> describes some of these methods.
>>
>>> Most of his page describes the experiments he did to
>>> verify the tips in that book, and to compare all of the
>>> boxed cake mixes he could get his hands on. Most of
>>> the tips didn't pan out, but the modifications he
>>> developed worked very well.
>>
>>> I think this will come as a surprise to many bakers,
>>> that making a cake from a box mix gives a better result
>>> than most bakers can achieve from scratch with butter, etc.
>>
>> I have read that in many places. So back when I used to bake cakes,
>> the only one I ever made from scratch was chocolate tweed because
>> there was no such mix. But now that I think about it, I'll bet if I
>> were to add grated chocolate to a yellow cake mix, it would taste
>> the same.
>
> To you, perhaps. With all the stinky stuff you put on your body,
> flavor subtleties would get lost, and of course to your shelf stable
> milk drinking husband.
>
------
Okay folks! Here is the long awaited google groups post! And Quote Fix
didn't fix it.

Anyway... No worried Bryan. If I ever do make that cake again, I won't
give you any.