My aunt swore by adding instant pudding mix to cake batter

She told me it makes box cakes taste bakery fresh. I tried it with a chocolate cake for my kid's birthday party last weekend. The texture was weirdly dense and gummy, not light at all. Everyone ate it but nobody said it was great. Has anyone else had this work for them or did I mess something up?

3 comments

3 Comments

terrywilson13d ago

I've got a specific trick that actually worked for me last Thanksgiving when I made a pumpkin cake. Instead of instant pudding mix, try using sour cream. I swapped out the oil for equal parts sour cream and melted butter, and the cake came out super moist without being gummy or dense. The sour cream adds richness and keeps the crumb light, which is what those pudding mixes usually mess up. Have you ever tried that substitute before?

gracea192mo ago

Oh YES, this is one of those Pinterest "hacks" that sounds good but is actually a TRAP. I tried it once with a vanilla cake and it came out SO dense and almost wet in the middle like it was underbaked even though it wasn't. The pudding mix messes with the moisture balance in the box batter and makes everything gluey instead of fluffy. You're not crazy, it definitely does NOT make it taste bakery fresh.

adam_robinson2mo agoMost Upvoted

Dang @gracea19 you're making me feel like I committed a crime for liking pudding mix in my cake lol. I've done it with chocolate cake a few times and honestly it came out fine, a little denser sure but not like a brick or anything. Maybe it depends on the brand or flavor or how much milk you use in the pudding? I feel like some people act like one bad batch means the whole method is garbage when maybe they just messed up the ratios. But hey if you hate it you hate it, I'm not gonna fight you over cake.