Yellow Cake Mix

Test Date: March 2011

Testers: Michele and husband Marc

All products for this test purchased at Fred Meyer, Trader Joe's, and Whole Foods.

Note: All cupcakes prepared according to package directions.

MICHELE'S OPINION: The most surprising thing about this test is that the Trader Joe's product tastes like corn bread! Very strange in my opinion. I would stay away from that one, but for another more natural option with no trans fats the Cherrybrook Kitchen was pretty good, if you're ok with a dense consistency and a steep sticker price. For the mainstream brands either Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker would be great; I would just stay away from the Pillsbury options, which was surprisingly spongy. Read on for more details.....

Price Comparison for one box of cake mix (store first, then brand)
$4.99 Whole Foods Cherrybrook Kitchen
$3.99 Whole Foods Arrowhead Mills
$2.99 Trader Joe's Baker Josef's
$1.99 Fred Meyer Duncan Hines
$1.88 Fred Meyer Betty Crocker
$0.89 Fred Meyer Pillsbury

1. Baker Josef's Golden Yellow Cake Mix (Only available at Trader Joe's): This product tastes just like corn bread and not like yellow cake at all! It has a good fluffy texture but is also a tad grainy and is moderately sweet.

2. Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Classic Yellow Cake Mix (Purchased at Fred Meyer; Duncan Hines website does not list other locations for purchase): This product has a very vanilla-y flavor and is very moist. It is a relatively sweet option with a light and fluffy texture.

3. Pillsbury Moist Supreme Classic Yellow Cake Mix (Purchased at Fred Meyer and available on Amazon Fresh; per the Pillsbury website, this product is also available for purchase at QFC, Albertsons, and Safeway): This option has a surprisingly spongy consistency. It is moist and pretty sweet but fairly tasteless otherwise. It is also interesting to note that the cupcakes 'fell' somewhat after coming out of the oven, ending up flat on top, whereas the others maintained their dome shape.

4. Betty Crocker Super Moist Yellow Cake Mix (Purchased at Fred Meyer and available on Amazon Fresh; Betty Crocker website product locator was not working at the time of this post.) It is funny that this product is called 'super moist' and I think it is actually the least moist of all of the options tested. It does have a good sweetness level and light vanilla flavor though.

5. Arrowhead Mills Organic Vanilla Cake Mix (Purchased at Whole Foods and available on Amazon Fresh; Arrowhead Mills website product locator does not list this product.) This cake came out very wet, moist, and dense. It is not sweet compared to the others and not vanilla-y.

6. Cherrybrook Kitchen Yellow Cake Mix (Purchased at Whole Foods and available on Amazon Fresh; per Cherrybrook Kitchen website, their products are also available at Fred Meyer and QFC in the greater Seattle area.) This cake is very dense and moist with a good sweetness level. It actually has the consistency of more of a banana/zucchini bread then a cake. It is the darkest in color of all of the options; it looks like it has wheat in it.

NUTRITIONAL NOTES: (per 43g serving size) All of these products have similar calorie levels (dry mix only) at around 160 per serving. The fat content varies widely though, with no fat in the Arrowhead Mills and Cherrybrook Kitchen products, and 3.5 grams per serving in the Pillsbury and Duncan Hines options. Sodium levels are also very different, with only 140mg per serving of the Arrowhead Mills product, 270-290mg for the big name brands Duncan Hines, Pillsbury, and Betty Crocker, and a whopping 300mg in the Trader Joe's product. Unfortunately, the Duncan Hines, Pillsbury, and Betty Crocker brands also all include trans fats (partially hydrogenated soybean oil) as the third or fifth ingredient.

TASTE WINNER: Duncan Hines with Betty Crocker in second