Building on the success of my better boxed vegan brownies recipe, I decided to turn my attention to boxed cake mixes as they have been hit or miss over the years for me. They often have come out crumbly or dry just using an egg substitute and the same measurements for the other ingredients (oil and water) so I knew I could crack it so after over a dozen attempts, I’ve come up with what I think is the perfect texture and taste for a boxed cake mix!
This recipe has been one of our most popular EVER backed by great reviews praising the texture and flavor!
My Testing Process
I tried over a dozen boxed cake mixes from traditional yellow and devil’s food to fun flavors like orange and strawberry and tried various different egg and fat substitutes and discovered a lot along the way. First off, I tried the can of soda hack where you just add a can to the mix and bake but those results were not great for me. The cakes were too crumbly and their texture just seemed off and were not like the cakes I remembered as a child and I wanted to recreate that perfect mouthfeel.
What was the best egg replacer?
A big hurdle with any vegan baked item is what to use as an egg replacer. Many things will work but the trick is to find the ideal substitute. I went through flax eggs, powdered substitutes, vegan sour cream and finally settled on vegan plain yogurt because it produced the best texture and flavor to me. Ideally, a thicker vegan yogurt was better but any plain vegan variety should work.
Why it works
Next was figuring out the measurements for the oil and water all of the box instructions use. Most if not all of the boxed mixes I used had the same amounts of added ingredients listed. Three eggs, 1/2 cup oil and 1 cup of water. Three eggs is tough to substitute and normally the max threshold for how many eggs can be successfully switched out in a recipe. I figured that out but just using the recommended 1/2 cup oil and 1 cup water just wasn’t working. Then it hit me. Eggs have more fat so I bumped up the amount of oil to 2/3 a cup. Better, but still wasn’t perfect though. Something was off so I tried using vegan milk instead of water. That helped but the texture was still not exactly right for me. I then realized eggs also give lift so adding a little acid to the vegan milk to make a vegan buttermilk and reducing the amount a bit to 3/4 cup was the ticket. I then felt the cake was ever so slightly crumbly so the last ingredient was a bit of cornstarch to thicken and bind. The cake was now exactly how I remembered and my childhood memories came flooding back.
Never make a bad boxed cake again!
The batter can be made into a sheet cake, layer cake or cupcakes just like you would make a traditional cake. Just check the back of the box for the various baking times. Frosting and toppings are up to you. I made so many cakes testing this recipe that sometimes I glazed, sometimes I frosted and sometimes it was just a dusting a powdered sugar.
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Update to my original method
I originally said to add flaxmeal or a powdered egg substitute but I started to think about it and I use cornstarch a lot in my vegan bakes. It helps bind without added moisture, adds lightness and tenderizes as well. If allergic, you could use potato or arrowroot starch as well.
What brand mix should I use?
I tried a number of brands (including store brands) and since most had the same list of ingredients to use to make a cake, my substitutions worked. My brand of choice is Duncan Hines. Homemade cakes are definitely amazing but sometimes you want a quick easy cake to make and now you can make pretty much any boxed mix vegan and I guarantee no one will know!
Better Boxed Vegan Cake
12
servings10
minutes30
minutesMake a boxed cake mix amazing and vegan!
Keep the screen of your device on
Ingredients
1 boxed cake mix (see notes)
2/3 cup vegan yogurt (5 oz) or vegan sour cream
2/3 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup vegan milk
1 teaspoon lemon juice, apple cider or white vinegar
1 tablespoon cornstarch (see notes)
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350°. Spray or butter a 9×13 baking pan (you can dust lightly with some flour as well or use a baking spray with flour mixed in — not entirely necessary, but helps remove the cake easier later). Whisk the lemon juice or vinegar into the vegan milk and set aside to curdle and thicken slightly for a few minutes.
- Place the boxed mix in a large mixing bowl and add the rest of the ingredients and mix with a hand mixer for 1-2 minutes until completely combined scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and level out evenly with a spoon or knife (this will make it look nicer when baked). Tap the pan on the counter a few times to remove any large air bubbles and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
- Cool completely then frost if desired.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Use a standard boxed cake mix that typically calls for 3 eggs, 1/2 cup oil and 1 cup water. I preferred Duncan Hines brand (their Dolly Parton mixes work great too) and found those to work the best in my testing, but also tried Pillsbury and many store brands as well.
- Use your favorite vegan yogurt or sour cream but a thicker variety will yield better results.
- Use a plain vegan milk but vanilla would work too.
- Cornstarch was best in my opinion but can be substituted with arrowroot powder or potato starch. You could use finely ground flax meal or a powdered egg replacer as well.
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This recipe recreates the classic box cake texture with minimal effort. Super delicious and moist – I used cashew yogurt and think coconut yogurt would work just as well. Thanks for doing the r&d on this recipe so I can continue to enjoy my childhood favorites!
You’re so welcome and I’m so glad you enjoyed it! It really brought back memories for me too!
Thank you so much. My son has a severe egg allergy and this is the best cake recipe we have found! You just saved all family birthday parties!
I’m so glad! Thanks for the kind review and many happy birthdays to come!
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I am so glad I found this recipe!! I made a chocolate Oreo cake and it was fabulous. Easy recipe, delicious cake!!!! Thank you so much!!
You’re so welcome! Took me a while to figure it out so I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Will this stay 3 days? Need to make 48 cupcakes in advance! I assume store in fridge due to yogurt?
I would think so if refrigerated! At room temp that would be pushing it but report back with the results!
After making MANY terribly dry vegan birthday cakes for my daughter (egg and dairy allergies), this cake has saved birthdays for our family! It was so moist and delicious that even the egg and dairy eaters deemed it delicious! THANK YOU!!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! You’d think it would be easy to veganize but it can be tricky. Many more happy birthdays to your daughter! 🎂
Can you use vanilla yogurt for this? I’m having a hard time finding the unsweetened ones anymore.
Sure! I think that would taste great!
This was great! Does anyone know which boxed cakes work specifically before checking all the boxes at the store? We did the one in the pic, yum! Thank you!
I tried a few brands and they all worked! I guess it would depend on the sized box but they’re all generally about the same. So glad you liked it!
I followed these instructions and used a vanilla cake mix- the cupcakes came out perfect! Exactly like I remember cupcakes from school parties.
I love that and totally what I was trying to replicate! So funny how our memories from childhood are so strong. Thanks for the kind review.
Will this work with a Bundt pan?
Sure! Like I mention in the recipe, you can make it any size and shape you just have to adjust your baking time.
You, Sir, are a legend. I am ever so grateful for what you do. I have a bad habit of altering recipes, and I did it with this one too: I added some coffee to the milk. I think this increased the acidity, so the cupcakes rose a lot and then sank just a little, but still absolutely fine. I’ve never seen such a light and airy crumb in a recipe that uses yogurt and which does not use water. It felt sooo different and tasted absolutely delicious.
I am very curious about adding a flax egg to see if that will provide a bit more structure as the cupcakes were slightly on the fragile side, and a couple broke a bit during handling. Also curious to use (vegan) butter instead of oil to see if that will add a little bit of density. What do you think?
Having just discovered your site, I can say that I am truly excited to explore more. Thanks again.
First thank you, you’re too kind. As for your suggestions, I say go for it and let me know! I think it can depend on the brand of mix and the flavor as that’s the variable here but I like the flax idea and I think it could probably help. Gonna try that myself. I have added that to my better boxed brownies so not sure why I didn’t try it here. Thanks again for the awesome feedback. 🩵
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Hi Kreg! I made this but my cake came out crumbly. I only used one tablespoon flax meal, so I need to use three? 1 for each egg I am replacing?
I am doing something wrong and can’t figure it out.
Thanks!!!
Can I ask what brand of cake mix you used? I would think one tablespoon flax should be enough and I’ve not had an issue. I prefer Duncan Hines mixes but also tested Betty Crocker, Pillsbury and store brands. Also, did you use yogurt or sour cream? Baking too long will also dry out a cake. Hard to tell sorry! Let me know, thanks!
Hey Kreg! Your recipe was so so so helpful!! I was wondering if you could give your thoughts on something. For a (non-box) recipe that’s calling for 1/2 a cup of buttermilk and 3 eggs, would you recommend that I increase the buttermilk to 1 cup?
Thanks for any guidance you can provide!
So would the vegan buttermilk be the only egg replacer in the recipe? If so, you might need something else for binding like a powdered egg substitute or flax meal to equal 3 egggs, but the 1 cup should be roughly the same volume for the liquid (regular buttermilk + eggs). I would add three tablespoons of a replacer into the 1 cup vegan buttermilk and see how that works. Good luck!
Am looking to double the cake….can you suggest a baking time? Can I just use what the boxed cake mix would recommend? Lower temperature longer minutes?
Doubling the cake should be fine but it would depend on the baking pans you’re using that would determine the baking time. For example are you baking multiple layers in different pans or one large sheet cake? I suggest googling your sized pans and their corresponding bake times. I always check earlier than later when baking especially if using a convection oven. Let me know how it turns out!
I made this using almond milk, apple cider vinegar, Ener-G egg replacement powder, and Violife sour cream – it turned out perfect! Thank you so much for this recipe. I’m going to try your brownie recipe next!
Love that! I often use Ener-G too! Thanks so much for the kind review!
Just egg is a great substitute. 3 tbs is equal to one egg.
Yes I agree and use it often in recipes but it’s expensive and hard to find for some but definitely a great option!
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Hi, Kreg!
You mentioned that a thicker variety of vegan yogurt would work best for this recipe. Which brand would you recommend?
Thank you!
My favorite is Silk soy yogurt but also love Cocojune. Forager and Kite Hill are great as well. Hope that helps!
Can this be made as cupcakes?
Sure! Most boxed cake mixes have baking instructions for various sized cakes and cupcakes on the box so I would follow those for best results. Thanks for the great question!
I combined this with the bottom part of your pineapple upside down cake recipe and it worked great! Aside from the fact that I turned it into cupcakes and made 12 instead of 24 like the box mix said, I had nice big cupcake tops so when flipped over they look like spaceships hahaha but they taste delicious! Once again, your skills are unmatched! Thank you!
That’s amazing, what a great idea!! Gonna try that myself!
I followed this recipe trying to make vegan cupcakes for a friend. They sank in the middle and don’t really have any texture at all— just sort of mushing in the mouth instead of being able to chew it. I removed them when the toothpick came out clean and followed the baking instructions on the box, so I’m not sure if — as a no -vegan myself— I had an unrealistic expectation of these tasting and feeling like standard cupcakes or if I did something wrong? I don’t have a backup dessert for my friends, so I am kind of disappointed in my results.
That’s not a typical result but those will vary based on the boxed mix you used. What brand was it may I ask and was it a standard sized box and/or gluten free by any chance?
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Hello. I used a cake mix that called for 1 cup of water/milk, 1/3 cup of oil, and 3 eggs. I follows the recipe exactly and it was very crumbly. Do you think I should use less oil? I think the brand you used called for 1/2 cup of oil? Thanks!
So sorry that happened! Can I ask what brand it was? Although I did try a lot of different boxed mixes during testing, I didn’t try them all so you could be right that the amount of oil could be an issue. Maybe try again reducing it to 1/3 cup and see but I’ve always had success with Duncan Hines brand mixes.
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my favorite boxed cake mix hack !! i have tried a few and it works best for me with pillsbury brand cake mix. my funfetti cupcakes come out amazing.
So glad you love it! Thanks for the kind review.
I’m not sure if I have left a review previously, but here I am again! I LOVE THIS RECIPE! It works so well, cakes come out so moist with great texture, I keep coming back to this recipe again and again because it has never failed me.
Thank you so much for your time in developing this method and sharing your work with us! I’ll be back again 🙂
Thank you so much for the kind review and I’m so glad you enjoy it!
Used this to make cupcakes! I used the Hynes like you recommended and it came out PERFECT. I was so impressed!
Yes! So happy you enjoyed them and in the brands I’ve tested, that was my favorite one to use. Thanks for reviewing, I appreciate it!
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Hi, what type and brand of vegan milk did you use? And did you use lemon juice, white vinegar or ACV? (I have found that different types of vegan milk affect results, and different types of acids can affect the flavor.) Thank you!
Hi! I usually use lemon juice, but have also used white and apple cider vinegar and have noticed no difference as it’s a very small amount and just used to create a vegan “buttermilk”. I also usually use Silk soy milk but have also tested oat and almond milks and again, noticed no differences to taste or texture. Hope that helps!