How to liven up a plain cake mix

Bored_Housewife

I have a "yellow" cake mix in the cupboard and want a few ideas on how to liven it up with some flavour.

I was wondering if i could add some pineapple or would that make it sticky and heavy?

Any ideas would be worth thinking about please.

Butterfly_Brain

• You could try a few sultanas and cherries with a little mixed spice
• Drain a can of mandarines, chop them finely add to the mix and make a pouring syrup with the juice by boiling it down with some sugar and then pour over the cake when it is still warm. This could work with any tinned fruit
• Add some coconut and sandwich together with jam

HTH x

Phoolgrrrl

you could put some lemon juice in to make it medeira type cake, or choc chips/hot choc.

lostinrates

Could you use an icing/frosting to add flavour? Could be anyflavour with a plain cake. And/or cut in half and fill with the same or a different flavour? E.g. chocolate icing with a nutella or marmalade or cherry jam middle?

To jazz it up a little further, going the icing route, you could chuck some hundreds and thouands in the cake mix in for a bit of a cheap colour thrill on cutting

robpw2

cocoa powder to make chocolate cake .. you can put fruit in .. or you could lay a cake tin with pineapple then our cake mix on top make pineapple upside down cake

Bored_Housewife

Defo trying the pineapple upside down cake and the mandarin this week.

Like the hundreds and thousands too, will get round to that one, in fact will try them all and any other ideas that come in.

ubamother

grated lemon rind in mixture, juice of lemon heated with caster/icing sugar until dissolved, poured over the top when cooked (spike the top a bit first to help it get through the whole cake)

newlywed

If you do pineapple upside down cake - drain the juice off the can first and don't add that or it will come out soggy

PollyFlinders_3

Chopped up strawberries, or apple, or whole raspberries add some flavour and keep the cakes moist. Have also added chopped plums when we have them. Any fruit you have lying around will do as long as you don't put in too much - a couple of ounces tops. (and frozen fruit works just as well, although I tend to defrost first)

Butterfly_Brain

Ginger is lovely with pineapple or how about making an Apple sponge and serve with custard - just put some stewed apples in a dish sprinkle with sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon add a few sulltanas top with sponge and bake mmm think I will do one tonite

faithcecilia

Digging through frandlords awful kitchen cupboards, I can accorss a log abannondened tin of strawberries, just about it date. So today I am going to but then (less most of the juice, in s pyrex dish, add some chopped apple and maybe a chopped peach (whoopsied!). Then make up cake, using the egg I have invested in, and using the strawberry juice as the water, and put it on top - baked strawberry sponge!! Yay, :jyay, yay!!

I'm aslo planning on making some lovely, lihjy cheese scones:p