blame it on boredom...

blame it on boredom...or maybe the lack of things to do in the house. either way, what started with a "i wanna do something!" ended up with "we made a cake, hooraaaay!" by the time we were finished in the kitchen.

it all started when i was perusing pinterest earlier that day. i was going through my dessert board and looking at things that i could possibly do. macarons? no...didn't feel like it. cupcakes? no...no muffin tins or cupcake sleeves. cookies? nah...not enough ingredients. cake? didn't have the patience for frosting the damn thing. so the line of thought went with each passing post until i was tired of looking at them (no matter hos scrumptious they all seemed to be.

after i got home though, i was still itching to make something sweet until i saw the box of pre-made cake mix on the top shelf complete with frosting. an idea pinged and suddenly making cake didn't seem so bad after all! so i got the little suckers from the top and contemplated what to do. mixing the box cake didn't really seem all that challenging and i was never really one to follow the instructions on the back of a box. so went to pinterest for a sec and found this post for upgrading the box mix. bakery style results from a box cake?? heck yeah, i'm in!

so i followed the instructions but made some adjustments for my preferences. the result was a nice and moist cake that was just a little denser and not so fluffy or crumbly like the ones from a regular box mix (which was fine with me since i like my cake a little denser and richer anyway). the milk chocolate frosting we used wasn't half bad either but that one i really just left alone. also, we took some vanilla curd, made little thin stripes, then ran a knife through it to make that pretty little design on top. oh, and the plus side? i made cake flags for it to make it extra purdy to look at! yay for semi-crafting!!

 
Bakery Style Box Cake
(from Shelly, the pastry chef)

Step 1: Take 1 box cake mix of any flavor and look at the directions for making it.
 
Step 2: Add one more egg (or add 2 if you want it to be very rich).
 
Step 3: Use melted butter instead of oil and double the amount (use applesauce, fat-free yogurt, or fat-free sour cream instead of oil to make your cake low fat!). (i subbed with butter but DIDN'T double)
 
Step 4: Instead of water, use milk.
 
Step 5: Add 1 tsp vanilla extract or choice of extract.
 
Step 6: Mix until just combined (don't over-mix or cake will be flat!).
 
Step 7: Preheat at 350 degrees but reduce heat and bake at 325 degrees until toothpick inserted comes out clean (your cooking time will be longer but cake will not dome).