The Wonder of a Cake Mix

So, recently, my mom bought a book called "Cake Mix Recipes" from Taste of Home.  My mom knows my dirty caking secret lies in cake mixes.  i do not bake from scratch very often.  She also pretty much fell in love with one of the pictures in the book.  And everything in the book has one ingredient in common.  You guessed it, the cake mix.

Now, I'm not so plebian as to use just any cake mix.  I have standards, people.  Paula Dean.  And the Decadent line of Duncan Hines.  And anything that says Moist, but nothing with pudding.  I hate pudding cakes, they taste raw to me.

So, I have, on hand, 15 cake mixes.  A few boxes of lemon bars and some Cranberry orange muffins.

So, we pulled them out along with the book and I discovered something great.  Every cake mix cookie is basically a cake mix, 1/2 cup of oil or butter and 2 eggs.  You can then add in what you want.  Peanut Butter Chips, Toffee Bits, Lemon peel, almond extract, whatever your heart desires.

I share this information, because I'm not a scratch baker.  And I want everyone to know the joy that is 15 minute deliciously good cookies.

And, sure, a good number of you "Domestic goddesses" probably already know this, but I'm chronicling my own journey into the world of confections.  So, bear with me.

We've made peanut butter chocolate cookies, lemon crisps, almond sandies, brickle cookies, peppermint candy cookies, chocolate chunk cookies... I even made my first batch of rice krispie treats with those jet-puffed pumpkin pie flavored marshmellows.  I made cake balls and peppermint bark...

And we're not done.

this year things have been slim.  lots of reasons why we're looking at a skimpy Christmas.  So, we're baking our hearts into gifts to give to people.  Which is pretty awesome.  I mean, I'm all about homemade gifts.

And also, my mother was telling me at work, they got a Christmas card from a Vendor that said "In honor of our customers this Christmas, we've granted a Make-A-Wish."  Which to me is the best present ever.  Toys and things wax and wane, but changing someone's life?  Much cooler.

So, I'm off to do more cooking.  I'll try to get photos taken today, too.


-robyn