Cake Mix Peanut Butter Bars Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Can I use peanut butter instead of oil in cake mix? ›

Nut Butters

Use an equal amount of nut butter to replace the oil in any recipe, measuring by volume. If the nut butter feels too hard to measure, microwave it in 10-second increments to slightly soften it.

Melted butter serves the same purpose as oil, while also adding richness and depth to the cake. Unsalted butter is the best choice, unless you have a salt tooth, like me, and prefer desserts with a little extra salt to balance out the sweetness.

The additional fat in the egg yolk helps create a more tender and moist cake that is full of flavor. The extra egg also helps the cake have a more stable texture, which is great if you want to bake it up as a layer cake instead of a sheet cake or cupcakes.

More Fat, More Flavor

Most box cake recipes call for vegetable or canola oil. The only trouble is, these oils have almost no flavor. Replace the oil with an equal amount of melted butter (and a pinch of salt if using unsalted butter), to boost richness. For an extra decadent cake, add two tablespoons of mayonnaise.

Mayonnaise, the least likely of the bunch, actually gives the closest result to having used oil, and it retains the flavors of your cake or whatever baked good you are creating very well! Yogurt and sour cream also work in a pinch, but do change the flavor profile a tad.

Nut butter

Nut butter like peanut, cashew, or almond butter can also be used to substitute eggs in most recipes. To replace one egg, use 3 tbsp (60 g) of nut butter.

Pure vanilla extract and pure almond extract are great options, but you could also try lemon extract or orange extract paired with fresh citrus zest. Although more expensive, vanilla bean paste or fresh vanilla beans will provide even richer flavor to a boxed mix.

Martina says, “Late in the mixing stage, eggs will incorporate better if you lightly beat them before adding to the batter. The finished cake may be slightly shorter than expected, but its flavor and tenderness shouldn't be affected.” For egg-leavened cakes, the eggs are crucial.

Mixing melted butter and sugar does not trap air, so your cake will be more dense and less open. You can cream butter and sugar by hand with a whisk instead of a mixer, it just takes more time and a lot more effort.

Because eggs help build the cake's structure (don't use them and you're looking at a gooey mess), adding an extra egg yolk makes the cake batter denser. Translation: you'll have a moister confection.

What happens if I use 2 eggs instead of 3 in cake mix? ›

The ratios are wrong, and it will affect the texture of your cake. It will be denser than if you used the correct number of eggs and it will be crumbly, since the protein in egg whites provides structure that holds the cake together.

If a recipe includes a lot of acid such as lemon juice and buttermilk and isn't lifted with enough baking powder, the cake will taste dense. In that case, you may need the addition of baking soda which will react with the acid and create a fluffier crumb.

Add a leavening agent to the flour. Most cakes will call for a leavening agent like baking powder or baking soda. These create the bubbles you need for the cake to rise.

Put some pudding in the mix: Add a small box of pudding mix in with the cake mix. (Don't make the pudding.) The mix adds additional flavor, moistness, and a denser texture.

You can try any of the following: adding a 1 oz. package of pudding (any flavor that complements the cake's flavor profile), adding 1-2 egg yolks (along with the eggs called for on the box), or substituting milk for the water called for on the box.

It couldn't be easier to substitute butter for oil using a 1:1 ratio. This should work with olive, canola, vegetable, and coconut oils. Simply melt and cool the butter to room temperature, then continue with your recipe. (If the recipe calls for ½ cup oil, use ½ cup melted and cooled butter.)