Homemade Dry Cake Mix

A shelf-stable cake mix jar for vanilla or chocolate cake, ready whenever a craving or a birthday hits. Just add eggs, oil, and milk or water — no mystery preservatives or hydrogenated oils.

What You Need

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1½ cups granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• ⅓ cup dry milk powder (optional, makes a richer crumb)
• For chocolate: add ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder and reduce flour to 1½ cups

Method

1. Whisk all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl until completely uniform in color — this replaces the sifting a box mix does at the factory.
2. Transfer to an airtight jar or container. Label it with the date and the wet ingredients needed to bake it.
3. To bake: combine the mix with 3 eggs, ⅓ cup oil, and 1 cup milk or water. Mix until smooth.
4. Pour into a greased 9x13-inch pan or two 8-inch round pans.
5. Bake at 350°F for 28–35 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Tips & Notes

• Write the wet-ingredient instructions right on the jar label so future-you doesn't have to guess.
• Stored in an airtight jar in a cool pantry, the dry mix keeps for about 3 months.
• For a vanilla bean flecked cake, scrape in the seeds of half a vanilla bean when mixing in the wet ingredients.

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