The Conversation
It’s almost unbelievable that these stunning desserts all came from box mixes. There is absolutely no shame in reaching for a box. We are busy people and sometimes you just need a quick cake for that last-minute dessert emergency. With a few extra ingredients and a bit of creativity, you’ll have everyone believing you spent hours in the kitchen with these gorgeous desserts. From milkshakes, cookies, bars and even a couple cakes, here are 23 desserts that will satisfy your sweet tooth with the greatest of ease.
1. Coconut Peanut Butter Magic Cake Bars: If these aren’t gooey enough for you, nothing ever will be! Yellow cake mix topped with coconut flakes, butterscotch and chocolate chips will have you singing a sweet, sweet song. (via Averie Cooks)
2. Minty Chocolate Mousse Brownies: There is nothing boxed about these brownies topped with inches of smooth mousse and a generous topping of Andes mints. (via Sweet Treats and More)
3. Mini Tea Cakewiches With Green Tea Frosting: Yes, it’s a “tea” sandwich made with jasmine and green tea and a white cake mix, these tasty bits are absolutely adorable all covered in sprinkles. Tea anyone? (via Brit + Co.)
4. Coconut Cupcakes: A simple vanilla cake mix is topped with a divine buttercream frosting made with coconut milk and lime zest for a light dessert perfect for warmer weather. (via My Baking Addiction)
5. Cinnamon Roll Cookie Bars: We’ll leave it up to you to decide if these are appropriate breakfast fare. (via Cookies and Cups)
6. Pound Cake Tiramisu: For those times you’re especially pressed for time, this tiramisu just requires a pre-made pound cake. Prep time? 15 quick minutes! (via Martha Stewart)
7. Homemade Twinkies: Twinkies are amazing little logs of preservatives that no one wants to admit to eating, but now you can make your own, dare we say, “healthier” version with yellow cake mix. (via Averie Bakes)
8. White Russian Cake Pops: Get ready for a very mature pop spiked with Kahlua and then get crazy with fun sprinkles, like these edible gold stars. (via Brit + Co.)
9. Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes: By adding chocolate pudding mix and sour cream to a devil’s food cake mix, you will get a deliciously moist and rich cupcake. (via My Baking Addiction)
10. Cake Batter Milkshakes: Here’s a three ingredient recipe that will have all the boys in your yard. Use a funfetti cake mix for these creamy milkshakes, or add cake mix to your goods the next time you make ice cream for cake batter flavor! (via Cooking Classy)
11. Coconut Spice Cheesecake Bars: Half cheesecake, half carrot cake, these bars are far from monotonous and packed full of chocolate and butterscotch chips and tasty spice cake. (via Averie Cooks)
12. Almond Maraschino Cherry Cupcakes: So simple and pretty, plus a cherry a top. (via Your Cup of Cake)
13. Brownie Sundae Bars: This is a a dessert that requires no utensils. It’s just a delicious brownie layer with ice cream and a homemade chocolate magic shell. Pure genius. (via Shared Appetite)
14. Strawberry Cake Mix Cookies With Vanilla Cream Frosting: You are never too old to enjoy a pretty pink cookie with thick white frosting and pink sprinkles. (via Averie Cooks)
15. Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars: For a truly decadent moment, whip up these bars made with a yellow cake mix and lots of gooey peanut butter filling. (via The Girl Who Ate Everything)
16. Gooey Red Velvet Brownie Cake: Who knew you could bake a cake and a batch of brownies together in the same pan? Top that with a thick cream cheese frosting that has the consistency of no-bake cheesecake, and you have a dessert worth drooling over. (via Beyond Frosting)
17. Pastel Confetti Cake: One of the best things about spring is all the colors! Six layers of colored cake covered in jumbo sprinkles will make for a stunning centerpiece at your next spring jam! (via Brit + Co.)
18. Lemon Poppyseed Cake: Just by adding some poppy seeds to a lemon cake and baking it in a pretty bunt cake pan, you get a delightful twist on a citrus classic. (via Parade)
19. Chocolate Cake Batter Milkshake: Have your cake and drink it too with this frothy, creamy treat. (via Averie Cooks)
20. Take 5 Cupcakes: Chocolate, peanut butter, pretzels and caramel… you cannot go wrong with that combination. The chocolate cake mix makes for a thick enough batter to load up with candy bar pieces. (via My Baking Addiction)
21. Golden Oreo Blondies: Perfect with a cold glass of milk, these rich brownies have three layers — cookie dough, blonde Oreos and a yellow cake batter to top everything off. Oh dear. (via Life With the Crust Cut Off)
22. Creamy Mixed Berry White Chocolate Crumble Bars: The base layer is oats and cake mix, and the top is a delicious, creamy blend of coconut flakes, seasonal berries and white chocolate. (via Averie Cooks)
23. Pina Colada White Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies: Even though Cinco de Mayo is over, there is no reason you can’t keep the party going with these delicious coconut/pineapple flavored cookies. (via Averie Cooks)
How do you upgrade your boxed cake mix? Let us know in the comments below!
Kate Thorn is an illustrator, foodie, photographer, and blogger at Create & Kate. She loves creating art, traveling, and all things chocolate. A native to the Great Northwest, she is currently living in London and pretending to be a mature grad student.
More From Recipes
You can wear many hats running a business and sometimes some look better than others. Thanks to Office Depot, we're talking with Koyun Fan, co-founder of Sticky Rice Sisters, about finding inspiration along the way and staying organized on the road to success.
<p><strong>B+C: What set you on this entrepreneurial path of Sticky Rice Sisters?</strong><br></p><p>One day I was looking for stickers and cards to use to write to kids for a program I volunteer for when I came across Etsy shops selling products I was familiar with, growing up in Taiwan. I always had easy access to cute stickers and stationery, so I thought I should just bring them to the U.S. myself and also share Taiwanese culture with others. I also thought that if others can do it, I can do it too. I had been a marketing professional for many years before starting the store. I was still working full-time when I first started, and thought this could be something fun to work on outside of work. Also, I thought that with my marketing experience, running and promoting a store shouldn't be too hard. I had no idea what I was getting myself into! </p><p><div id="teads-ad"></div>
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<img class="rm-lazyloadable-image rm-shortcode" type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://www.brit.co/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTkyNDYwNy9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzNjI3MTc4MH0.sjcbrxXyGd5ym5Ihg8IlzRGR0Hz7-y1rd-Lq4UId22E/image.jpg?width=980" id="b7032" width="2880" height="2880" data-rm-shortcode-id="9b60a4a93eef37021b1cdbb6b713d239" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image">
</p><p><br></p><p><span></span><strong>B</strong><strong> + C: What was your most valuable takeaway from <a href="https://tryselfmade.com/" target="_blank">Selfmade</a>?</strong></p><p> I've thought about taking a business course or pursuing an MBA previously, but the cost and commitment made it difficult to. When I saw the 10-week-course on Brit's Instagram, I knew it was right for me. Since everything would be online and recorded with unlimited future access, I knew I would have enough time to consume all the information and refer back to it whenever I wanted.</p><p>I had a great experience with all the coaches. They were amazing and super helpful. I learned so much about the different aspects of business, from ideation, to creating new products, operations, legal, finance, marketing and more! I love how the course started with helping us establish the right mindset. The coaches taught us to not limit ourselves. My coach, Naomi Powell, was always challenging us on our beliefs about ourselves and she would tell us to set higher and bigger goals. It is definitely something I always think about now and I have her voice in my head.<br></p><p><div class="htlad-contentbanner"></div></p><p>All of my classmates were AMAZING. Everyone was so talented and so willing to share. It was truly a community of women who were cheering each other on and rooting for each other. </p><p><br></p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-lazyloadable-image rm-shortcode" type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://www.brit.co/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTkyNDYzNi9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NzQwOTE1N30.sIFn9o6VfXEELAWyVJNcDVS11jYC2DEnauC_PTis5Fc/image.jpg?width=980" id="96042" width="2958" height="2958" data-rm-shortcode-id="1e928bb173c36063b73f8b17a6b4a638" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image">
</p><p><br></p><p><strong>B + C: What's the biggest challenge you face as a small business owner?</strong></p><p>Not knowing if I am doing things "correctly" has definitely been an obstacle. I have tackled this by sending out surveys to our customers and followers asking for their feedback. This is also something Brit would always talk about--we should just ask others what they think instead of guessing. People are pretty good at giving honest and helpful feedback and it really helps with thinking about future plans.</p><p><div class="htlad-contentbanner"></div></p><p><strong>B + C: Who are your role models in the entrepreneurial space?</strong></p><p>Not to sound super cheesy, but I would say it's Brit. She is such a great example of Selfmade. She started the company by herself and continues to innovate and inspire. She always radiates positive energy and in the Selfmade course she made herself available to everyone. She didn't just share what she knows, but also brought in her network to help us. My favorite thing she said is that we are all creative--creativity exists in many different forms!</p><p><br></p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
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</p><p><br></p><p><strong>B + C: What's one piece of advice you would give to female entrepreneurs on the brink of starting?</strong></p><p><strong></strong>You will never be 100 percent ready so just start now and learn and improve as you go. You will make mistakes, things won't go as planned, you might not have customers to start, but you will learn. If you keep waiting for the "right moment," or wait until "you're ready," you have already lost time that you could've used to learn on the job or make mistakes. In the beginning, not a lot of people will know you, so it doesn't matter what you do--you can try anything you want and figure out what works and doesn't. As you start to have more customers and followers, you will start to get better and they will help you, encourage you, and support you. </p><p><div class="htlad-contentbanner"></div></p><p><strong>B + C: What's one female-owned business that you absolutely love and support?</strong></p><p><span></span>There are so many I love and support. To name a few fellow stationery stores: A Jar of Pickles, Occasionallish, AnnSunn, and fellow Selfmade businesses Evening Star Baby, Summer Space Studio, and The Ponnery! They are all amazing women running their own businesses.</p><p><div class="htlad-contentbanner"></div></p><p><br></p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-lazyloadable-image rm-shortcode" type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://www.brit.co/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTkyNDY1My9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyMDQwNjk4NH0.P5rDaBmqTd2oQK5zqdfgQyjMyoKLe8wncI8t3aBCOtI/image.jpg?width=980" id="c596a" width="3024" height="3024" data-rm-shortcode-id="98e07cdbcec19373ddb6df6a9ac96ae0" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image">
</p><p><br></p><p><span></span><strong>B + C: How do you stay motivated?</strong></p><p>I look at stores I want to become. I try not to think of them as competition but as inspirations, so when I see them working hard on their businesses it motivates me to do so as well. I also listen to motivational audio books or podcasts where they interview other business owners like <a href="https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this" target="_blank">How I Built This</a> and <a href="https://www.theskimm.com/skimmd-from-the-couch" target="_blank">Skimm'd from the Couch</a>.</p><p><strong>B + C: How do you stay organized? What tools or apps help you stay productive?</strong></p><p>I think I'm a very organized person. I use Dropbox for photos and Google Docs for everything else. My tip would be to always name your files and have a system for it so it's easy to search and find easily when you need them.</p><p><div class="htlad-contentbanner"></div></p><p><em>We're inspired! Thanks Koyun for sharing your story and your organizing tips! You can find Sticky Rice Sisters at <a href="http://sticyricesisters.com/" target="_blank">SticyRiceSisters.com</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/stickyricesisters/" target="_blank">@StickyRiceSisters</a>, or email at koyun@stickyricesisters.com.</em></p><p><strong><em>Office Depot OfficeMax has the solutions to help you <a href="https://www.officedepot.com/cm/marketing/save-time-and-organize?cm_mmc=bl-_-aq-_-url-_-bc&cm_mmca1=earned&cm_mmca2=uf&utm_source=blog&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=bc_sm_url_earned_engt_aq&utm_content=org_na&utm_term=eff" target="_blank">organize & save time</a> & create the <a href="https://www.officedepot.com/cm/multi-category/work-from-home?cm_mmc=bl-_-aq-_-url-_-bc&cm_mmca1=earned&cm_mmca2=uf&utm_source=blog&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=bc_sm_url_earned_engt_aq&utm_content=wfa_na&utm_term=pro" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">perfect workspace</a> to help craft your story. From <a href="https://www.officedepot.com/a/browse/tul/N=5+971469?cm_mmc=bl-_-aq-_-url-_-bc&cm_mmca1=earned&cm_mmca2=uf&utm_source=blog&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=bc_sm_url_earned_engt_aq&utm_content=org_na&utm_term=eff" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">journals</a> to , Office Depot OfficeMax is your go-to for all business solutions.</em></strong> <em><em><strong></strong></em></em></p><p><em><em><strong><em><em>Head to </em><em><a href="https://www.officedepot.com/cm/marketing/selfmade-promo?cm_mmc=bl-_-aq-_-url-_-bc&cm_mmca1=earned&cm_mmca2=lf&utm_source=blog&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=bc_sm_url_earned_prch_aq&utm_content=tea_na&utm_term=tea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Office Depot's Selfmade page</a></em><em> to check out even more amazing business resources (and discounts!) to help you accomplish more on your entrepreneurial journey. These offers are available for a limited time only, so be sure to take advantage of all this goodness while supplies last.</em></em></strong></em></em></p>
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