3 Ways with Angel Food Cake

I love cake.

I love a bargain.

I love recipes that require 4 or fewer ingredients.

This post combines them all, making me one very happy mama.

It has always boggled my mind when a company changes its packaging and the old box (or bag or whatever) is suddenly ordered to the clearance shelf to make way for the new fancy product. It's the same thing it was yesterday, but now it's 75% off because it's wearing last style's fashion.

I do not try to understand matters of marketing, packaging, or fashion, but I will always try to benefit from them. A cake company had recently changed their look, resulting in all now-offensive boxes to be cast off to the clearance section of my favorite grocery store. At over 50% off, I bought three boxes of Angel Food Cake. I hate Angel Food Cake. It never releases from the pan, no matter how hard I try, how long I let it hang upside down on a bottle, or how much I beg. But I bought it anyway, because it filled two of the aforementioned loves listed at the beginning of this post.

I had to do something with it before it started mocking me, so I did some research. Ok, I spent a few hours (days?) on Pinterest, but "did some research" sounds so much more dignified and responsible and not like I sat around doing nothing for a long time. So here's what I found out - you can add stuff to Angel Food Cake mix and bake it in a 13 x 9! No tube pan, no bottle hanging, no waiting for 2 hours before taking an ice pick to your bakeware. Amazing!

I have made lots of cakes where you doctor up a regular cake mix (my favorite is 3-ingredient Apple Spice Cake), but doing it with Angel Food Cake? Who knew?

So here are my favorite ways so far:

Pineapple Cake - Mix one box of Angel Food Cake dry mix with one 20oz. can crushed pineapple. Bake in a greased 13 x 9 at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean when inserted near the center.

Apple Pie Cake - Mix one box of Angel Food Cake dry mix with one can of apple pie filling. Bake in a greased 13 x 9 at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean when inserted near the center. Cover with foil half-way through the cooking time if the cake is starting to get too brown on top.

Pumpkin Cake - Mix one box of Angel Food Cake dry mix with 1 1/4 c. water, 1 15oz. can pumpkin, and 1 Tbsp. pumpkin pie spice. Bake in a greased 13 x 9 at 325 degrees for 35 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean when inserted near the center.

What is your favorite doctored-up cake recipe?