How to Turn Brownie Mix into Cake

So you’ve got a cake to bake but all you have is a box of brownie mix in the pantry. Don’t worry, we’ve got you. You can turn brownie mix into a decadent moist chocolate cake, you just need to make a few easy changes to the recipe.

I’m Angie, I’m a self-taught baker who’s been baking for over ten years. Before I started baking from scratch, I used brownies, cake, and cookie mixes. They helped me whip up so many last-minute treats that I’d bring to school and to parties.

The secret is, you don’t need to store so many boxes of cake mix at home. With a box of brownie mix, you have the best of both worlds. In this article, I’m going to show you how to make a cake from brownie mix.

Ready to see the magic happen? Let’s go.

Brownie vs Cake: What’s the Difference?

At first glance, it’s quite easy to confuse brownies with cake. However, brownies and cakes are not the same things.

Texture-wise, brownies tend to be soft and chewy. They’re also denser. Cake on the other hand is lighter, softer, and more crumbly. Rising is extremely important for cakes but isn’t as big of a defining feature of a brownie. 

Leavanation in brownies comes from eggs being aerated with sugar forming air inside the batter. To create a crumbly texture and to help cakes rise, chemical leavening agents are added. This could mean baking soda, baking powder, or both. There’s also a lot more flour in cakes that give them structure. 

Below are three components you need to change to turn a brownie into a cake. 

1. Fat

If you’ve ever made a brownie, you’d know just how much butter is to be added. Ideally, brownies should be moist and fudgy. The fudginess comes from – you guessed it, fat, a lot more than you need to make a cake.

To account for the difference, we can cut out some fat or replace some of it with other ingredients such as applesauce or buttermilk, anything that will help the cake retain moisture without the grease and density. 

You can use one part of the substitution to replace each part fat. 

2. Eggs

Eggs are an essential part of cakes and brownies, now the difference is whether to use egg whites or egg yolks. Egg whites are often used as a natural leavening agent and they help to make a cake that is light and fluffy. 

Egg yolks on the other hand are technically a type of fat as well so they will help thicken the batter as well as make the product denser. 

To turn your brownies into a cake, you can add an extra aerated egg or egg white to your recipe. 

3. Leavening Agent

Unless you are following a recipe for cakey brownies, generally speaking, there should be no chemical leavening agent in brownies. The perfect brownies have a little bit of rise due to the aeration of eggs and sugar. 

In cakes, however, the incorporation of air is extremely important and a defining feature of cakes. For each box of brownie mix, you wanna incorporate one to two teaspoons of baking powder. This will guarantee your brownies rise into a beautiful fluffy cake. 

You can use baking soda as well, but in smaller amounts and only if you are adding acidic ingredients to your recipe. This could be lemon juice, applesauce, buttermilk, or vinegar. Only then will baking soda cause a chemical reaction?

FAQs

Here are some commonly asked questions about brownie mix and cakes. I’ve answered them for you below. 

Why do brownies turn into cakes?

Brownies become cakier if baking powder is added to the recipe. This chemical leavener will create air bubbles in the batter which will result in more expansion in volume and a cakier texture. 

Can you bake 2 brownie mixes in one pan?

You want to fill your brownie pan to about ⅔ the way full to allow some space for expansion. You can bake two brownie mixes in one 9*13 inch pan. 

What makes brownies fudgy vs cakey?

High-fat content and the density of eggs help make brownies fudgy. The lack of those ingredients and the addition of a leavening agent make brownies cakier. 

What happens if I add an extra egg to the brownie mix?

Adding an extra egg to the brownie mix will make your brownie batter looser and rise a little more. 

How do you make brownies rise more?

To make brownies rise more, you can beat your eggs and sugar together for between 7-10 minutes or until it thickens to the consistency of pancake batter. This will ensure that a lot of air bubbles have been incorporated which will help the brownie expand when heated. You can also add baking powder if you don’t mind the cakier texture. 

Final Thoughts

Brownies are amazing treats, but the best part is they can be magically turned into cakes as well. With the steps above, you get the best of both worlds. 

Have you tried making chocolate out of a box of brownie mix? How did you like it? What changes did you make? Let us know in the comments below :)!

I am a self-taught baker. I’ve been baking for over 10 years and started my own home baking business as a side hustle. I was born in Hong Kong and spent a pretty big chunk of my life in Canada. If you’re ever looking for me, I am probably there whisking vigorously away in the kitchen.