12 Canned Ingredients That Will Upgrade Your Boxed Cake Mix

Canned ingredients tend to make life simpler, so why not add them to your next box of cake mix? Believe it or not, there are many feasible (and completely shocking) ways to upgrade your boxed cake mix that involve cheap and easy canned ingredients you may already have stashed in your cupboard. From flavorful fruits to ingredients sure to lift eyebrows, canned ingredients can often improve the texture and flavor of your box cake mix with little to no effort involved.

Bear in mind that in many cases, you'll want to follow specifics when adding canned ingredients to your box cake mix. Many of the upcoming canned ingredient suggestions won't work if you simply dump them into your cake mix batter but may require adherence to specific protocols to deliver the best outcome.

So, pull up a seat and get comfy. We've got the sweet details on how to make your next box of cake mix taste that much better using cheap and convenient canned ingredients.

As you'll soon see, adding fruit to a boxed cake mix can yield a variety of delicious creations, though adding the fruit isn't always as straightforward as you might think. When it comes to canned cherries, you can either go with dark cherries in syrup, like these dark sweet cherries from Oregon Specialty Fruit, or with a good old-fashioned cherry pie filling like this one from Duncan Hines. Which you use will depend on your recipe. Some recipes, like this easy cherry dump cake recipe, use fresh cherries and, therefore, would likely taste best with drained, unsweetened canned cherries packed in water, like these Lucky Leaf red pitted cherries. Also, because some canned cherries are packaged in heavy syrup, you may risk your dump cake turning out too sweet if you use this variety in place of fresh, unsweetened cherries.

Looking for a recipe that's more straightforward? Try this cherry cola dump cake. It utilizes decadent ingredients like Devil's Food cake mix, chocolate chips, cola, and canned cherry pie filling for a delightfully rich dessert. Remember that when making a dump cake, you'll need to use the layering technique using dry cake mix as described in the recipe rather than adding cherries into liquid cake batter. No matter which recipe you use, follow it closely and use caution when swapping one type of canned cherries for another for the best results.

Canned evaporated milk is a great option for upgrading boxed cake mix. Evaporated milk is best when used in a recipe that specifically calls for it since evaporated milk cannot be replaced at a 1:1 ratio with regular milk — at least, not without diluting it first. Recipes like this easy tres leches cake may leave you with questions like, "Why does this recipe call for evaporated milk?" But it imparts moist richness that allows the cake to shine. Even so, you may be wondering if you can make a tres leches cake using a convenient cake mix and still achieve similar results. The answer? Yes, you can!

According to the folks over at Reddit, you can use white or yellow boxed cake mix to make a tres leches cake using high-quality Carnation evaporated milk as a milk topping. To do this, bake your cake mix according to the package directions before allowing it to cool for a few minutes. Use a fork to poke holes in the top of your cake. Combine evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and regular whole milk in a bowl and pour it over your cake. Allow the milk mixture to soak in before topping with whipped frosting. Place it in the refrigerator for several hours to keep the milk in the cake from spoiling before you slice and serve. Top with strawberries for a layer of fresh flavor.

Black beans as a boxed cake mix upgrade? Don't knock it 'til you try it! Black beans can be used for a variety of uses, and some of us love them so much we actually believe a can of black beans pair well with depression (we're joking, of course). They are rich in protein, fiber, and a variety of vitamins, proving to be a sneaky way to get kids more nutrients. Also, adding canned black beans to the cake mix can replace some of the fat in your recipe, but doing so cup-for-cup may cause the texture to become a little funky. To prevent that, try only replacing half of the butter, oil, or shortening you'd typically use with black beans.

To add black beans to your next boxed cake mix, you'll need a single 15-ounce can of black beans, eggs, oil, and, of course, your cake mix. Using chocolate cake mix often provides the best backdrop for black beans, as does its color, but feel free to experiment. There are also other recipes out there, like this simple black bean brownie recipe, that don't necessarily utilize box cake mix but work as suitable, albeit slightly more time-consuming, options for working a can of black beans into your next dessert. 

Lastly, when selecting your black beans, be sure to choose a variety that is free of fancy seasonings — plain Goya black beans tend to do the trick.

Fall season or off-season, adding a can of pumpkin to your boxed cake mix can change its flavor the coziest way. When adding pumpkin to cake mix, it may help to follow a recipe rather than going it alone. When you do, pay close attention to the kind of canned pumpkin called for, as not all canned pumpkin options are the same. In this pumpkin gooey butter cake recipe, you'll need to use 100% pure puréed pumpkin — Amazon's Happy Belly Organic pumpkin is a good option. Combine it with eggs, butter, pumpkin pie spice, and a number of other ingredients to recreate this tasty number.

Other recipes, like this three-ingredient marshmallow pumpkin cake, are a bit simpler but use canned pumpkin pie filling like this one from Farmer's Market Foods rather than pure pumpkin purée as its base. Remember that pumpkin pie filling contains added sugar, spices, and other ingredients, making it unfit for a direct substitution for canned pumpkin purée.

Another thing to note is that in order for pumpkin flavors to shine through best, it's often wise to use white or yellow cake mix. If you're feeling extra jazzy, you could try chocolate cake mix, though it might mask the flavor of the pumpkin a bit. Feel free to experiment and see which flavor combinations take your obsession with pumpkin to the next level.

Like with canned evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk won't usually take the place of regular milk when added to boxed cake mix. Sweetened condensed milk would prove a little too sweet if swapped for milk at a 1:1 ratio, especially given that most cake mixes already contain plenty of sugar. Instead, use a can of Nestle La Lechera sweetened condensed milk as a milk topping to be poured over freshly prepared cake.

Tres leches cake is a great way to use canned sweetened condensed milk, but it isn't the only way to upgrade boxed cake mix. If you're a chocolate cake lover, you'll be happy to know that you can prepare a chocolate cake, poke holes in it, and pour sweetened condensed milk combined with caramel sauce over the top to create a scandalously decadent bite. Try something similar with white or yellow cake mix and crown with whipped topping. The best part? Unlike canned evaporated milk, there's no need to combine sweetened condensed milk with other milk types before pouring it over your cake. Sweet!

There are several ways to use canned peaches in box cake, including in dump cakes. In this peachy dump cake recipe, you'll use two 15-ounce cans of peaches in juice or light syrup — 365 Whole Foods Market organic yellow cling peaches are a good choice here. Dump the fruit into a baking pan, add vanilla extract and cinnamon, and add dry cake mix on top. Continue with the recipe, baking as instructed. Other variations on dump cake, like this ginger peach dump cake recipe, may include different spices, like ginger, lending a different, albeit still delicious, flavor. You can even figure out how to freeze deliciously ripe summer peaches for when you don't have canned peaches on hand, but that's another article.

Canned peaches can also be used differently to elevate boxed cake when utilized as part of an upside-down cake recipe. Though traditional pineapple upside-down cake tends to be the most popular, peach upside-down cake can be easily achieved using canned peaches in place of pineapple. Rather than using dry cake mix the way you would for a dump cake, you'll instead arrange your drained peach slices on the bottom of a baking dish and spread your prepared cake mix (we'd recommend yellow cake mix in this instance) over the top. Use the juice drained from the peaches to replace the water or milk called for in your cake recipe, but only if you want the cake to taste even sweeter. Bake the concoction, allow it to cool, and flip using a platter. Enjoy!

We know adding tomato soup to your cake is a little weird; okay — very weird. But don't worry; this isn't some Johnny-come-lately cake ingredient. Actually, this age-old add-in has been around for quite some time, spanning as far back as the 1930's. Apparently, the Great Depression had people using whatever they had on hand, even to the point where using tomato soup in cake proved acceptable. In case you're wondering why someone would do such a thing, the tomatoes in the soup work as an acid to help convert baking soda into carbon dioxide in baked goods. As a result, tomato soup, though peculiar, became a very popular cake ingredient.

Not convinced that tomato soup in a cake is a retro classic you should try? We get it, but there are plenty of people out there who can vouch for it. If you're brave enough to give it a shot, combine the cake mix of your choice (chocolate, carrot, or spice cakes work well) with a 10.75-ounce can of tomato soup, baking soda, and a couple of eggs. Top this with the frosting of your choice, and relish the deliciously moist and shockingly flavorful results.

Bear in mind that the kind of tomato soup you use matters; thus, we'd recommend going for Campbell's tomato soup instead of other tomato soup offerings. Doing so will lessen the risks of your cake tasting like an odd mixture of tomatoes, herbs, garlic, and sugar. Just saying!

Let's face it: Dealing with fresh pineapple can be a pain. Though there are easy methods out there for peeling and chopping fresh pineapple (like this pull-apart method for opening pineapples without a knife), using canned pineapple in boxed cake often proves more convenient. 

As you probably guessed, using canned pineapple in pineapple upside-down cake with boxed cake mix is the most popular way to include this sweet ingredient, but there are other ways to add canned pineapple to your boxed cake as well. One of the easiest ways to combine canned pineapple with box cake is to simply mix the two together. Yup — that's really all there is to it. Grab a can of Dole crushed pineapple and pour it into a bowl with cake mix. Stir it well, pour into a baking dish, and bake. Top with your choice of frosting, a dollop of whipped cream, or a scoop of ice cream.

Another great way to incorporate canned pineapple into cake mix is to try this pineapple coconut poke cake recipe. Though it can be made from scratch, you can also make it using yellow cake mix. Simply prepare the cake according to the package directions before mixing undrained crushed pineapple into the batter. Bake as directed and allow to cool. Poke holes over the top of the cake and pour sweetened condensed milk over the dessert. Sprinkle shredded coconut over your choice of topping for an added layer of flavor. Delish!

According to Nikki Dinki, author of "More Veggies, Please," adding beets to your boxed cake mix couldn't be easier. Though not everyone's first choice, it might be worth it for you veggie-haters out there to stop fearing beets. Adding them to cake mix not only gives you a nutritional boost but adds a vibrant red hue to cakes as well. In order to allow the color of the beets to show through, consider using white cake mix instead of colored varieties. To pull off a beet cake recipe, you'll add oil, eggs, and canned beets to a blender before folding into your white cake mix. We like these no-salt-added sliced beets from 365 by Whole Foods Market.

There are other ways to incorporate beets into boxed cake mix as well, as illustrated with this red velvet beet cake, which again takes advantage of beet's hue to deliver a richly satisfying and truly gorgeous deep red cake. Aside from rose-colored cakes, you can also add beets to chocolate cake. The reason beets may be the ingredient your chocolate cake needs is largely due to the fact that they impart sweetness and moisture, especially when using the canned beet variety. Not to mention, like so many other canned ingredients mentioned on this list, adding canned beets to cake mix is a sly way to get kids to eat their veggies.

While canned cherries, peaches, and pineapple make total sense when added to cake, canned mandarin oranges might seem like a peculiar choice — at least at first blush. Indeed, canned mandarins aren't a mix-in you'll find in many recipes, but they still may have a place in your cake mix when utilized correctly. To pull off this upgrade, try making a pig pickin' cake (yes, you heard that right). 

Simply combine yellow cake mix with undrained canned mandarins, along with oil and eggs, before placing in a baking pan to bake. By leaving the juice in the mandarins, you infuse the cake with moisture while giving it a hint of citrus flavor. Just be careful to select something like these Native Forest mandarins in 100% juice. Selecting mandarins in heavy syrup might cause your cake to become too sweet.

Shredded carrots are an integral ingredient when it comes to carrot cake, but if you want to streamline the cake-making process, consider swapping fresh carrots with canned for an easy box carrot cake. To use canned carrots in an easy carrot cake recipe, add about 1 cup of drained Libby's canned carrots to your wet batter in place of the shredded carrots. It may help to pulverize the carrots before adding them to your mix in order to prevent overmixing your batter, which will undoubtedly affect the texture of your cake. Once your carrots are incorporated into the cake batter, add other ingredients (applesauce, flaked coconut, and chopped walnuts are used here) along with a few other ingredients and bake as instructed.

As far as what type of cake mix you should use, the sky's the limit, although spice cake mix often provides a warm and flavorful backdrop. Bear in mind that because canned carrots have been submerged in water for so long, they may be slightly bland when used in carrot cake. Thus, the spices and bold flavors in spice cake mix can give the canned carrots the boost they need to produce a tasty cake that skips the tedious task of grating fresh carrots.

Adding coconut milk in place of regular milk (or water) when making boxed cake mix infuses your cake with the slightest hint of yummy coconut flavor. In case you're wondering, coconut milk is often sold in a can (we're partial to Thai Kitchen coconut milk), though it can also be found in cartons. If you're a big fan of coconut, consider not only adding coconut milk but amping things up a notch by adding coconut extract to further accentuate coconut flavors as well. Other ways to tinker with your box cake mix when adding coconut milk include using white cake mix as a lovely neutral backdrop, adding coconut extract to your frosting, adding shredded coconut over your topping of choice, or even stirring shredded coconut right into the mixture, as is done in this delicious coconut cake recipe.

When selecting canned coconut milk for your cake, be sure to check the label. Avoid any low-fat varieties (unless your recipe specifically calls for it), and check to ensure that what you are buying isn't coconut cream. Coconut cream contains more fat and is thicker than coconut milk and, therefore, may alter the texture of your baked goods.