The Cooking Hack That Makes Boxed Cake Even Quicker

Boxed cake mix is a fantastic thing to have in your pantry for a last minute work gathering, someone's birthday, or for when you're just craving something sweet. Most boxed cake mixes only require some oil, some eggs, and maybe some water, depending on the type. Its simplicity makes it a quick and easy sweet treat to mix together and throw in the oven. But there's actually an even quicker way to dress up the batter and all it requires is a waffle maker! 

The next time you need to satisfy your sweet tooth, simply follow the cake mix recipe on the box to make the batter. Once you have your batter ready to go, instead of pouring it in a pan to put in the oven, turn on the waffle maker and make cake waffles. Just be sure to add the right amount of batter to the waffle maker or it'll overflow and you'll have a real mess on your hands. 

Let the batter cook in the waffle iron the same amount of time you would let it cook for normal waffles (three to five minutes). Not only is this quicker than waiting for the cake to bake in the oven, but it's a creative way to switch things up. You can also smash canned cinnamon rolls in the waffle maker to take a different approach to your traditional breakfast, but that's for another day.

Cake waffles are good any time of the day, but they're definitely a fun birthday breakfast (perhaps with Funfetti cake) or for a dessert. You can experiment with any boxed cake too. So yes, a chocolate waffle may be unmatched, but we're guessing a carrot cake or lemon cake waffle would also hit the spot. Yellow cake is always a winner, too (yes, yellow is a flavor of cake, based on our in-depth investigation). No matter which flavor sounds the best, you'll never look at the boxed cake mixes at the grocery store the same way after knowing they can all become waffles! 

On top of the flavor of the actual waffle, the real fun comes with the toppings for each type. Sure, you have your traditional waffle toppings like syrup or whipped cream. But you can also try a scoop of your favorite ice cream, some sliced almonds, your favorite fruit, or different sauces, like Nutella or caramel. We'd also recommend chocolate chips (or butterscotch chips), sprinkles, or powdered sugar. It's also worth exploring what can be mixed into the cake batter before it goes into the waffle maker to see what's really possible. Sticking with the theme of easy prep work, there are tons of canned goods that are ready to upgrade boxed cake mix.