Inside: This easy bundt cake recipe has been a family favorite for over a decade — It’s basically foolproof. no one will ever guess it came from a box!
While a traditional birthday cake is not usually my choice of sweet treats, I’ve made a few exceptions over the years. My From-a-Box Bundt Cake (as I call it) is one of those exceptions!
Simple enough for kids to help with, this easy bundt cake recipe is also “company approved” in my book!
It can be tweaked based on your personal preferences (or whatever ingredients you have in the pantry), it freezes wonderfully, and it’s an easy dish to bring to a potluck, holiday party, birthday celebration, or summer BBQ.
It’s basically the perfect sweet treat for any occasion!
I make some version of this cake at least once a month (keep reading below for some of our favorite flavor combos). Sometimes, I’ll even bake 2 different cakes at the same time, cut them both in half, put half of each in the freezer, and save half of each to eat right away.
As you’ll notice by the pictures below… anything with chocolate is a winner in our home!
If you’re looking for a simple and delicious dessert recipe for an upcoming event… or just a special weeknight treat, give my from-a-box bundt cake a try.
I promise, no one will ever guess you started with a boxed mix!
NOTE: I want to mention that I have made countless attempts to recreate this recipe using whole grain flour — it does not work! 🙂
Much to my dismay (and lots of “wasted” ingredients) I have yet to come up with a whole grain version of this recipe that’s even close to how light, fluffy, moist, and delicious this from-a-box recipe is.
That said… you should be able to substitute the boxed mix part of this recipe with the dry ingredients of your favorite from-scratch cake recipes (here’s an easy from-scratch chocolate cake recipe).
Our Favorite Ingredient Combinations:
Almost any cake mix + pudding mix combo could work for this bundt cake recipe so feel free to experiment. I’ve shared a handful of our favorite combinations below.
- Chocolate cake mix + chocolate pudding powder + semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Chocolate cake mix + butterscotch pudding powder + 1/2 c. milk chocolate chips + 1/2 c. peanut butter chips
- Yellow cake mix + vanilla pudding powder + semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Yellow cake mix + lemon pudding powder + 2 t. lemon extract + 2 T. poppy seeds
- Chocolate cake mix + butterscotch pudding powder + 1/2 c. chocolate chips + 1/c. pecans
- Red velvet cake mix + vanilla pudding powder + white chocolate chips
- White cake mix + vanilla pudding mix + 2 t. almond extract + slivered almonds as a garnish (on top of the already baked cake)
Easy From-A-Box Bundt Cake
This easy bundt cake recipe is simple enough for kids to help, it can be tweaked based on your personal preferences (or whatever ingredients you have in the pantry), and it freezes wonderfully.
It's basically the perfect sweet treat for any occasion!
Ingredients
- 1 pkg. any variety of store-bought cake mix (15.25 oz.)
- 1 pkg. any flavor instant pudding (4 serving size)
- 1 c. water
- 1/2 c. applesauce or oil
- 3 eggs
- 1 c. mix-ins (optional) -- chocolate chips, nuts, peanut butter chips, etc.
- optional frosting, glaze, and toppings
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF.
- Grease a 10" bundt pan and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, mix dry cake mix and dry pudding mix.
- Add wet ingredients and any mix-ins; stir until combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan.
- Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes.
- Remove cake from pan and cool on a wire rack.
- Frost if desired and add topping or garnishes (chocolate chips, peanuts, coconut, etc)
Notes
Our Favorite Combinations:
- Chocolate cake mix + chocolate pudding powder + semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Chocolate cake mix + butterscotch pudding powder + 1/2 c. milk chocolate chips + 1/2 c. peanut butter chips
- Yellow cake mix + vanilla pudding powder + semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Yellow cake mix + lemon pudding powder + 2 t. lemon extract + 2 T. poppy seeds
- Chocolate cake mix + butterscotch pudding powder + 1/2 c. chocolate chips + 1/c. pecans
- Red velvet cake mix + vanilla pudding powder + white chocolate chips
- White cake mix + vanilla pudding mix + 2 t. almond extract + slivered almonds as a garnish (on top of the already baked cake)
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Nutrition Information
Yield
12Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 337Total Fat 11gSaturated Fat 5gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 47mgSodium 394mgCarbohydrates 56gFiber 2gSugar 34gProtein 5g
Nutritional information is approximate and does not account for additional ingredients or added toppings.
Want More Easy Cake Recipes?
The recipes below are all super simple with easy-to-find ingredients… and best of all, they get 2 thumbs up from our family!
What are your favorite from-a-box recipes?
Visit my virtual recipe box for more simple, delicious, family-friendly, recipes!
Grace Z. says
I LOVE this recipe and have made it several times in the past months. Thank you!! Do you have any ideas about adding pumpkin puree?
Andrea says
Thanks Grace — and yes, I think the pumpkin puree would work great in place of the applesauce/oil (Probably with vanilla pudding)
Add a little cinnamon and/or pumpkin pie spice and maybe some cream cheese frosting — yum, I might need to try this myself!
Susan Garlington-Viegas says
I made this with a white cake mix and a pistachio pudding mix and put dark chocolate chips in the middle. It turned out just sweet enough w/out frostingl
Andrea says
yum — sounds amazing, Susan!
That’s the best part about this cake — you can customize it however you want 🙂
Shelly says
This was simply the best cake! I made a devils chocolate cake with peanut butter glaze. It came out perfect! I will be keeping this recipe! Thank you!
Andrea says
yay — I’m thrilled you enjoyed it!!
Nancy Levine says
Sounds great! What can I substitute for the pudding mix? I try to keep kosher, and I’d like to serve cake with meat.
Thanks!
Andrea says
hmmmm… I honestly have no idea. This is not necessarily a “savory” cake, so you might want to just try a different recipe 🙂
Maybe more of a cornbread recipe??
Carol says
I tried this and unfortunately it didn’t turn out very well…. it molded beautifully but the middle was almost like thick pudding….I even let it bake an extra 20 minutes! I tested my oven temp and that is ok, so I don’t know what could have happened! 🙁
Jennifer Wang says
Super easy recipe! We bought a banana cake mix and added in French vanilla pudding and peanut butter chips. it smells SO good in the oven. I had my 4 year old help mix and measure. He had a ball! I bought several cake mixes as we got a new Bundt pan for Christmas and finally have some down time to use it!
Andrea says
sounds delicious! Enjoy your new Bundt pan!!
Lila Kelaita says
When cooked how long can I leave this out on the counter or in the fridge?
Andrea says
I’d say it could sit out for several days (as long as it’s covered tightly so it doesn’t dry out). The only exception would be if you used cream cheese frosting — then you’d probably want to refrigerate it.
Marcy says
I made this as written, using oil, devils food cake mix, chocolate pudding and 1c of chocolate chips. The cake baked in 45 min, a bit raised on the top. It released from the bundt pan easily after 10 min. Although the cake was moist, it broke apart in chunks when cut. Not sure if it needed another egg or more liquid. It tasted OK, however I doubt I’d make it again.
Andrea says
oh man — I’m so bummed this didn’t work for you. I have hundreds of emails, comments and success stories from friends, neighbors, relatives, blog readers, etc. And I’ve made this exact recipe more times than I can count — never with less-than-amazing results.
So sorry!
Marcy says
It happens! Maybe it was the cake mix.