Learn how to make your own Easy Bake Oven mixes from boxed cake mix... Yields 33 refills for under $4, making them just $0.12 each!
Easy Bake Oven - To Buy Or Not To Buy?
My oldest daughter turned 10 a few months ago - that precarious age where she's on the brink of leaving childish things behind but isn't quite ready to give it ALL up.
Her Christmas wish list was an interesting take on this, filled with clothing, a Beats Pill, a Vera Bradley purse, earrings, etc... but one item stood out:
An Easy Bake Oven.
I have to say I was torn... Would she actually use it? Or was it just a total waste of money? I added an Easy Bake Ultimate Oven to my Amazon cart but debated purchasing for days.
You see, we had one of these toys several years ago - but after it became the source of endless sibling arguments, it was promptly donated. Five kids all vying to bake ONE teeny cake that was little more than a bite for each? Yeah, not a good combination!
But being the lone toy in a sea of preteen dreams, I finally decided: "What could it hurt?"
And what do you know?! She has used it near daily since opening it Christmas morning.
She loves to make special cakes for everyone in the family. And I love to watch quietly from afar, as she carefully stacks layers of various cake flavors, frosting each to perfection, and finally topping them off with her favorite rainbow sprinkles.
I'm so glad that I caved, because I would have missed out on so much joy.
The down side to it? Those gosh darn Easy Bake Oven mixes are ridiculously expensive! I mean, we're talking $8 for a refill pack that makes just 2 cakes.
"YOU are a life saver!!!!"
Thank you so much for figuring out these recipes! I really couldn't believe how expensive these tiny boxes of mix were.
Make Your Own Easy Bake Oven Mixes
It took some research and a lot of trial and error, but my daughter and I hit upon just the right formula for using store-bought cake mixes to make our own Easy Bake Oven refills.
We tested several brands in the process. While the method I'm going to share worked reasonably well for all the brands we tried, we both agreed that the Duncan Hines Signature cake mixes consistently produced the best results.
Given that a box of this cake mix retails for around $1.38 at Walmart and we were able to get about 11 Easy Bake Oven mixes per box, you can easily see how the savings add up. That breaks down to just $0.12 per mix versus $4 for a single Easy Bake Oven refill!!!
I picked up three boxes of Duncan Hines Signature cake mix, one each of French Vanilla, Dark Chocolate Fudge, and Strawberry Supreme, which is enough to make 33 Easy Bake Oven mixes in under 15 minutes.
In addition, I recommend picking up a can of baking spray to prepare the pan, a couple of tubs of white frosting, and some rainbow sprinkles.
I also found this adorable mini turner and matching spatula that are the perfect size for smaller hands, so I grabbed them, as well. Unfortunately, they're no longer available online, but I just stumbled upon this adorable 5-piece set of silicone mini utensils that I love even more!
Setting Expectations For Easy Bake Oven Recipes
Before I share how to make your own refill mixes, I want to be VERY CLEAR about what you should expect from them...
Gourmet cakes? NO. A budget-friendly mix that will allow your child to bake a perfectly edible and tasty (enough) cake all on his or her own? YES!!!
Eggs and oil are not necessary to attain this goal. A little smear of frosting can up the tastiness factor, but I've eaten many, MANY plain cakes with ZERO complaints. :)
Also, it's important to keep in mind that this is a child's toy, not a calibrated oven. The baking time may need to be adjusted slightly to achieve desired results.
With this goal in mind, my girls can enjoy using their Easy Bake Oven whenever they want without emptying my wallet. They've been thrilled with these Easy Bake Oven mixes and have enjoyed hours of baking fun!
And THIS is my intent in sharing these Easy Bake Oven recipes with you.
How To Make Easy Bake Oven Mixes
Making your own Easy Bake Oven mixes is super simple when you follow these instructions. I recommend these Ziploc snack bags, because they're the perfect size to hold each mix.
Label each with these adorable Easy Bake Oven Mix labels I've designed. These are formatted to print on standard Avery 5160 peel-and-stick address labels. Of course, in a pinch, you could just print them on regular paper and tape them on.
A Few Tips For Best Results
These simple tips will help you get the very best results with your homemade Easy Bakes mixes:
- Measure the mixes precisely using the method described in the "recipe". If you pack the mix too densely into the measuring cup, your cake will rise too high and stick to the inside top of your Easy Bake Oven.
- Cooking spray is a MUST to help the cake release easily from the pan. As I mentioned, I like this baking spray for its effectiveness and flavor. Be sure to check out this quick tip for applying cooking spray with less mess!
- DO NOT pre-mix the cake batter while waiting for the Easy Bake Oven to preheat. This can also cause it to rise too high and stick to the inside of the oven. Mix it up after preparing your pan and place it in the oven right away.
- Add sprinkles! For a fun change of pace, sprinkle the prepared batter with sprinkles once it's spread in the cake pan. This creates a "funfetti" style cake without muddling the bright colors!
So there you have it - 33 Easy Bake Oven refill mixes for under $4!
These would be an awesome gift idea for any little girl who loves to bake with her Easy Bake Oven. Just package up the mixes with a can of baking spray, frosting, and sprinkles. Toss in some super cute mini utensils, and you've got hours and hours of baking fun for well under $20 (not including the oven, of course).
Printable Recipe ↓
How To Make Easy Bake Oven Mixes
Key Equipment
Ingredients
For making the Easy Bake Oven refill mixes:
For preparing the mixes:
- 1 refill mix bag
- 2 tablespoons warm water
- PAM baking spray, or similar
Instructions
To make the Easy Bake Oven mixes:
- Sift each cake mix into a large bowl. There will be small bits of dried strawberries in the Strawberry supreme cake mix - these can be discarded.
- Measure each mix into precise ¼ cup portions by spooning the mix into a ¼ cup measuring cup, and then leveling it off with a knife. Place each portion in a Ziploc snack bag and label. You should end up with at least 11 refills per box of cake mix, but more than this is possible with the recent updates to the mixes.
To bake each refill mix:
- Heat your Easy Bake Oven for 20 minutes. Lightly spray the Easy Bake cake pan with baking spray. Check out this easy no mess baking spray tip!
- When the oven is done heating, mix the contents of one refill bag with 2 tablespoons of water. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan.
- Bake the cake in the Easy Bake Ultimate Oven for approximately 17 minutes.
- Cool for 5 minutes before removing the cake from the pan. Frost and decorate with colorful sprinkles, as desired.
Recipe Notes
Featured Products
Is your child ready to graduate to baking with a real oven? These brownie mix cookies, made with boxed brownie mix, are perfect for kids to start out with! With just 3 ingredients, it's an ideal recipe for beginner bakers (as well as busy moms)...
More Recipes Made With Boxed Cake Mixes
If you like these Easy Bake Oven refills, you might also enjoy these other EASY boxed cake mix recipes:
- Cherry Pineapple Dump Cake Recipe (made w/ yellow cake mix!)
- Layered Boston Cream Pie Recipe (made w/ angel food cake mix!)
- Birthday Funfetti Cake Mix Cookies (made w/ yellow cake mix!)
- Cupcakes In Ice Cream Cones (skip Olympic torch instructions and frost!)
Did you make this recipe?
I'd love to see how your Easy Bake Oven refills turn out... Tag me @Unsophisticook on Instagram or use the hashtag #Unsophisticook so I can check it out. Enjoy!
Annie says
Instead of printing labels for every snack bag- I printed 1, then put all the bags into the box of whichever cake mix I used. :)
Tara Kuczykowski says
Great idea - thanks for sharing!
Susan says
I’ll admit it, I’m 72 years old. I love the title it says here’s your recipes, but I can’t seem to find them. Could you help me out and let me know where I can actually find the recipes. I’m excited about doing this for my granddaughters. Thank you very much Susan.
Tara Kuczykowski says
Hi Susan! You can either continue scrolling down the page to the recipe card, or you can click the "jump to recipe" link that's right under the title to be taken straight to the recipe.
Kimberly says
Do these work in both the Ultimate Easy Bake (with heating element) and the previous model with the light bulb? My granddaughter is getting an Ultimate wave I don't want to spend her college fund in refills. Thank you!
Tara Kuczykowski says
Hi Kimberly! We've never owned the older bulb model, so I'm not sure. If they didn't change the mixes when they created the new model, I'd say it should work, but the cook time may be affected. The Ultimate Easy Bake is what we tested this with, so that definitely should be fine.
Ashlee says
Do you pour eat box into their own bowl or all together?
Tara Kuczykowski says
Hi Ashlee! You'll want to measure out each box separately.
Crissy says
We made one cake with water... turned out OK.. but was sticky(not risen)
Second batch we used 2tblspns of milk and it turned out perfect.
Tara Kuczykowski says
Interesting — can you share which mix you used?
Tia says
Will these come out of the pan without making a huge mess and tearing apart?
Tara Kuczykowski says
If you use the baking spray I mentioned, you shouldn't have any issues with the cake releasing from the pan.
Texas Nana says
I loved my easy bake oven (50 years ago). I won the oven at a school fair event. I remember my mom making "refills" out of cake mixes and storing them in cup cake liners in a quart jar for me. Made my own icing as the canned icing was not yet developed. I am still a baker today.
Tara Kuczykowski says
What a wonderful story — thank you for sharing!!
Jess says
I used 1/4 cup and adjusted my time to 15 minutes and it came out beautiful and tasty! Thank you for sharing this with the world.
Jess says
London and Jess
Brandy says
1/4 cup mix, and how much water? Can't seem to find it in the instructions thanks!
Tara Kuczykowski says
Hi Brandy! It's 2 tablespoons of water. You can find the full instructions for making the mixes and baking them in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Abbie says
Have you tried this with any gluten free mixes?
Tara Kuczykowski says
Hi Abbie! Yes, I did test it with a couple and they worked reasonably well. If you're used to the texture of a gluten-free cake, I don't think you'll be disappointed.
Shirley says
Do you have a mix recipe for pizza crust?
Tara Kuczykowski says
Hi Shirley! Sorry, I don't have a pizza crust recipe.
Alisha Murphy says
Can I use this recipe for the Girl Scout oven? Bless you for sharing this information!
Tara Kuczykowski says
Hi Alisha! I've never tested it with the Girl Scouts Cookie Oven, but I don't see why it wouldn't work. You might just have to play around with the baking time a little to get it right.
Ella says
Just to clarify, any cake mix that calls for eggs & oil can be used in the East Bake oven with just water? And turn out ok?
Tara Kuczykowski says
Yes! As I mentioned, some work a little better than others, but they all will produce a cake similar to the Easy Bake brand mixes.
Lil Moore says
I make a cake that only requires a can of sprite or something similar and it taste great. I was wondering if I could use that instead of water?
Tara Kuczykowski says
Hi Lil! I haven’t tried it, but it seems like it should work if you just substitute it for the water. I’d love to hear how it turns out if you try it!
Cindy says
For pizza, I was playing with that today. Keep in mind I haven't tried it yet but was figuring about how much water to a 1 4th cup of pizza dough . I'm trying 1Tbl sp. Plus 1 tea sp. hot tap water . It seemed to feel the right texture. Hope that helps. Like I said . haven't tried it yet... Good Luck.