My grandson started preschool a few weeks ago and I’d volunteered to do some cooking for his lunchbox. As I’d made the decision to start blogging about gluten free products, I thought it was an opportune time to review some cake mixes and purchased a range of mixes from Coles. Read on for my review of the first cake mix I tried out, the Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake Mix.
About Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake Mix
This is a gluten free vanilla flavoured cake mix with vanilla flavoured buttercream frosting mix.
Where to Buy this Cupcake Mix
Available at Coles and Woolworths as well as some smaller grocery retailers.
How much does the Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake Mix cost
Both Coles and Woolworths sell this mix for $8:00. I purchased a Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake Mix from Coles when it was on special for $6.40, a saving of $1.60 off its regular price.
Cost
CostWhat are the ingredients in the Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake Mix
Cake mix (72%): Rice flour, sugar, potato starch, raising agents (sodium acid pyrophosphate, sodium bicarbonate), vegetable oil, maize starch, salt, thickener (xanthan gum), natural vanilla flavour.
Vanilla buttercream frosting mix (28%): Sugar, dextrose, vegetable oil, whey powder, maize starch, natural vanilla flavour.
Cake mix may contain milk, soy and egg. Frosting mix contains milk ingredients and may contain soy and egg.
Making the Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake Mix
These cupcakes are easy to make. Simply add eggs, butter and milk to a bowl with the cupcake mix and mix for a few minutes. I used my Sunbeam handheld mixer to make these cakes. The quantity of the batter seemed small to me however it did make a good 12 cupcakes as stated on the box. The paper cases are included in the box which is convenient.
I baked the cakes in my fan forced oven which has been super reliable since my partner replaced the door seal. I didn’t pay attention to the time it took to cook these cakes, but went by smell and touch instead. It’s fair to say they would’ve been cooked in less than 18 minutes.
The cakes ended up flat, which I love for piping, were a lovely shade of light brown but did not come out perfectly round.
After leaving the cakes to cool, I made the icing which was included in the pack. I’ve made buttercream icing dozens of times and the technique was the same. Beat butter until light in colour, gradually add the icing mix (included in the pack), then a little milk.
To be frank, my buttercream was a flop which I put down to user error. My butter was too soft and it was a very hot day so I couldn’t beat the butter to the consistency that I normally would. I could’ve rectified this by cooling the butter down, but was short on time so chose not to.
Once the cakes were cooled, I iced them. The icing was too runny to use a piping bag as I would normally, so I used an icing knife instead…..the end results really weren’t pretty.
Ease of preparation/cooking
Ease of preparation/cookingHow did the cupcakes taste:
My first thought when trying a cupcake was that it lacked flavour and wasn’t sweet enough for cake. The cakes also left an unpleasant aftertaste in my mouth which sat on the back on my tongue for a while after eating.
The icing tasted powdery. This may have been due to the fact that I had issues with my butter which affected the consistency of the buttercream.
I thought perhaps I was being overly picky so asked my daughter to try a cake. She described the taste as “artificial”. My four year old grandson, on the other hand, ate them without complaint.
Taste
TasteWill I buy the Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake Mix again?
Whilst I really do appreciate companies making gluten free options, the Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake Mix really missed the mark for me and I won’t be purchasing this cake mix again. Whilst making the cupcakes was an easy, and a relatively quick process, I did not think the cupcakes were at all pleasurable to eat.
My Overall Rating: Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake Mix
My Overall Rating: Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake MixI’d love your opinion on the Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake Mix
Have you tried the Betty Crocker Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcake Mix ? I love to hear what you thought of it in the comments box below.