• Home
    • Recipes
      • Recipe Index
      • How-To & Cooking Tutorials
      • Popular Recipes
    • Meal Plans
      • Weekly Meal Plans
      • Freezer Meal Plans
      • The ORIGINAL 20 Meals for $150 Plans
    • Classes
      • Grocery Savings 101 Workshop
      • Freezer Cooking 101 Workshop
      • Meal Planning 101 Workshop
      • Whis-Kid Cooking Lessons
      • Instant Pot Cooking 101 Course
      • My Efficient Kitchen Course
    • Store
    • Blog
    • Contact
      • About
      • Press
    • Login

    $5 Dinners | Budget Recipes, Meal Plans, Freezer Meals

    Budget Recipes, Meal Plans, Freezer Meals and Cooking Tutorials for the Busy Home Chef

    Join Erin's 5-Ingredient Challenge in 2023

    Easy Cake Mix Muffins

    March 22, 2012 by Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom 29 Comments

    57 shares
    • Share
    • Tweet

    Sign up to receive FREE weekly emails with recipes, coupons and other money saving tips right into your inbox. Become a friend on Facebook too AND/OR join the $5 Meal Plan Family and get meal plans delivered to you each week!

    Delicious. Will feed a crowd. But most of all – easy.

    These muffins are so simple to make and have such wide appeal, they’ve easily become a go-to recipe in our home. You’ve likely seen the chocolate version. But what about the spice cake version? I was surprised at how many my teenagers gobbled up!

    Just two ingredients. A boxed cake mix…

    …and vitamin rich pumpkin! (Anything that tasty we eat year ’round – not just in the fall).

    This version makes approximately two dozen. 24 muffins! Anytime I can make that many muffins so easily and they will feed the seven of us more than once, it’s a winner. Sometimes we enjoy some then tuck some in the freezer. Hooray for make it once and enjoy it twice! Last time I made these muffins we just enjoyed for breakfast – then snack. They lasted almost 24 hours. A big deal in our household. 24 for 24 in a household of seven.

    Mix them up to take to your next school or work party. Make some to save in the freezer then pop in the microwave for a snack. Or simply make them to make your family smile.

    But don’t just take it from me:

    • “Pumpkin muffin? Yummy!” ~ six-year-old
    • “Delicious!” ~ nine-year-old finickiest eater of the family
    • “We need to make the chocolate pumpkin muffins next.” ~ 14-year-old
    • “Yes, anything with pumpkin is delicious.” ~ almost 13-year-old

    Print This Post

    Cake Mix Pumpkin Muffins

    Yield – 24 muffins

    Preparation Time – 5 minutes

    Cooking Time – Approximately 25-30 minutes

    Ingredients

    • 1 box devil’s food cake OR spice cake mix $1.50
    • 1 29 (1 lb) oz can of pumpkin $2.84
    • Note if using devil’s food cake mix: 1 cup chocolate chips (optional but highly recommended)
    Add this recipe to ZipList!

    Directions

    • Mix together ingredients.
    • Bake according to cake box instructions for cupcakes.

    Cost $ 4.34

    57 shares
    • Share
    • Tweet

    Filed Under: Baking, Bread Recipes, Budget Friendly Recipes, Dessert Recipes, Freezer Recipes and Freezer Meal Plans Tagged With: Tricia

    These meals are a LIFESAVER!

    Want a set of our best selling freezer meal bag holders?! You can now order them right here!

    Comments

    1. Merry T. says

      March 22, 2012 at 7:27 pm

      I have made this many times, as it is quick and easy. However, I have always used the smaller can of pumpkin. This recipe is all over the internet and everyone uses the 15 oz can. Do you really use a 29 oz can of pumpkin for one box of cake mix?

      Reply
      • Tricia says

        March 22, 2012 at 7:35 pm

        I agree it is all over the internet. I love the variations. Yes I do use the big can Merry! And it makes 24 muffins – if you spread it out right. All the more vitamin richness 🙂

        Reply
    2. ddevito says

      March 22, 2012 at 8:41 pm

      So you just mix the dry cake mix with pumpkin? kinda confused…..

      Reply
      • Tricia says

        March 22, 2012 at 8:44 pm

        Yes! That is all there is to it. The pumpkin is moist enough to blend into the cake mix. You will be amazed. Then just scoop into the muffin tin. It’s that easy!

        Reply
    3. Carol says

      March 22, 2012 at 9:08 pm

      I can’t believe how easy these muffins are! Have you made any with other flavored cake mixes and other pie fillings instead of pumpkin? I like the idea that these are so easy…..thanks for posting..
      Carol

      Reply
    4. Vicky says

      March 22, 2012 at 9:40 pm

      I’ve always used carrot cake mix, can’t wait to try devil’s food.

      Reply
      • Tricia says

        March 22, 2012 at 10:09 pm

        Carrot cake mix sounds delicious Vicky!

        Reply
    5. Amber says

      March 22, 2012 at 10:06 pm

      I was just looking at the cans of pumpkin in my cabinet and thinking I need to make something with those. These sound great! But… have you tried this recipe with yellow cake mix? I have 3 boxes I need to use by June.

      Reply
      • Tricia says

        March 22, 2012 at 10:10 pm

        Hmmm. I haven’t tried that myself. I don’t see why not Amber. If all the other cake mixes mentioned do well 🙂

        Reply
      • Alea Milham says

        March 23, 2012 at 2:04 am

        If you use a yellow cake mix, I would suggest adding pumpkin pie spices to suit your tastes. I would add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of ginger and 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg.

        Reply
        • Tricia says

          March 23, 2012 at 11:02 am

          Thank you Alea!

          Reply
    6. Renee says

      March 23, 2012 at 9:48 am

      Have you tried with organic cake mix?
      Does you mix call for other ingredients or just add water / milk? Just curious and would love to try with organic and also gluten free!!! I love easy!

      Reply
      • Tricia says

        March 23, 2012 at 11:03 am

        No water, no milk. Just the mix and the pumpkin. I’m sure it would do well with organic and gluten free as well. I love this because it is peanut/tree nut free and egg free for my allergic bunch 🙂

        Reply
      • Alea Milham says

        March 23, 2012 at 12:17 pm

        The thing you need to keep in mind with organic cake mixes (and gluten-free cake mixes) is the amount in the package varies greatly from brand to brand. Regular cake mixes usually have 16 – 19 ounces of cake mix where organic cake mixes often have as little as 9 ounces. So if you are using this with a small package of organic cake mix, you may want to consider either halving the pumpkin or doubling the amount of cake mix.

        I have used Tricia’s recipe with a 21 ounce Pamela’s gluten-free vanilla cake mix and it turned out very well. As in the note above, since it was vanilla I added ~ 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spices.

        Reply
    7. Angie Atchley says

      March 23, 2012 at 10:45 am

      Easy & delicious! My kind of recipe!

      Reply
    8. Nancy @Real Food Allergy Free says

      March 24, 2012 at 10:15 am

      Love this Tricia! I have made a cake/bread with the betty crocker gluten free mix and a small can of pumpkin and thought it would make excellent muffins. Now I know for sure and can’t wait to try it!

      I love that you use a big can of pumpkin. I am definitely going to try that since pumpkin is so good for you! Thanks!

      Reply
    9. Heather says

      March 28, 2012 at 5:26 pm

      It’s in the oven now! It smells delicious. I added a little water and baked it in a bundt cake pan. I hope it turns out.

      Reply
      • Tiffany in Michigan says

        April 10, 2012 at 4:47 pm

        Heather, how did it turn out in the Bundt with the added water?

        Reply
    10. Steph says

      December 31, 2013 at 9:15 am

      How about yellow cake mix, or red velvet? Any ingredient variations I should consider?

      Reply
      • Tricia says

        December 31, 2013 at 10:01 am

        Steph – I have not tried that myself – but this is so simple to do – it is surely worth a try!

        Reply
        • Liz Knight says

          October 18, 2014 at 3:24 pm

          I have only made this with the red velvet cake mix before and it was great. I’m trying to find a way to make the muffins without using pumpkin… any ideas?

          Reply
    11. Heidi says

      January 2, 2014 at 9:24 pm

      These are so easy to make and so yummy anytime of year! Thanks for sharing!

      Reply
    12. Maria says

      October 24, 2016 at 7:02 pm

      Have you ever tried it with a gluten free box cake mix?

      Reply
      • Tricia says

        October 27, 2016 at 6:12 pm

        Yes! In fact that is how we make them now. Delicious!

        Reply

    Trackbacks

    1. Easy Gluten Free and Dairy Free Muffins says:
      March 26, 2012 at 7:09 am

      […] Here is the original post on these tasty muffins, http://www.5dollardinners.com […]

      Reply
    2. MOSTLYSENSIBLE.COM » Gluten Free Muffin Recipe says:
      March 26, 2012 at 10:50 am

      […] by Rebekah on March 26th, 2012 Posted in Recipes Gluten Free […]

      Reply
    3. 5 ideas for spending less time in the kitchen | Smart Living Blog says:
      March 27, 2012 at 2:32 pm

      […] For some really easy bread that works any time of day, I think you can’t beat cake mix muffins. Just buy your favorite cake mix, stir in 1 can of pumpkin, and spoon it all into a muffin tin. Prep time is less than 5 minutes — and they’ll probably disappear almost as fast. ($5 Dinners) […]

      Reply
    4. 27 Ways to Use a Cake Mix - GOODEness Gracious says:
      August 23, 2012 at 10:16 pm

      […] Heavenly Pumpkin Cake Pumpkin Cake with Cider Glaze Easy Cake Mix Pumpkin Muffins […]

      Reply
    5. 27 Ways to Use a Cake Mix - GOODEness Gracious says:
      August 23, 2012 at 10:16 pm

      […] Heavenly Pumpkin Cake Pumpkin Cake with Cider Glaze Easy Cake Mix Pumpkin Muffins […]

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    I’m Erin Chase…

    Also known as the
    $5 Dinner Mom.

    I have a little problem. I cannot make a meal that costs more than $5.
    It’s a fun challenge,
    and my pocketbook
    thanks me.
    Want to join me?

    Learn more here!

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

    Search $5 Dinners

    Favorite Meal Planning & Cooking Resources

    Whis-Kid Cooking Lessons Grocery Budget Makeover My Freezeasy Erin Chase Store 5DD Freebie Library 20 Meals for $150 Plans

    © 2023 5 Dollar Dinners | Disclosure Policy | Copyright Information | Terms of Service/Privacy Policy | Accessibility | Design & Tech Support by Klong Designs



    Copyright © 2023 · 5 Dollar Dinners Genesis Child Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in