1-2-3-4 cake is one of our family favorites. Only in our house it's called "Aunt Kathryn Cake". When I was little (over 50 years ago) it was the cake my great aunt always made when we came to visit. She'd ice one third with vanilla, one third with chocolate and leave the last third plain, so everyone got their favorite. I got the recipe from her (and have since seen it in many cookbooks) and have been making it ever since. It's sort of a cross between a butter cake and pound cake. It's delicious even without frosting, and many in my family prefer it that way. I usually add a bit of almond extract, along with the vanilla called for in the recipe. It's pretty rich and moist--all the butter and eggs. Oh, if you look in several different cookbooks, you'll find there are some slight variations in 1-2-3-4 cakes--some have slightly different ingredient proportions, some have differences in the mixing procedures.

If you want a really rich homemade cake, look for a recipe that uses oil rather than butter or solid shortening. Oil cakes have a much coarser crumb, but they're usually pretty moist and stay fresh longer than regular butter cakes do.

Whether you go homemade or box mix is really a matter of personal preference. I'm not a fan of the chemically taste of box mixes (all the artificial flavors they use), so I prefer to make from scratch, using all natural ingredients, including vanilla I make myself. However, I find people who are accustomed to box mixes often don't care for the taste of homemade, because it tastes 'different'. So, if you're really comfortable with using a mix, and your family is used to that taste, it might be a good idea to stick with what you know works for you.

Kimberly, I've never heard of a 1-2-3-4 cake. Do you have a recipe? I think I'd love to try it. Cakes are my thing!

I just wanted to say, if you've not had luck with homemade cakes and think a boxed cake is more moist, you may be baking the homemade version too long. Start checking the cake with a toothpick (in the middle of the pan) about 15 minutes before the directions say it should be done. Look for moist crumbs. When you see the crumbs, pull the cake out, as it will continue baking. Most people I know tend to bake their cakes too long. If you don't see any crumbs, then it went too far! Even 2-4 minutes can make a huge difference between a delicious, moist cake and one that is dry.

When creaming the butter and sugar, make sure you let it go for a while in the mixer. (Medium speed for five minutes wouldn't be out of line.) I think it really helps to lighten the batter before adding the flour.

Other things that could be a culprit is the type of flour you're using. Try cake flour; it may make a difference for you.

I always load the (prepared) cake pan and bang it on the counter a couple of times, before it goes in the oven. It takes care of air bubbles that create cavities in the crumb, and helps level out the cake before it bakes.

Lining the bottom of the pan with parchment really helps the cake come out. I typically let them cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack, then put another rack on top of the cake and turn it out, peeling the parchment from the cake. If you leave it any longer, it's sometimes hard to get out of the pan. (I think the moist heat helps release it.)

Another thing I do when I preheat the oven, it to turn it 50 degrees higher than the recipe says. By the time you get the pans in (even if you're quick), your oven will lose that much heat. Then RESET the correct oven temperature and bake. This way, your oven doesn't need any recovery time, and your cake begins to bake right away, so your timing is more accurate.

Good luck. I hope you'll give homemade another try. There are so many delicious versions, and it seems you can add so much more flavor when you make it yourself.

Thanks for the responses, Claire if you do a search Paula Deen from the Food Network has a 1-2-3-4 cake that has great reviews. Then again, if you know Paula most of her recipes are delicious. I do think I will try this cake. Thanks for the tips. I can taste that coconut cake now!

Brings back memories. It was at least 50 years ago. My mom baked one of these every single weekend and we had it for breakfast on Sunday morning. We LOVED it. Of course that was before box cakes were so prevalent but I still think I would prefer a cake from scratch over box, especially if you add almond extract. I've got that in my pantry now and I use it instead of vanilla extract on everything. I think it's quite wonderful.

The cake my mother made was in a recipe book put out by some Culinary School, I think.

azzalea, do you have the recipe with oil? I have searched, but all the recipes I came across had butter in them.
Lisa

I wasn't specifically speaking about 1-2-3-4 cake, you understand, just cakes in general.

The oil recipes I use also go back to the 50's. They were the cakes my mom always made for us. I'll put both the chocolate and yellow cake recipes here. They're easy, and I think--delicious--but don't expect a fine-textured cake. These are going to have a coarser crumb. and don't be surprised by the consistency of the batter. It's very thin and looks skimpy in the pans. That's okay--it will rise beautifully.

Golden Cake

2 1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 2 - 9" cake pans. Line with waxed paper. Grease the waxed paper.

In mixer bowl whisk the dry ingredients to mix well. Add the oil, milk, water and vanilla. Beat 2 minutes. Add the eggs, beat 2 minutes more. Divide between prepared pans. Bake 25 minutes or until done. Cool on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans and continue to cool on racks. Fill and frost as desired.

Spice Cake: add 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon cloves and 1/2 teaspoon allspice along with the dry ingredients.

Devil's Food Cake

2 cups flour
1 3/4 cups sugar
3/4 cups cocoa
1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 2 - 9" cake pans. Line with waxed paper. Grease the waxed paper.

In mixer bowl whisk the dry ingredients to mix well. Add the oil, milk, water and vanilla. Beat 2 1/2 minutes. Add the eggs, beat 2 1/2 minutes more. Divide between prepared pans. Bake 35 minutes or until done. Cool on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans and continue to cool on racks. Fill and frost as desired.

Thank you.
Lisa

I made the 3 day coconut cake today and used Paula Deens
1-2-3-4 cake recipe. Like I mentioned earlier I have not had good luck with homemade cakes but this caked looked wonderful. 3 layers, it came out great. I split the layers in half to make 6 layers and filled the centers with the frozen coconut, sour cream, and sugar mixture. I frosted the cake with cool whip and sprinkled with coconut. It looks like a real prize winner. I hope it taste just as good.

After having such hopes for my coconut cake I have to say I was a little disappointed. Appearance wise you couldn't have had a better looking cake. I let my husband try the cake first and he thought the cake was a little dry. Why can't I make a homemade cake that is moist? What am I doing wrong? I measured everything exactly, butter was at room temperature, I sifted the flour then measured after I sifted, creamed the butter and sugar, I don't know what else I could have done. I do think the 1-2-3-4 cake is a good cake. I just want a moist cake. Anyone else out there has a terrific coconut cake recipe?

More than likely, you're baking it too long.

...another option may be that your oven needs calibrated, especially if all your cakes turn out dry. After checking the ingredient list for this cake, there's nothing there that would make it dry. Do you use a separate oven thermometer when you bake? Perhaps your oven runs hot, which would dry everything out.

When you baked your cake this time, did you check it for moist crumbs when you pulled it out of the oven?