I actually finally found a cornbread mix that tastes like my mothers, but it is the Publix store brand which isn't everywhere. Other than that I don't like mixes. However, since I had never mad falafels before, I did buy a mix for that at Big Lots just to try and I liked it but now I can't remember the brand, but it might have been a name with "Morocco" in it.

I like TJ's cornbread mix. I add shredded sharp cheddar and finely chopped scallions - bake in a cast iron skillet.

I, too, like TJ's cornbread mix, as well as their pumpkin bread mix. I also buy a specialty mix from my favorite little organic ancient grains grower - a sage biscuit mix, which is nice to have on hand and delicious. All their products are wonderful -esp the pilaf.

Bluebird Grain Farms

martha white's yellow cornmeal mix tastes exactly like my mother's (she was born in 1920) i keep at least half dozen pkgs in the drawer all the time....

Duncan Hines Lemon cake, mixed with 4 eggs, oil, milk, lemon pudding and baked in a bundt pan. Drizzled with icing sugar and lemon juice.

I like my cornbread too, and although I don't measure exact amounts & it tastes a little different each time, I still much prefer it to Jiffy. DH prefers Jiffy though, his mother made sweeter cornbread & Jiffy tastes something like hers I guess. I could be nice and add sugar to my cornbread, I do cater to his taste buds usually, but cornbread is something that should not be sweet & I just can't do it. I do use the Jiffy mix for corn pudding/casserole though.

My mother, from north Louisiana, always made Jiffy cornbread, so that's what tastes right to me. I can see how the sweetness might put some people off, but I like it.

These may have been mentioned in the other thread, but I use Duncan Hines devils food for a Cherry Chocolate Torte, and any yellow cake mix to make Pig Picking Cake with mandarin oranges in the cake and crushed pineapple, pudding mix and cool whip for the topping.

I like my cornbread moist, cakey and on the sweet side, too. The recipe I use is very similar, if not identical, to Lindac's. And agree that Jiffy Mix is just awful.

Mostly cook from scratch but do use cake mixes some for recipes that are doctored up cake mix recipes. Always liked Duncan Hines and did not like Pillsbury. I've been buying Aldi cake mixes lately and they work just fine with the recipes that I'm using. I use brownie mix, too...either Aldi or Duncan Hines. I prefer the from scratch brownies that DSII makes but he's too busy to bake much and he's been fixated on body building and watching his diet. The brownie mix is handy to have around for those late evening hankerings for something sweet because they're quick to stir together and with a minimum of mess.

The only other mixes in the pantry are Jello, a few pudding mixes, Great Value Thicky & Creamy mac/ cheese and a couple of hamburger helper type mixes. Always kept some Hamburger Helper in the pantry because it was easy & fast for the DS's to whip up. They mostly just sit there until DSI does a Shop In Mom's Pantry raid. Oh, and I keep some ramen soup packets (to tide sickies over until I get the chicken soup made) and a couple Maruchan Beef Teriyaki Yakisoba trays, which I like but are always getting lost in one of the aforementioned raids.

About 15 years ago, someone told me the copycat recipe for Boston chicken's (now Market) cornbread. The "secret" was to mix the two batters of Jiffy corn bread and Jiffy white cake. Just follow the directions on the box for each and then bake. I hate to say it, but it was pretty close.

Haven't made it in probably 14 years, but if I did it again, I would bake it in my cast-iron skillet. Although, I'm much more likely now to just make homemade.

jo

Gosh, I bought Jiffy mix for years, and just picked up a box to serve with my black eyed peas for New Years (I'm trying to think ahead). I always found it very good and I'm pretty picky. Perhaps it has changed - guess I'll find out New Years Day!

I do not like the Jiffy mix but the one that's Mexican variety, maybe Martha White but I can't remember off the top of my head because it's been ages since I bought it, it's pretty darn good. I once made the Jiffy and it's just terrible, it's so sweet that it's disgusting. Do not like a sweet corn bread.

Kodiak Kakes Flapjack Mix is marvelous. It's a one to one ratio of mix and water (nothing else) so you can make exactly how much you want (not count by the egg's worth), 100% whole grain, nothing you wouldn't put in your own, and it makes good pancakes.

I could make my own pancake mix, and started to with some advice from Grainlady, but I started making waffles with starter discard instead.

Linda, if you want to make your own angel cake mix, you can get your own meringue powder.

There are some old recipes for using Manischewitz Passover cake mix to make cookies and all kinds of other baked goods. If you're not set up to bake or you haven't kashered your kitchen yet, they're not bad and get you over the line without having to buy a whole container of every spice, etc., or need a bunch of utensils you haven't gotten out yet (there are ways to make the cake kosher for Passover in a non-kashered kitchen though many people won't because you have to be extra kosher for Passover). I've found I can make almost anything I want from cake meal, including crêpes, and there are the tiny packets of spices at the store nowadays.

I don't think I've ever made a quickbread mix, and I haven't made a cake from a a cake mix since I was a child when my mother thought they were good to learn on. At that point, I'd just buy the finished product. But there are lovely bakeries around here whose goods are sold in the better grocery stores. I'm guessing maybe Linda's store didn't have corn muffins or cornbread ready to buy?

I forgot all about pancakes. Shawnee Mills buttermilk pancake mix when I lived in Oklahoma...is excellent. Now, we use Hungry Jack Buttermilk Complete...just add water.

Waffles are always from scratch using the Waffles of Insane Greatness recipe.

Waffles are always from scratch using the Waffles of Insane Greatness recipe.

Is Insane Greatness a rather humorous auto-correct of Ina Garten?

Nope, tishtosh, the recipe is actually called "Waffles of Insane Greatness" and they're pretty darned good!

I also make pancakes from scratch, and mostly avoid mixes of any type. I used to use Jiffy Mix cornmeal muffin mix to make cornmeal pancakes, but now I make them from scratch, just like my cornbread. I have even grown my own corn and ground it.

LindaC's description of the Jiffy Mix reminds me of how I feel about cake mixes. They taste fake, like chemicals, with that odd metallic aftertaste from the preservatives, and the texture is just.....wrong.....somehow. I would go without a meal before I'd eat ramen noodles or canned soup, but I keep them on hand for the grandkids, along with Velveeta Shells and Cheese and Spaghettios. Zero chance I'm eating them, though. Besides the fact that I don't like them, there is the sodium content, the trans fats and saturated fat and all the chemical additions that I can't spell or pronounce. I'll just keep cooking, thanks.

I was just bemoaning the fact that I get various emails from companies, including Pillsbury and Betty Crocker. The "Cookie of the Day" emails I've been getting invariably start with a roll of refrigerated cookie dough or a box of cake mix or brownie mix, then they go on to add a box of pudding or some cool whip or some other "convenience" item that I don't have on hand and am not going to buy. (sigh) I gave up and unsubscribed, I figured I'd get things using Pillsbury flour or at least Crisco shortening, but everything starts with a mix now.

I also don't see how starting with a mix and then adding 6 or 7 ingredients is any easier than just making something with 6 or 7 ingredients in the first place. And yes, I know I'm going to get slammed by all the people who just love canned frosting or whatever, so I'm going to say this again: Taste is not objective, taste is subjective. If you like it, eat it. All the more for you, if I don't want any!

I was remembering how my daughter, Ashley, used to sit on the couch with a can of Cream of Mushroom and a spoon and eat it cold, straight out of the can, while I shook my head. Today I reminded her of that, along with the Oreos and ice cream for breakfast. She always stayed slim and active and seemingly healthy in spite of her horrendous dietary choices. Until she had a stroke at 27, which probably had nothing at all to do with her diet, but still.....

Annie

For years, husband would bring home Stove Top stuffing mix.

"Tastes like damp dryer lint," claimed husbandman, filled with instant regret. Then, went out and bought another.

Diverting the sins of the father has been exhausting, but not impossible. I was able to control some of the junk food my son tried to slip under the radar. It was a full time job, for a while, but worth the effort.

Thankfully, the boy has been into health and fitness for a few years now. And I'm breathing easier.

Sol

Whether I make homemade cornbread or I make a box of Jiffy cornbread I always add about 1/2 cup to 1 cup of cream corn to my mix. My great grandma always added cream corn to hers so that is how I learned to make it. It makes it a little sweeter and moister. I also let my batter sit for about 5-10 mins before I scoop it into the pan and always in a cast iron skillet.

When you say cream corn do you mean corn that is blended into pieces to make it creamy or whole corn kernels that has cream added to it?

I envy anyone who can eat anything besides whole rye flour products and whole grain whole wheat pasta! I can eat corn but not store made corn flour. I wonder if I can make my own flour with no additives in it. I miss corn bread!

Yes corn that is blended into pieces to make it creamy. Like you would get with a normal can of creamed corn or like my great grandmother made her own.

Thank you Aprile. I'm going to try adding that to rye flour and see if I get a pretend corn bread :)

I have some Okonomiyaki pancake mix, and I use that when I make Okonomiyaki, as it has the correct type of flour in it, which I believe is similar to cake flour. I also have some falafel mix in the freezer, but I use that only when I am making falafel from fava beans, and I make the mixture too wet - otherwise I may add garbanzo flour to soak up the extra moisture, although I have also used Bulgar wheat for the same purpose.

I'm more likely to buy a mix in an ethnic market, such as Japanese, Lebanese, Indian, Korean, etc. than at a regular market, but once I figure out what is in the mix, I do not buy it again and make it with my own proportions. I would never buy a cornbread mix as I am very strict about what goes into my cornbread, and that does not include sugar of any kind. I did buy some Bob's Red Mill multi-grain pancake mix, but I only did that once.

Yeonassky, you can get a grain mill with a variable texture setting for a moderate price, or a hand crank mill inexpensively, and make all the whole grain products you can imagine. I keep both yellow dent corn and white popcorn, though I use them more for additions to other things but they make nice cornmeal. Cornstarch, what the English shows call maize flour, is another story, however. You might even be able to grind corn well enough for a coarse meal using a high powered blender.

Thank you. Will look for a grain mill. corn bread and tortillas here I come! I haven't been able to eat corn bread for 20 years so I think it's time to figure this out. I like mine savory, but DH puts cream cheese and jam or jelly on his to make it sweet. :)

Not only will l tolerate them, I will seek them out... Ghirardelli. Anything they make. Brownies, cakes, whatever I can find.