Cake-to-brownie conversion chart?

Sometimes you just want a brownie. Friday night, for example. (Which you may have guessed if you saw my Twitter.) I was trying to suppress my brownie urge when the Hubs said "Do we have anything sweet around here?"

I said, "we've got some chocolate and some other random candy. Or were you thinking something more like a brownie?"

"Ummm...maybe more like a brownie." (Jackpot.)




I thought, hey, I'm tired, but I'm not too tired to whip up a batch of brownies from a box.

Problem #1: As it turns out, there was no brownie mix in the cupboard.

What I did have was a devil's food cake mix. I remember reading a brownie mix box one time that said something like "for more cake-like brownies, add another egg." Ergo, wouldn't it stand to reason that for a more brownie-like cake, you could just use one less egg than the box called for? Worth a shot, right?


I dumped the cake mix, water and oil into a bowl, then went to the fridge for the eggs.

Problem #2: There weren't any (usable) eggs.

How did that happen? We came back from Indiana, I realized that we need to use up our eggs ASAP, so I made scrambled eggs for dinner and hard boiled the rest. Then I forgot about it and didn't buy more. You can't make brownies with hard boiled eggs.


Hubs: Isn't there something you can substitute for eggs?
Me: No.
Hubs: I saw something in one of your cookbooks.
Cookbook: Egg, 1 whole - substitute 2 egg whites; 2 egg yolks; or 1/4 cup frozen egg product thawed.*
Hubs: Do you want me to go to the store?

I really didn't. We were supposed to be chillin' (like villains). Not running errands. If I was wanting one of us to go to the store, we could've picked up actual brownie mix in the first place. Or brownies that someone else made. (Hey, desperate times....) But I already added the other liquid ingredients to the cake mix. At that point, there's no turning back. Is there?

Me: ...yeah.
Hubs: Call your mom first. If she doesn't know of anything you can substitute, I'll go.

The thing is, I had already called my mom about an hour before about an incident involving some frozen chicken. (Yeah, you'll be hearing that story soon too.) But I called again.

Mom: ...you're having quite a day aren't you?
Me: Yep.
Mom: Well, your cake's not going to rise much without eggs. I guess you could try adding some extra water and a little bit of baking soda.
Me: Will it turn out more like fudge?
Mom: I really have no idea what it'll do.

I asked the Hubs if he felt like living dangerously.

He went to the store for eggs.

Once he got back, I beat it all together.



And stuck it in the oven.


29 minutes later, we had...



cake.

Maybe slightly less fluffy cake. Not brownies. But it did the trick.

*****

The Hubs and I are out of town today. But still feel free to comment - substitution suggestions, baking advice and guesses as to where we might be are all welcome. :)

*Brought to you by the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook.


Photos by me.