When it comes to baked goods, for me from scratch is always the preferred option. If I cannot do it from scratch, then I like boxed mixes. Boxed mixes are what I first started baking with. As a vegan, store-bought is my last resort. If you need something vegan, store-bought is often out of the question. If you need gluten-free and vegan then you may have an even harder time. That is, until now. If you need a vegan gluten-free cake or brownies, Julie’s Original is your place to go. Julie’s Original Gluten Free baking mixes are made by Julie Hasson and her husband Jay. If Julie’s name sounds familiar, it may be because she has written 9 cookbooks, one of which we had the privilege of reviewing last year. When Ethan and I found out we were going to be in Portland for a day in August, I reached out to Julie to see if she would be free to meet us for lunch. Thankfully she was, and it was during this lunch I found out about these baking mixes. Not to brag or anything, but she brought us a box of the brownie mix. Julie and Jay created these mixes because they know how much time and money is involved in gluten-free baking, not to mention all of the trial and error, as well as tracking down dozens of specialty flours. They’ve done all the hard work for us! With these mixes we can do what Julie and Jay like to call “modern scratch baking.” Before I get into the mixes themselves, I need to talk briefly about the packaging itself. The box alone is worth the price. The simple design has a very charming retro feel; almost like Donna Reed is about to walk in wearing a dress, heels, and pearls to bake a cake (yes, I know Donna Reed would never use a mix, but if she were going to use one this might very well be it). The homestyle feel of the box lets you know this is going taste homemade, not like it came from a mix.
Me and Julie Hasson
Neither the white cake mix nor the brownie mix require the addition of egg replacers unlike most other gluten-free baking mixes available on the market. The white cake batter comes together in moments with the addition of nondairy milk, oil and vanilla extract. After a quick fifty-five minutes in the oven, the smell of cake will fill your house. One the cake cooled, we chose to frosted the cake with Ethan’s mother’s famous chocolate frosting. If you need a recipe for frosting, head over to the Julie’s Original website and you will find frosting recipes as well as plenty of ideas and recipes for flavoring the cake. I admit I was a little leery of trying the cake once it was done, as most of my experience with gluten-free baked goods have not been pleasant. More often than not, the gluten-free baked goods I have eaten have been very dry. Much to my delight, this cake was moist and flavorful. Because this is a white cake, you can flavor it however you like, making it incredibly versatile.
Baked and ready for frosting!
This was one tasty birthday cake!
The fudge brownie mix makes some of the best brownies I have ever had, gluten-free or otherwise. Before I made them, I contemplated adding chocolate chips to the mix, but then decided no, I need to follow the recipe exactly as written on the box. Well, lo and behold, the instructions call for adding chocolate chips! Who doesn’t love chocolate chips in their brownies? Just like the white cake, the brownies batter comes together in seconds with some nondairy milk, oil, vanilla extract and chocolate chips. The brownies are rich, moist, and chocolatey. They do not have the dry crumbly texture that gluten-free brownies often do.
Sadly, you do need to let them cool a bit before eating.
Topped with some chocolate chip ice cream from Three Little Birds.
Even if you aren’t gluten-free, buy a few boxes to keep on hand for those times when you need dessert quickly. These mixes worth getting! If your local grocery store doesn’t carry Julie’s Original Gluten Free baking mix, let them know they need to start. But until your store does carry them, you can buy them online directly from Julie’s Original.
