Duncan Hines Desserts

Cupcake Contest: Sugarbaby’s vs. the Cookie Jar

Little Cakes

Local pastry chef shows how simple it is to start from scratch

The Basics: Brownies from a Box

​How do you screw up brownies from of a box? Trust us, you can. This weekend, we had dry, flavorless caramel brownies that obviously came from a box. They looked delicious until we took our first bite. We immediately regretted our choice, wishing we had grabbed the chocolate candy instead. But ... More >>

Pound Cake From a Box?

Photos by Katharine ShilcuttIt looks good...but how does it taste?​True pound cake is a decadent delicacy. A pound each of butter, eggs, sugar and flour -- with an underlying hint of citrus, vanilla or even almond, depending on the recipe you use -- blended heavily together to create a cake th ... More >>

Recipe: Banana Bread

​Last week, Becky Means shared her mom's recipe for banana bread. This week, we try something different. Anne Byrn, better known as the Cake Mix Doctor, has been helping people turn box cake mix into homemade goodies for over ten years. She has almost a cult following, with roughly 3 million ... More >>

Court Battle: Where Would The Discriminating Traveler Stay?

​If you were visiting Houston back in the Eisenhower years -- well, we hope you had family here, or some really pressing reason to visit. But even if it was just a pleasure trip, where to stay? Look at the dilemma facing an intrepid vagabond forced to cheese between the Carlon Hotel Courts and th ... More >>

Food Trend Prediction: The Giant Cupcake

Photo by Joanna O'LearyThe giant cupcake casts an impressive shadow.​A few weeks ago, Katharine Shilcutt issued predictions for 2012 Houston food trends. Commenters wrote in with their own suggestions, including one from Stacy Zane: I was just in NY and saw that Doughnut Plant. But something ... More >>