Sunny Anderson's Hot Water Tip For Better Chocolate Cake From A Box Mix

Boxed cake mixes have been around since the 1930s, and they've never gone out of style. In fact, anyone who has ever had to pull together a quick cake for a party or cupcakes for a bake sale knows boxed cake mixes are a gift. Cakes made from scratch are wonderful and delicious, but it can also be expensive to buy all the ingredients. A boxed cake mix is easy and still allows for either a pro or would-be baker to customize this convenience mix to make it their own.

You may have heard that if you want to elevate the flavor of a boxed chocolate cake mix, you can add sauerkraut. But that's not the only way to make a chocolate cake mix your own. You can also turn one of these powdery mixes into a two-ingredient cake by using club soda or some other flavor of soda pop. But if you really want to turn a boxed chocolate cake into a deep and rich chocolate cake experience, you may want to borrow a page from celebrity chef Sunny Anderson. 

Anderson suggests making a simple change to one key ingredient. The Food Network host says if you want a truly chocolate cake, you want to swap hot water for cold water, and here's why.

Anderson revealed her chocolate cake secret to her buddy Rachael Ray on "The Rachael Ray Show." The "NFL Tailgate Takedown" host says if you want to create a cake with a death by chocolate flavor, swap out the cold water and use hot water instead. Anderson explains that this temperature change will allow the cocoa in the boxed cake mix to "bloom" and create a new depth of flavor. What does she mean by bloom? If you've ever made a cup of pour over coffee, it's a very similar concept. By slowly pouring the hot water and allowing it to sit, the coffee releases carbon dioxide and allows the water to help draw out the flavor.

But adding hot water to your chocolate cake mix has other benefits. It can also help create a fluffier, lighter than air cake that feels so soft and delicious that when you sink your teeth into it you will want to go back for seconds. Additionally, adding hot water to a boxed cake mix will react more effectively with the baking powder in the mix, helping it to rise. There are even some who say swapping hot water for cold will help keep your cake fresher.