You’ve Gotta Try These New Duncan Hines Keto Cake & Brownie Mixes

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We doctored up the Duncan Hines Keto Cake & Brownie Mixes to make them a sugar-free sweet treat everyone will love!

Duncan Hines Keto Cake Brownie Mix Boxes

Look what I found! 😍

I was cruising down the aisles on a recent shopping trip at my local Walmart and I stopped in the baking aisle to grab a bag of Swerve. As I continued, something caught the corner of my eye and I thought, “…wait…does that say KETO? Oh yeah it does, SCORE!” So I quickly threw a box of each Duncan Hines Keto Cake and Brownie Mix into my shopping cart!

We realize that many consider these desserts to be dirty keto, so please keep that in mind when deciding if they are something you want to add to your sweet snack options.


cupcakes baking in oven

I grew up with very humble beginnings and was raised by my awesome grandma. ❤️ It was always such a special treat when there was a little extra in the grocery budget and she would make Duncan Hines Cupcakes. Even just thinking about this, I’m fondly remembering how yummy they were, and how wonderful our house smelled when they were baking. But, as we all know, typical cake and brownie mixes are a no-go on keto, or if you do find a keto-friendly version, they’re often very pricey.


These new Duncan Hines keto cake mixes are so budget-friendly!

keto cake mix on walmart shelf

I was thrilled to see that the Duncan Hines Keto Cake & Brownie Mixes are just under $5 each. Woohoo, now that’s a steal for a keto-friendly dessert!

A while back I tested the Duncan Hines Keto Microwave Cake Cups and they weren’t horrible, especially for a microwave cake, but they just didn’t quite hit the spot, so I was anxious to give these new mixes a try.

*Please note: I purchased these Duncan Hines Keto Cake & Brownie Mixes on my own and this review is not a sponsored post or a paid ad. I’m just sharing my own personal feedback on these convenient and delicious keto desserts!


Duncan Hines keto mixes make for easy peasy keto baking!

keto cake mix with coconut oil

One thing I like about these mixes is that you only need a few simple ingredients – eggs, butter, water, and if you’re making the cake, you’ll also need some coconut oil (I used Spectrum Refined from Walmart). This is right up my alley because I don’t like to spend a fortune on random items that I won’t be using (I’m not typically a baker), so it was nice that I had the extra ingredients on hand!


I added an extra secret ingredient!

watkins vanilla butter flavor

I’m a researcher, so as soon as I got home I fired up my Macbook and started to look at reviews of these mixes. I kept seeing people mention adding in a little vanilla extract to make for really good cake and/or brownies. Awesome, I already had some in my pantry too!


Let’s bake some keto brownies!

keto brownie mix

keto brownie mix ingredients

keto brownie mix in bowl

keto brownies in pan ready to bake

duncan hines keto chocolate brownies in pan

When I first made the brownies, I felt they were good but needed a little more flavor. I love a rich chocolatey taste and thought these needed just a little something extra. Now, I’m not one to give up so I ran back to Walmart for another box!

This time I decided to throw in some Lily’s Salted Caramel Chocolate Chips that I had on hand. Y’ALL…these brownies were a keto home run on the second round! By adding in Lily’s Chocolate Chips, they truly took them to the next level.

keto brownie on a plate

Here’s the kicker, my non-keto-eating super picky teenager loved them too! In fact, she has already asked for me to make another batch again soon. So these were a total win and I HIGHLY recommend them! You could even grab a glass of keto-friendly milk to help wash them down!

PS – as you’ll see below, the ingredients list taken directly from the box mentions a possible laxative effect if you consume an excessive amount. I only had one brownie per day and it didn’t give me any problems, which often happens with some keto desserts.


Duncan Hines Keto Brownie Mix Nutrition:

duncan hines keto brownie box

Serving Size 1/12 package | 140 Calories | 7g Fat | 17g Total Carbs | 4g Fiber | 0g Sugar | 5g Sugar Alcohol | 5g Allulose | 2g Protein | 3g Net Carbs

Ingredients: Almond Flour, Erythritol**, Allulose**, Coconut Flour, Chicory Root Fiber (Inulin)**, Cocoa Powder processed with Alkali, Unsweetened Chocolate, Contains less than 2% of: Resistant Dextrin, Modified Tapioca Starch, Leavening (Cream of Tartar, Baking Soda), Salt, Cocoa Powder, Cocoa Butter, Xanthan Gum, Natural Flavor, Nonfat Dry Milk, Stevia Sweetener (Steviol Glycosides), Soy Lecithin, Steviol Glycosides, Vanilla Extract, Whole Milk Powder.

**Some individuals may experience a laxative effect from excessive consumption of these ingredients.


Mmm… classic yellow cake, keto-style! 

duncan hines keto cake mix

Next up was the Duncan Hines Keto Classic Yellow Cake Mix! As I mentioned above, I’m just not that great of a baker, and making a regular cake just isn’t my forté, so I decided to go with cupcakes as they’re more up my alley. This also helps me to keep my portion sizes in check so I don’t go overboard.

keto cake batter

I added in the vanilla extract (about 1/4 – 1/2 tsp) that I saw as a suggestion on the internet to the other ingredients and got started. I used my KitchenAid Mixer to really blend the mix, eggs, vanilla, and coconut oil together. Since this mix contains almond flour, I really wanted to be sure it was blended well as it tends to be gritty if you don’t mix it up enough.


putting cupcakes in the oven

keto cupcakes in pan

I popped them in the oven and they baked up beautifully, just like a regular batch of cupcakes would. I had grabbed a couple of containers of Birch Benders keto frosting with hopes of using them on the cupcakes. Luckily, I tasted them before I used any on the cupcakes because this frosting was no good at all. 🙅‍♀️ I did a review of them if you want to check it out and get the lowdown!


Onto some homemade keto frosting…

making keto frosting in KitchenAid mixer

Luckily, I had the ingredients for our keto cream cheese frosting recipe on hand so I whipped up a batch and even threw in some unsweetened cocoa powder to make it a chocolate frosting.

This recipe is so simple and you can seriously eat it by the spoonful, it’s that good!

keto cupcakes on serving platter

After I put on the frosting, I threw on some cut-up strawberries pieces on top to make them look cute. I’m not a skilled baker like Lina so these may look a little rough but they were oh so delicious. 😂 In fact, they almost tasted like the real thing! The only difference I would say is they do have an ever so slight grit to them compared to the regular Duncan Hines mix – it’s not bad, but I did notice it.


Duncan Hines Keto Classic Yellow Cake Mix Nutrition:

keto cupcake

200 Calories | 11g Fat | 21g Total Carbs | 5g Fiber | 2g Sugar | 8g Sugar Alcohol | 4g Allulose | 5g Protein | 4g Net Carbs

Erythritol**, Almond Flour, Coconut Flour, Allulose**, Chicory Root Fiber (Inulin**), Contains less than 2% of: Leavening (Cream of Tartar, Baking Soda), Modified Tapioca Starch, Salt, Xanthan Gum, Stevia Sweetener (Steviol Glycosides), Natural Flavor,

**Some individuals may experience a laxative effect from excessive consumption of these ingredients. Please note the nutrition macros above do not include the frosting into the totals. 


The final verdict…

keto cupcake on a plate

All in all, both the Duncan Hines Keto Cake Mix and Brownie Mix were absolutely worth it and I’ll for sure be buying them again soon. I do love the price point too and the fact that you don’t need a lot of extra ingredients. Granted, the keto version costs more than the regular Duncan Hines boxed mixes, but considering how many portions you get, it’s well worth it when compared to other keto snacks and desserts.

You’ll also be happy to know that both of these mixes are gluten-free, which is great for those of you who are trying to keep that out of your diet.

Give these mixes a try and let me know what you think!


Make this keto buttercream frosting from scratch!


About the writer:

Angela graduated with a Bachelor's Degree and has 25+ years of experience as a writer and photographer with her work being featured in US Weekly Magazine, The Los Angeles Times, People Magazine, and more.


Join The Discussion

Comments 17

  1. Rachel

    How amount of chocolate chips did you add to the brownies?

    • Angela (Hip Sidekick)

      Hi there Rachel! I used about a half to 3/4 cup of the chocolate chips!

  2. Mary

    How do you calculate the 4 carbs. Thanks

    • Amber (Hip Sidekick)

      Hi Mary! You would subtract the Fiber, Sugar Alcohol and Allulose from the total carb amount.

  3. Lynne Gottschalk

    Why is keto cake mix 4 times the amount of your regular cake mix???? Walmart sells your regular cake mix for $1????!!

    • Jennifer (Hip Sidekick)

      Good question! Hopefully, it will go down in price.

    • Jessica

      Because all the ingredients are pricier (compare flour and almond flour) (compare erithritol (swerve) with table sugar. This is why the Mix costs more.

  4. Angie

    I used the keto cake mix at Thanksgiving. I put a small can of pumpkin and almost 2 tablespoons of pumpkin pie spice in it and it was delicious to me.

    • Amber (Hip Sidekick)

      YUM! SO glad you enjoyed it, Angie! Thanks for letting us know how you made yours!💖

  5. Tina Crenshaw

    If you use vegetable oil will it work for this cake mix?

    • Amber (Hip Sidekick)

      Hey there! That will work, however the best options to use for keto are extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil or avocado oil. Hope this is helpful!

  6. Kayli

    Hi, what would be the total carbs of just one cupcake? My daughter is a diabetic & I want to make sure I’m calculating this right 😬

    • Jessica (Hip Sidekick)

      Hey Kayli! It seems that the nutrition facts on the cake mix shows 1/10 of the cake so it’s likely not too far off for making 12 cupcakes. For that, the net carbs are approximately 8g, though the end nutrition will slightly differ on the ingredients you add in to this mix. Hoping this might be helpful! ❤️

  7. Elise Kaplan

    I made the jets brownies and added the lilys chocolate chips and they came out really good, even my picky husband liked it. I’ve also made their blueberry muffins which are really good too. I bought the cake mix and will definitely try putting vanilla extract. Thank you for the frosting recipe also because I wasn’t sure how I was going to frost it.

    • Jessica (Hip Sidekick)

      Yay! SO happy to hear that the brownies were a hit for you and your husband, Elise! 🤗 Hoping you enjoy the cake mix and frosting recipe just as much as the other items you’ve made so far! 🤞💕

  8. Amy H

    Can you turn this yellow cake mix into a chocolate by adding cocoa? They only offer yellow and brownie as an option. TIA

    • Trish (Hip Sidekick)

      Hi there, Amy! You can turn the yellow cake mix into chocolate by adding about 1/4 cocoa powder! Just be sure to use a sugar free unsweetened cocoa powder to keep this keto friendly. Hoping this is helpful! 💞

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