If there’s anything that a lifetime of being behind schedule has taught me, it’s that sometimes you should just take the shortcut. Enter the humble cake mix. This time-saving product has been making things easier for home cooks since the end of World War II.

They’re cheap and easy, but the only down side is that every box cake tastes alike – making them recognizable at first bite. One really nifty solution for this is to jazz up your cake mix and while I’ve come across everything from cream to canned filling to candy bars to livening the mix, when I saw a recipe for beer mix cake I knew this was going to be a fun recipe.

To make this cake you replace the milk or water from the package directions on your cake mix with beer. The other magic ingredient is pudding mix for a creamy and rich flavor. For a lighter taste use a Pilsner coupled with vanilla pudding. But, I could see mixing things up even more by using lemon pudding with a citrus ale. Or you could use Guinness and chocolate pudding (and cake mix) for a really rich combo.

It’s nice when you can make some small changes, but end up with a very different result.

Once you’ve got your cake baked, the flavor inside will have a subtle beer flavor. But, the glaze on top is made from only powdered sugar and beer, so you get more of that taste in each bite. If you’ve got kids that will be enjoying this cake then use milk or water instead of beer for the glaze.

Allow the glaze to set before serving and slicing. And then- just enjoy the unique flavor that just 2 extra ingredients can bring to a standard box cake mix.