Homemade Baking Mix-Will it save you money?

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Preview: This homemade baking mix makes mealtime much easier. With an all-purpose baking mix on hand, you can make a variety of dishes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

While I have purchased baking mix before, I find it easy to mix up my own. By making your own, you can control the ingredients. I tend to use at least some whole wheat flour in my mix and I have yet to see any store-bought mix locally that contains it.

Today, I am sharing the homemade baking mix recipe I use, and how you can modify it to suit your needs. I’ve also run the numbers so you can compare the cost of making your own baking mix to purchasing it. In another post, I’ll share some of our family’s favorite recipes with you.

Affiliate Disclosure: Please note that some of the links in this article may be affiliate links and I may receive a small commission if you purchase something through a link. It will not change your cost. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. For more information, see my disclosures page.)

Substitutions to Make This DIY Baking Mix Your Own

There are many ways to change up this all-purpose baking mix to suit your family’s dietary needs. You can, of course, use all white flour if you choose.

The oil can be any combination of oils you choose: olive, sunflower, coconut, or butter. Butter is the most difficult to incorporate into the mixture and using it means the mixture has to be stored in the refrigerator or freezer. You can use shortening too if you prefer, but we try to avoid it as much as possible.

The large batch makes about 12 cups of baking mix, and the small batch 6 cups.

Is it Cheaper to Make Baking Mix?

For the purpose of determining the cost of this mix, I used 1/2 all-purpose flour and 1/2 whole wheat flour. (It would actually be cheaper to use all white flour.) I also used 3/4 cup light olive oil and 3/4 cup coconut oil which is the combination I usually use.

Like many groceries, the prices of these items have increased substantially since I originally wrote the post in 2018.

Note: These prices have been updated in January 2025 to use the cheapest ingredients I could find at my local Walmart. If you use more expensive ingredients (like King Arthur flour for instance) your costs will be higher.

• 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour $0.63
• 4 1/2 cups whole wheat flour $1.53
• 1 1/2 cups dry milk powder $1.26
• 1/3 cup baking powder $0.66
• 1/3 cup sugar $.11
• 2 Tablespoons salt $0.04
• 3/4 cup light olive oil $2.40
• 3/4 cup coconut oil $1.46

Since I am all about being honest here, this is NOT cheaper than buying a box of store-bought baking mix.

In January 2025 you could buy a box of store-brand baking mix for about $4. That box contains the following ingredients: Enriched Bleached Flour (Bleached Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Iron [reduced], Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Vegetable Shortening (contains one or more of the following: Canola Oil, and/or Palm Oil) with Preservative (TBHQ), Leavening (Baking Soda, Sodium Aluminum Phosphate, Monocalcium Phosphate), Contains 2% or less of: Dextrose, Salt

While homemade baking mix is more expensive, I do feel it is healthier, since we are using some whole wheat flour and healthier oils.

The grand total is $8.09 for approximately 12 cups of baking mix. This works out to $0.68 per cup of baking mix. The total for a box of 40 oz. of store-brand baking mix is $4 which is about 9 cups. That makes the store-bought baking mix only $0.44 per cup.

Please note that these costs are approximations based on costs in my area (North Carolina). Your costs may vary, but hopefully, this will give you some idea of the cost.

Homemade Isn’t Cheaper.

Okay, homemade baking mix isn’t cheaper.

Why would I still want to make it myself?

Better ingredients.

There are a few ways you can cut the costs to make it more economical. If you use all white flour and all coconut oil, it brings the cost per cup down to $6.25 for the entire batch or $0.52 a cup. This still makes it healthier than the commercial baking mix using hydrogenated shortening.

Buying the olive oil and dry milk powder in bulk will lower the cost even more, bringing the cost in line with the purchased product.

Since we try to avoid hydrogenated oils (aka trans fats) making my own is really the only option for now. As more companies start to create healthier products, there will likely be baking mixes showing up on store shelves without as many unhealthy ingredients. However, you will likely pay a premium for the better brands.

Homemade Baking Mix

Here’s my recipe for homemade baking mix. I share directions for both a large batch that makes about 12 cups and a small batch that makes about 6 cups. You can find a printable copy of the recipe at the bottom of the post.

Ingredients:

Large Batch: (Makes about 12 cups)

• 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 cups dry milk powder
• 1/3 cup baking powder
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 Tablespoons salt
• 1 1/2 cups oil or butter (I use 3/4 cup coconut oil & 3/4 cup light olive oil.)

Small Batch: (Makes about 6 cups)

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup dry milk powder
• 2 1/2 Tablespoons baking powder
• 2 1/2 Tablespoons sugar
• 1 Tablespoon salt
• 3/4 cup oil or butter (I use 3/8 cup coconut oil & 3/8 cup light olive oil.)

Instructions:

1. Combine dry ingredients (flours through salt) together in a large bowl. (I usually use my mixer.) Add oil or butter. If using butter, grate the butter first. If using coconut oil, dump it in at one time. If using a liquid oil, drizzle it in while stirring or running the mixer.
2. Mix until combined. Store in the refrigerator or freezer if using butter. Otherwise it is shelf stable for about a month or you can store it in the freezer for longer.

This recipe is adapted from King Arthur Flour.

Ways to Use Homemade Baking Mix

This homemade baking mix can be used in so many ways. You can make pancakes, waffles, biscuits, sausage balls, danishes, scones, muffins, and no-knead cinnamon rolls for breakfast. It can be used to make lunch and dinner dishes such as impossible pies, chicken and dumplings, and pocket sandwiches.

I’ve got a post coming out soon that will share many ways to use this easy homemade baking mix.

So go ahead and get a batch of baking mix ready. I can’t wait to share more recipes with you.

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