The Nostalgia-Sparking Discontinued Pillsbury Boxed Cake Mix We'll Probably Never See Again

Although boxed cake mixes were invented in 1933, they didn't become popular until the early '50s. But between the '50s and '60s, consumers were treated to hundreds of varieties of flavors, many of which have, sadly, been discontinued. One nostalgia-sparking discontinued Pillsbury boxed cake mix that we'll probably never see again is its Pink Lemonade Angel Food Cake Mix.

Released in 1961 with the tagline, "looks like fun, tastes like a party," this cake was light, fluffy, and lemony with a delightful soft pink color. The flavor was introduced alongside Pink Lemonade Deluxe Cake Mix and Pink Lemonade Fluffy Frosting Mix. The brand promised success with its angel food cake mix, claiming that each box contained 14.4 egg whites to achieve that signature airy texture.

The cake seemed to have been inspired by a pink lemonade angel cake recipe that won a prize in Pillsbury's Bake-Off contest, which began in 1949 and awarded the winner a $25,000 grand prize for their original recipe. Unfortunately, Pillsbury's pink lemonade cake is one of many boxed cake mix flavors you can't buy anymore. Though we're not sure when or why it was discontinued, it may have been a marketing decision made as boxed cake mix brands began to pare down their offerings to the most classic and popular flavors. 

To make your own pink lemonade angel food cake, you can either start from scratch using your favorite light and fluffy angel food cake recipe or use a boxed angel food cake mix. The star ingredient of your cake will be freshly squeezed lemon juice, which will give the cake its slightly tart lemonade flavor. There is no need to actually use pink lemonade in the recipe, although you can if you want to.

The main difference between pink lemonade and lemonade is the color. Most lemonade brands just add red food coloring to traditional lemonade, but some color it naturally with a little bit of juice from red berries like strawberry or raspberry. Because adding pink lemonade or fresh lemon juice won't alter the color of your cake, you can add six drops of red food coloring to your mix to give it that nice pastel pink color.

If making your cake from scratch, add the food coloring and lemon juice to your egg white and sugar mixture after beating, and then continue beating until you see the formation of stiff peaks of egg whites. If you aren't a fan of angel food cake or are worried it won't turn out, you can make a pink lemonade sheet cake instead. For the frosting, you can make a classic vanilla buttercream frosting and substitute lemon extract for vanilla in the recipe. Then add a few drops of your red food coloring to make your frosting pink.