Cola Cupcakes

Cola Cupcakes are fantastic.  They’re Cupcakes, but with Coca Cola.  This recipe makes 24 Cola Cupcakes. That’s twenty four.

The only thing to watch out for is that they cook really quickly, so take care or you’ll have 24 Charcoal Cupcakes.

Its a recipe in two parts – cakes and icing – so have a quick read through it all before you start.

Ingredients

For the Cupcakes:
200g of plain flour
250g of caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
1 egg
125ml of buttermilk (or warm up 125 ml of full-fat milk in a pan with a squirt of lemon juice; don’t let it boil!)
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
125g of butter
2 tablespoons of cocoa powder
175ml of cola

And now for the Science bit. Buttermilk is basically sour milk.   That’s why we can make it by mixing lemon juice with milk. When sour milk is mixed with bicarbonate of soda, millions of tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide are produced. The bubbles expand and give you a nice light cake.

For the Icing:
225g of icing sugar
30g of butter
3 tablespoons of cola
1 tablespoon of cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 packet of cola bottle sweets

Equipment

A large bowl & wooden spoon

A measuring jug

A large pan

Cupcake tray & 24 paper cases

A sieve (to get the lumps out of the icing sugar)

What to do

(A top tip is to mix the dry ingredients first, then the wet stuff and then put them together at the end).

1.  Put the paper cases into the tray. Heat the oven to 180C / Gas Mark 4.

2.  In a large bowl, mix the flour with the sugar, bicarbonate of soda and salt.

3.  In a pan, gently heat the butter, cocoa and coca cola until the butter is just melted.

4.  In a measuring jug, beat the egg with the buttermilk and vanilla.

5.  Pour the butter mixture into the flour and then add the egg mixture.  Stir until the flour is all mixed in.

6.  Spoon the mixture into the papers cases, filling them slightly less than half full. You will need to make two trays of cakes. If you have two cake trays, you can cook them all at once, otherwise just cook them separately.

7. Check the cakes after about 10 minutes. They are ready when they are risen and firm. They should be slightly bouncy when you prod them in the middle.  If they are not quite cooked give them a few more minutes.  When they are ready, put them out to cool.

8.  Whilst the cakes are in the oven, start the icing.  Rinse out the pan and large bowl that you used before. In the pan, put the:
- butter
- cola
- cocoa
- and vanilla extract
Stir it over a low heat until the butter begins to melt.

9. Put the icing sugar in a sieve and tap it over a bowl until only lumps are left in it. Press the lumps through with your fingers.

8.  Using a large spoon, add the sugar to the mixture in the pan and stir well. You will end up with a thick brown icing.

9. Using a spoon, dollop icing on top of each of the cakes and smooth it over with the back of the spoon.  Best to do this when the cakes are still warm from the oven.

10. Put a cola bottle sweet on top of each cake.  All your hard work will now be worthwhile – it’s time to try one of your 24 coca cola cupcakes. Yes – twenty four.

…if you like Cakes try these recipes:

Cupcakes

‘After Eight Mint’ Brownies

And if you’re a girl, why not try this pink site instead: Coca Cola Cupcakes