Cherry Coke Cupcakes

Hi Everyone!

How was your evening?  Enjoy the Super Bowl?  As I am writing this, the game is in the 3rd quarter.  So far I haven’t won our football pool, stinky!  But the games not over yet!  Did you go to a party?  Did you eat lots of good things?  Details, details!  For me, I baked, prepped for work and that’s about it.  I did do my kickboxing in the morning, and I could kick myself!  Why you wonder?  I was in the kitchen with the oven on all day, and I ran outside and found it had to have been near 70 degrees.  I should have dropped everything and went for a walk, but I didn’t.  Oh well!

I made this little army Saturday for Jenny’s birthday.

I got 16 out of the batch, ate one and saved 2 for my Husband and 2 for me and the rest Jenny took.  My Husband asked me to go to the store and I came home and he ate all but 1 cupcake!  Talk about crappy!  There were so good!  I made these with cherry coke!  First time I had soda in 3 years!

I got this recipe from Brown Eyed Baker.  She has the best recipes.  I showed Jenny and she wanted them instead of cake.  I don’t blame her, they tasted better than a traditional birthday cake.  Apparently my husband thinks to too! I changed the recipe just a pinch, I added less sugar, used cherry coke by mistake, added whole wheat pastry flour and used lite cherry pie filling.  In the recipe I put the ingredients I used, but left you the link to check out Brown Eyed Bakers recipe.

First I made the cupcake.  Easy peezy!

Then I cut out the middle and added cherry pie filling.  Of course I used lite cherry pie filling.  Then I ate all the cut outs.  The cupcakes are so moist, almost like an angel food cake.  Light and Airy.

I then added a powdered sugar and cherry coke mix and filled the rest of the cherry hole and spread over top of the cupcake.

Made the whip cream topping and frosted the cupcakes.

Decorated with a maraschino cherry and a straw!  Perfecto!!!

Now these are not healthy or low-calorie, but it was a treat.  However since I cut out the center of all the cupcakes, the calories are less than what I am going to show you, I am just not sure by how much.  But they were so yummy, well worth the calories.  I really loved the whip cream frosting.  Now that was a treat for me, since I never eat heavy whip cream!

Cherry Coke Float Cupcakes – Brown Eyed Baker

Ingredients:

3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour

3 tablespoons cocoa powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

1/2 cup granulated sugar

½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 egg

½ cup buttermilk or nonfat milk with a pinch of lemon

¾ cup Coke (don’t use diet) (I used Cherry Coke)

1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

10 Tbsp. lite cherry pie filling ( I bought Comstock 21oz can)

For the Glaze:

¾ cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons Coke (I used cherry coke)

For the Icing:

1 cup heavy whipped cream

4 tablespoons powdered sugar

Maraschino Cherries, for garnish

Directions:

1. Make the Cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a standard muffin pan with paper liners; set aside.

2. Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl and set aside.

3. In a mixing bowl, combine the sugar and butter and beat on medium-high until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and beating for an additional minute. In a large mixing cup or small bowl, combine the buttermilk, Coke and vanilla extract. (Make sure you wait for the foam to go down when measuring the Coke and don’t worry if your mixture looks curdled when you add the buttermilk.)

4. Beginning with the flour mixture, add in 4 parts to the butter mixture, alternating with the Coke mixture. Beat each addition just until incorporated. Give the final mixture a good mix with a rubber spatula to make sure it is thoroughly combined.

5. Divide the batter evenly between the muffins tins. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the tops spring back when touched lightly and a toothpick inserted in the center cupcake comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the pan and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

6. Fill the Cupcakes: Once cooled, use a paring knife to cut out a cone shape in the middle of each cupcake. Add a spoonful of cherry mixture (2 to 3 cherries) to the well.

7. Glaze the Cupcakes: In a small bowl whisk together the powdered sugar and coke. Let sit 5 to 10 minutes to thicken. It should drip off of a soon very slowly. Using a small offset spatula, drizzle a little of the glaze onto the middle of each cupcake and then gently spread it over the top.

8. Frost the Cupcakes: Beat the heavy whipping cream in a chilled bowl with whisk attachment (or hand mixer), beginning on low speed. Once the cream gets frothy begin adding the powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, increasing speed as the cream comes together until you reach medium-high speed. Whip the cream until it holds stiff peaks (if you dip a spoon in it, the whipped cream should stay on the spoon when you turn it upside down). Pipe the whipped cream onto cupcakes as desired and top with maraschino cherries for garnish.

Makes 16 cupcakes (Michelle’s recipe had 12 but I ended up with more for some reason and it worked out well)

Calories per cupcake (remember there a little less than what I put here, since I had to cut out the center of the cupcakes):  223,  Fat:  11.4,  Cholesterol:  47,  Sodium:  94,  Potassium:  38,  Carbs:  28,  Fiber:  1.4,  Sugar:  18,  Protein:  2.1

I have to say these cupcakes were amazing!  I don’t know if they tasted like a Cherry Coke Float but they sure the hell tasted good!!  Wish I had more left, dam Husband!  I didn’t eat today so I could eat two of them, not one!

Well I hope you liked my naughty cupcakes, the rest of the week will be healthy, well… I think it will be!  he he  Once I go sweet I really have a hard time getting back on the healthy train.  Now don’t get me wrong, I eat healthy all day, but the deserts, oh the sweet desserts kill me every time.  You know who’s to blame?  Me!  I purposely torcher myself by baking!  I usually eat one or two of something and give the rest away, but it’s that one or two that’s not good for me.

Time to make lunch for tomorrow.  Have a great week!!  And remember, no matter how bad we are on Sunday, Monday is a new day to start over!!