Chocolate Cherry Dr Pepper Cake
My moist Dr. Pepper chocolate cake is topped with fluffy cherry buttercream. If you like Dr. Pepper you will love this cake.
I love baking with soda. In the past, I've made Orange Crush cupcakes, cherry coke cupcakes, and coca-cola cake. My newest creation is Dr. Pepper cake. It has such a unique flavor and is so moist. It tastes like your favorite fountain drink in cake form. People are sure to ask “What’s in this?!” after the first bite. Best of all it starts with a box mix so its super easy to make.
Why This Recipe Works: A Sprinkle of Food Science
- Soda Carbonation Provides Lift: You'll literally adding million of CO₂ bubbles that react with the leaveners in the mix. They expand in the oven to help the cake rise.
Ingredient Notes and Shopping Tips
- Chocolate Cake Mix: We'll only be using the dry cake mix in this recipe. Do not use the ingredients called for on the back of the box. I'm partial to Betty Crocker's Triple Fudge variety.
- Cherry Dr Pepper: I also use this variety in my ribs recipe. You can use any flavor of Dr. Pepper or really any soda. Avoid diet soda though. The flavor will not be the same and the sugar helps with browning and texture.
- Maraschino Cherries: Drain well for the frosting to avoid excess liquid and bleeding of the color.
- Butter: Make sure the butter for the frosting is softened. An hour at room temp. will do the trick. You can also speed this up by cutting it into smaller pieces.
Krystle's Tips: Steal My Culinary School Secrets
- Grease Your Pan: I like using baking spray which is nonstick spray + flour. You can also line your pan with parchment paper.
- Don't Overbake: Bake just until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs. Overbaking leads to a dry cake.
- Easy Chocolate Curls: Warm a chocolate bar in your hands slightly. Then use a vegetable peeler to cut off gorgeous curls!
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📖 Recipe
Chocolate Cherry Dr. Pepper Cake
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Ingredients
- 1 Box Chocolate Cake Mix Dry Mix ONLY
- 1 ½ Cans Cherry Dr. Pepper 18 Ounces
- 1 Jar Maraschino Cherries Divided and Halved
- 1 Cup Butter Softened
- 3-4 Cups Powdered Sugar
- Cherries and Chocolate Curls If Desired
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9x13 pan with non stick spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine cake mix, soda, and half of the cherries.
- Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool completely.
For the Cherry Frosting
- Cream butter and powdered sugar sugar until smooth. Add cherry juice and powdered sugar as needed until you reach your desired consistency.
- Evenly spread onto cake.
- Garnish with cherries and chocolate curls if desired.
- Place in the fridge for an hour or 2 before cutting.
Notes
Nutrition
I made this chocolate cherry Dr Pepper cake and it was amazing—super moist, rich, and the cherry twist made it extra special!
This Dr. Pepper Cake is a fun twist. The soda syrup gives a sweet pop and moist texture you don’t usually get with regular cakes, making it a playful choice for get-togethers or BBQs.
This chocolate cherry Dr Pepper cake is soooo delicious! Such a great recipe.
This chocolate cake is amazing!!
Love how you worked the soda into both the cake and frosting. The cherry buttercream looks like it ties everything together. I’m tempted to try this with Coke or root beer for fun.
Didn't make it yet but no eggs???
Hi Linda,
Yes that's correct no eggs! You can actually make most cake mixes with just soda (no other ingredients called for on the box).
Have you made it with regular Dr. Pepper and no cherry flavor?
Hi Kim,
I haven't but that should work just fine!