Dr Pepper Cake Recipe
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This delicious Dr Pepper Cake is just what the doctor ordered.
Sugar, butter, chocolate, Dr. Pepper … enough said?
Almost.
My daughter is a big Dr. Pepper fan, so I had to try my own version of the chocolate cakes I’ve seen here and there with either Coke or Dr. Pepper added. And boy am I glad I tried it. This Dr Pepper Cake? It’s a must do. Rich and moist, and oh, so easy – there’s no excuse not to try it at least once. Just make sure you’ve got a group to bake it for, because it’s dangerous to have leftovers hanging around.
One of the things I like about this cake is the ease at which it comes together. Seriously simple. It bakes in 20-25 minutes and it’s gone in 10. All ingredients are combined in a saucepan and poured directly into a 13x9x2″ baking pan. Speaking of ingredients, for both the cake batter and frosting, I used Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa powder. It’s good stuff. I hope you can find some.
The process is fairly straight forward: Begin by combining the Dr. Pepper, oil, butter and cocoa powder in a saucepan over medium heat. When it comes to a simmer, mix well and remove from heat. Mix dry ingredients together (sugar, flour and baking soda), add to saucepan and mix to combine. You don’t need to beat the heck out of it. It will be a little lumpy at first but just mix well until combined. In a separate small bowl lightly beat the eggs and buttermilk together then add them to the saucepan. Combine batter well and pour into a greased baking pan and bake at 350-degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Be careful not to over bake.
The frosting works the same way. Combine butter, cocoa powder and milk together in a saucepan, over medium heat, stirring occasionally until melted and smooth. Add in the powdered sugar a little at a time, combining after each addition until smooth. Pour frosting over warm cake. Yum.
While the frosting is mighty yummy, I think the cake is quite tasty without it, or maybe just with a little dusting of powdered sugar and a tall glass of milk. So what are you waiting for? Go grab a Dr. Pepper and get to work! Enjoy! And let me know how it turns out.
Looking for more chocolate recipes? Here are a few that we enjoy:
- Flourless Chocolate Brownies
- Chocolate Bundt Cake with Chocolate Espresso Glaze
- Easy Chocolate Biscotti Recipe
Dr Pepper Cake Recipe
Dr. Pepper Cake Recipe
A delicious chocolate cake with warm frosting made with dark chocolate and Dr. Pepper.
Ingredients
For cake:
- 1 1/2 cup Dr. Pepper soda
- 1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
- 1 stick salted butter (8 tablespoons)
- 4 tablespoons cocoa powder (again, I used Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder)
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
For frosting:
- 1 stick salted butter (8 tablespoons)
- 4 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 8 tablespoons milk
- 4 cups confectioners sugar (powdered sugar)
Instructions
For cake:
- Preheat oven to 350-degrees F and grease or spray with cooking spray a 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
- Begin by combining the Dr. Pepper, oil, butter and cocoa powder in a saucepan over medium heat. When it comes to a simmer, mix well and turn stove off.
- Mix dry ingredients together (sugar, flour and baking soda), add to mixture in saucepan and mix well, by hand. Don’t over beat. DO NOT OVER BEAT.
- In a separate small bowl lightly beat the eggs and buttermilk together, then add them to the saucepan and combine batter well by hand, but again, do not over beat.
- Pour into a greased baking pan and bake at 350-degrees for approx. 23-28 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Be careful not to over bake.
For frosting:
- In a saucepan, combine butter, cocoa powder and milk together over medium heat, stirring occasionally until melted and smooth.
- Add in the powdered sugar a little at a time, combining after each addition until smooth.
- Pour over warm cake.
- Lock all the doors, draw the shades, don’t answer the phone and get the milk.
Updated January 18, 2015. Originally posted March 9, 2010.
I just made this and it came out very moist but it had no “Dr Pepper” flavor. And I thought it could use a little salt as well.
Can this be made a day before? If so what is your suggestion on storing it?
Yes it can be made a day before. Cover and store at room temperature.
The cake turned out pretty well for the most part. The frosting on the other hand was a bit too sweet, so i ended up drizzling half of it over the cake. I give this recipe a 7 out of 10. Will be making this again in the future ???? thanks for sharing ????
Mine was great until it cooled than it sunk in the middle, Any suggestions????
Just made this cake! I followed the recipe and it baked perfectly (23 minutes). Then I made the frosting and poured it over that. I wasn’t expecting it to be so watery but it’s sitting and starting to firm up. I’m excited to eat it tonight!
The process seems pretty simple but I haven’t made a cake with pop before. Can anyone tell me, how well can you taste the Dr. Pepper/Coke/Etc when you use it as an ingredient like this?
I’ve now made a total of three of these cakes for birthday parties for co-workers. Everybody loves, loves, loves this cake!!!!! The recipe is simple and directions are easy to follow! Only thing different I do is heaping tablespoons of cocoa for a little extra chocolate because why not?!?! 🙂 Next time, I am going to try this recipe with a cherry flavored cola…
Made this cake,we all loved it. One o us has allergies to certain food additives, so this was cake with out worry. Thank you
This cake is very reminiscent of a Texas sheet cake in flavor and texture. I used regular cocoa, and shortening for the oil. I poured the mixture over my dry ingredients….just seemed more logical, whisked my eggs and buttermilk together then added to the cocoa/flour mixture. Convection baked in my oven but cake was still jiggly in the center, so I turned my oven down and continued using my timer in 5 min increments and it took a good 35 min, reducing the heat to 325 after the initial 23 min. Don’t over-bake! Made the frosting using buttermilk instead of milk, tossed chopped pecans on top before frosting sat up. Delicious and everybody fought over it. Highly recommend!