Inspired by these
Chocolate Cherry Dr. Pepper Cupcakes
Cake:
3 cups all purpose flour
6 T cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk*
1 1/2 cups Cherry Dr. Pepper
3 tsp vanilla
* you can make your own buttermilk by adding 1 tsp. vinegar to milk and let sit 10 min.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line muffin pans with liners or spray with baking spray. Sift together flour, baking soda, salt and cocoa in a bowl and set aside.
In a mixing bowl or stand mixer, combine sugar and butter and beat on medium-high until light and creamy. Mix in the eggs one at a time, beating about 1 minute after each. In a large mixing cup or small bowl, combine buttermilk, Dr. Pepper and vanilla. (Make sure you wait for the foam to go down when measuring the soda and don't worry if your mixture looks curdled when you add the buttermilk.)
Beginning with the dry ingredient mix, add in 4 parts to the butter mixture, alternating with the soda mixture. Beat each addition just until incorporated.
Transfer the batter to the muffin tins, filling each tin about 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 18-20 minutes until the tops spring back when touched lightly and a toothpick inserted in the center cupcake comes out clean. Cool about 5 minutes in the pan and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Glaze:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
4 T Dr. Pepper
Mix together with a whisk in a small bowl. You are going to glaze the top of the un-iced cupcakes. Let glaze dry before icing. The mixture should run slowly off a spoon so you can drizzle the cupcakes but it won't run all over the place.
Icing:
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
6 T powdered sugar
Maraschino Cherries for garnish
Beat cream in a chilled bowl with whisk attachment or hand mixer on low speed. Begin adding sugar, 1 spoonful at a time, increasing speed as the cream comes together. Whip the cream until it holds stiff peaks. Pipe the whipped cream onto cupcakes as desired and top with maraschino cherries for garnish.
