*Post updated January 24, 2017.
Cake always comes to mind when celebrating with family and friends, though when it comes to chocolate cake do we really need a birthday to indulge? We went behind-the-scenes in Shipt team member Elizabeth’s own kitchen to make her late Nana’s beloved chocolate Coca-Cola Cake — a long-time favorite for her and her family.
Elizabeth’s love of baking spans a lifetime, and she’s now passing it down to her 4-year-old daughter, Wyatt, who loves to bake as much as she does. “There’s something special about seeing my mom’s handwritten recipes in the cookbook she started for me when I graduated from college,” Elizabeth says.
What makes the Coca-Cola so perfect is that it’s festive and indulgent and also super easy to make. Hint, hint: you don’t have to wait for the cake to cool to ice it. How awesome is that?
This recipe is great for kids. Wyatt helps her mother pour ingredients, mix, and stir. “I tell her to stir 10 times, and she counts out loud so I know she’s getting everything mixed appropriately,” Elizabeth says, adding, “I love the undivided attention we give each other when we bake together.”
Elizabeth’s Coca-Cola Cake
Cake Ingredients:
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 cups flour
- 2 tablespoons cocoa
- 2 sticks margarine (or butter, if preferred)
- 1 cup Coca Cola Classic
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
Icing Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons cocoa
- ½ cup margarine
- 6 tablespoons Coca-Cola Classic
- 1 16-ounce box powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup chopped pecans
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, mix flour and sugar together. Elizabeth has Wyatt pour the ingredients and blend them together, instructing her to count out loud to 10 to make sure everything’s mixed well.
In a saucepan, mix the margarine, cocoa, and Coca-Cola. Bring to a boil and pour over flour and sugar mixture; blend well. This is when things really start to smell incredible.
Add buttermilk, salt, eggs, baking soda, vanilla and marshmallows. (It’s okay to pop a few marshmallows in your mouth – we won’t tell!)
Elizabeth uses what’s leftover on the margarine wrappers to grease her cake pans — a trick handed down to her by her mother.
Pour the batter into a well-greased 9- by-13-inch pan and bake 30-35 minutes, watching for the cake to take shape in the oven.
Remove the cake from oven and make the icing, which Elizabeth says is what makes the cake extra delicious. To make the icing, combine the 1/2 cup margarine, 3 tablespoons cocoa, 6 tablespoons of Coca-Cola in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Mix powdered sugar, pecans, and vanilla and add to boiling mixture and stir well. Pour icing over cake immediately and enjoy!
Elizabeth’s mom started a tradition with Wyatt of baking a cake each Christmas, passing down the love of togetherness in the kitchen. What are your favorite baking traditions? Comment below!
Get all the ingredients for Elizabeth’s Coca-Cola Cake delivered straight to your door with Shipt so you can spend more time baking and making special memories with your family!
