As odd as it sounds, I like to make cake and cupcakes with diet soda. I box cake mix + 1 can diet soda mixed with a whisk (not electric beaters) and baked as usual results in a yummy, light and fluffy cake despite how weird it sounds. For best results, match the mix and the sodas like this:
Chocolate or Devil's Food cake mix + diet cola, Dr. Pepper or root beer
White or funfetti cake mix + diet sprite, 7up, or fresca (funfetti w/ fresca is my favorite)
Yellow cake mix + diet cream soda or sprite
Making cakes this way instead of with eggs and oil reduces calories and fat grams in the finished product. The reason you whisk by hand is because the carbonation in the soda is what will make it rise w/o the eggs and beating it with a mixer is too aggressive and beats the bubbles out.
Today my cake baking methods have met their match. I had a box of reduced sugar Devil's Food cake mix and wanted to make weight watchers friendly cupcakes and so stirred in a can of Diet Dr. Thunder. Bad idea. Something happened chemically with the reduced sugar cake mix and the sugarless soda and created a gooey, sticky mess. Not only was it hard to tell when the cupcakes were done (the insides were still gooey after 25 minutes in the oven.....which is a long time to bake cupcakes in my oven) but when once they came out and cooled stuck to the cupcake papers so the whole thing was mangled and only the top escaped unscathed.
So word to the wise: If making reduced sugar cupcakes, keep the fat. If you want to make cupcakes with soda, use regular cake mix.
Chocolate or Devil's Food cake mix + diet cola, Dr. Pepper or root beer
White or funfetti cake mix + diet sprite, 7up, or fresca (funfetti w/ fresca is my favorite)
Yellow cake mix + diet cream soda or sprite
Making cakes this way instead of with eggs and oil reduces calories and fat grams in the finished product. The reason you whisk by hand is because the carbonation in the soda is what will make it rise w/o the eggs and beating it with a mixer is too aggressive and beats the bubbles out.
Today my cake baking methods have met their match. I had a box of reduced sugar Devil's Food cake mix and wanted to make weight watchers friendly cupcakes and so stirred in a can of Diet Dr. Thunder. Bad idea. Something happened chemically with the reduced sugar cake mix and the sugarless soda and created a gooey, sticky mess. Not only was it hard to tell when the cupcakes were done (the insides were still gooey after 25 minutes in the oven.....which is a long time to bake cupcakes in my oven) but when once they came out and cooled stuck to the cupcake papers so the whole thing was mangled and only the top escaped unscathed.
So word to the wise: If making reduced sugar cupcakes, keep the fat. If you want to make cupcakes with soda, use regular cake mix.
