I developed these when I was cooking and baking a lot for my friends who would come out to L.A. to visit me, the lone adult who does not drive in all of Southern California. I used to use boxed chocolate cake mix, but here is a recipe to make them from scratch. The picture below is actually a botched brownie that came out too cakey instead of chewy. I remembered the yummy sauce I made years back and applied it – the best fix-it for any dessert!

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1 1/2 cups organic sugar
2 eggs
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup milk (almond, soy, rice or moo-cow)
1/2 cup your favorite cola

1 can cherry pie filling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Line a muffin pan with paper or foil liners.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa and sugar. Set aside.
In a large bowl, melt the butter. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition, then stir in the vanilla.
Add the f lour mixture alternately with the milk & soda; beat well.
Fill cupcake pan/liners 2/3rd of the way
(Optional: add a teaspoon of cherry pie filling to the center of each cupcake)

Bake for 15 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.

TOPPING
Combine the rest of the cola and cherry pie mixture in a small sauce pan, simmering until thickened and heated through.

When the cupcakes are ready, top with cherry-cola mixture and enjoy! You’ll probably need a fork!

NOTES
If you’re still using boxed cake mix, just substitute the oil with the cola.
Make the sauce if your cake comes out too dry or if your brownies come out too cake-y like mine did!