Cracker Barrel Copycat Chocolate Cola Cake
Cracker Barrel Copycat Chocolate Cola Cake
This Cracker Barrel Copycat Chocolate Cola Cake is such a flavorful and moist cake recipe. It’s one of those cakes that you’ll remember and find yourself craving and making over and over again.
I love that this simple chocolate cake recipe takes a short amount to bake and it actually does have an entire cup of cola in the recipe as well! I know it’s in the name but I still think that it’s super fun to point out!
If you’re craving a simple cake recipe that is also a copycat of the famous Cracker Barrel recipe, this is the cola cake recipe you need!
What type of cola do you use in this cake?
Regular flavored is what I also use. This is because it tends to pair perfectly with the flavors of the rest of the ingredients of the cake and doesn’t give an aftertaste or take over the flavor.
If you want to use another type of cola recipe for this cake, you can but I can’t vouch for what it’s going to taste like. (It will also not taste just like the cake at Cracker Barrel because it’s going to have a different overall flavor and taste)
How do you know when the cake is done baking in the oven?
The easiest way to know when your cake is done baking is to do the toothpick taste and see. Use a clean toothpick and insert it into the center of the cake, once the timer goes off.
You need to be certain that you test the center of the cake as this is the last portion of the cake to cook. If the toothpick comes out clean, the cake is ready to be taken out of the oven. But if the toothpick still has some batter on it, you need to leave the cake in the oven and let it cook for a bit longer.
What toppings go on this homemade soda cake?
The recipe calls for chocolate curls to be copycat but you can easily change up the toppings to be whatever you’d like. Chocolate chips are another great choice or even some sweetened shredded coconut and crushed nuts as well. Whatever you’d like to add to the top, you can! It’s your cake after all!
I’ve even made this cake and topped it differently per each half and even quarter! When you’re sharing this with family and friends, find out what type of toppings they love, and then make it happen!
The next time you’re craving a chocolate cake that you KNOW is going to be good, give this simple copycat Cracker Barrel recipe a try. Every bite is loaded with chocolate flavor and taste. Who says you can’t have your cola and eat it,
too?
Time 25 min. Bake Time 50 min.
Ingredients
- 8 oz. unsalted butter
- 4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
- 8 marshmallows (cut into quarters, or can use ¾ c. mini marshmallows)
- 1 c. cola
- ½ c. vegetable oil
- 2 c. granulated sugar
- 2 lg. eggs
- 2 tsp. vanilla
- ½ c. buttermilk
- 2½ c. cake flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1½ tsp. baking powder
- ½ tsp. salt
- ¾ c. chocolate curls
Instructions
- In a saucepan, over medium heat, add butter, chocolate and cola. Bring mixture to a boil and remove from heat. Add in marshmallows and stir until melted. If mixture cools too much so marshmallows don’t completely melt, return to the heat and continue stirring. Set aside to cool.
- Preheat oven to 350°. Grease or spray an 11x8x2-inch baking pan (can use a 9×13-inch but cake will be thinner). Place a piece of parchment paper in the bottom and up the ends of the pan. It should be cut to fit bottom of pan and extend about 4-inches up each end of pan. Lightly spray with baking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, add vanilla, oil and sugar and mix until smooth. Add eggs and buttermilk and combine until thoroughly incorporated.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cocoa.
- Add half of the dry mixture to the wet mixture and mix, scraping bowl as you do so. Add the cola mixture, combine, then add the remaining half of the dry mixture, mixing well.
- Pour batter into pan and bake on middle rack of the oven for approx. 50 min. or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 30-minutes. Using parchment paper to lift cake, remove the cake to a cooling rack and finish cooling completely.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine cream cheese and softened butter until light and fluffy. Mix in vanilla. Gradually add powdered sugar, continuing to mix. If icing is too thin, you can either add in more powdered sugar or chill the icing for about an hour if you don’t want to add more sugar.
- Spread icing onto chilled cake. Sprinkle chocolate curls over icing.
