Souper S. is our model cook, and she will give you one recipe of her own every week. Healthy, easy and delicious; try this at home!

Diet Cola Chocolate Cake
Don’t be scared by the title; diet coke in a cake sounds like it shouldn’t go but it really does! Once you give it a try you will be a convert! A little slice of this on your birthday is simply heaven and replacing full fat cola for diet cola goes some way to alleviating some of that cake guilt. But to be honest, once you try it you won't care how many calories are in it. It’s just moist, chocolaty and delicious!

Ingredients 250g/9oz self-raising flour 300g/10½oz golden caster sugar 3 heaped tbsp cocoa generous pinch bicarbonate of soda 250g/9oz butter 250ml/8½fl oz diet cola 125ml/4¼fl oz milk 2 eggs, beaten 1 tsp vanilla extract For the topping: 100g/3½oz butter 2 tbsp diet cola drink 2 tbsp cocoa 200g/7oz icing sugar

Method
1. Heat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas4.

2. Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl. Melt the butter and cola drink gently in a pan then add to the dry ingredients, together with the milk, eggs and vanilla.

3. Mix gently but thoroughly with a wooden spoon and tip into a buttered, loose based cake tin (24cm/9½ in diameter). Bake for about 40 minutes until done (you should be able to put a skewer in and pull it out clean).

4. Take out of the oven and leave for about 15 minutes while you make the topping.

5. Put the butter, cola drink and cocoa into a pan and melt slowly. Bring the mixture to the boil and then pour onto the icing sugar. Beat until smooth and pour over the cake while still warm.

6. Cool in the tin.

Nutritional Information (approx. per slice)
282kcals, fat 15g and sugar 18g.

Posted by: Souper S.