Dreamy Orange Soda Cupcakes & SodaStream Review

Have you seen those cool soda making machines in the stores?  You know, the SodaStream machines? I'm sure you've seen the displays, maybe even tried a sample!  We've been eyeing them, my hubby and I, though we were never quite sure if the machine is something we would use a lot. And maybe we were a little worried that we would drink too much soda if we had one!  However, a great connection, an opportunity presented, and a little research...and I am a SodaStream fan!  That great connection I mentioned gave me the opportunity to write this review of a SodaStream Fizz machine and included a fantastic sample pack of flavours.  And that research I mentioned? Well, I always thought SodaStream just made soda...aka pop...I was so wrong!  I had no idea there was such a variety of options available to us...several lines including their waters and iced teas.  That is too cool.  I drink what seems like gallons of water everyday, and knowing that I now have the option to shake up my water just makes me extra happy :-)  And iced tea is a staple in our house in the summer...I am excited for summer to get here again (I know...summer just ended!).  Needless to say, we are pretty happy with the SodaStream!

We've immediately seen some other great benefits with the SodaStream.  No more flat 2 litre bottles of pop in the fridge (I don't know about you, but we just never seem to finish a 2 litre of pop), and it also eliminates excess bottles and cans from our recycling pile (and further, reducing our need to go to the recycling depot as frequently, which means less gas used too!). 

Before I get into today's recipe (!!), a little more about our experience with the machine.  When I found out that I was going to have the opportuntiy to review the SodaStream machine, I was in disbelief.  And when I came home from work to find this ginormous box on my front doorstep, that disbelief became a big smile.  Though I must admit, watching my husband made me smile even more as he was like a kid in a candy shop.  He was so excited (he's a total soda guy) that he tore into the box and had everything cleaned and assembled and ready to sample in just a matter of moments.  Super easy to set up and get going (bonus!).  Our oldest chose our first sampling, which was Orange Mango (orange is his favourite colour).  My husband quickly went to work, filling the water, pressing the button for the CO2, and then adding in the syrup.  It's really SO easy (though...make sure you thread the bottle on straight...unlike me who wasn't paying much attention my first time, I threaded the bottle on crooked and then wound up squirting myself with water, ...such a funny moment! LOL).  We've since tried the Lemon Lime (one that I would drink again...Lemon Lime soda has always been a favourite of mine) and the Cola (also good!).  Our only "complaint" is that the machine is just slightly too tall to sit on our countertop under most of our cupboards.  It does fit nicely under one bank of cupboards, but that's our only option.  Maybe our cupboards are at a funny height or maybe they have an extra bit to them, who knows?! Not a real big deal though, as the SodaStream does fit!

Now onto today's FUN recipe!

Dreamy Orange Soda Cupcakes

I wanted to try something a little *crazy* with my SodaStream.  And since I am all about trying new recipes...I figured, what the heck?!  I took a look at the flavours we had left in our sample syrups, and decided to go with something orange.  Did some googling to see what is out there for ideas using soda in cakes, and this easy-breezy it's almost dreamy option developed!

Cupcakes:

1 white cake mix
3/4 cup SodaStream Orange Soda
2 teaspoons vanilla

Make your cupcakes by mixing the cake mix, soda and vanilla together in a bowl.  DO NOT ADD THE OTHER INGREDIENTS CALLED FOR ON THE CAKE BOX. 

Line your cupcake tin with cupcake liners.  Fill cups 2/3 full.  Bake according to box directions.  (My note - if the recipe says to bake for 18-22 minutes, I always, always check at 17 or 18 minutes, especially when you are changing up the box recipe).  My cupcakes were done by 19 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.  You'll get 9-10 cupcakes from this recipe.

Icing:

1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 brick cream cheese, softened
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons orange Jello
1 teaspoon orange extract
3 cups icing sugar

Cream the butter and cream cheese.  One at a time, add in the vanilla, orange Jello and orange extract, mixing well between additions.  Gradually add the
icing sugar, mixing very well.  Add more or less icing sugar based on your preference.  Be sure to taste your icing to make sure it tastes right to you :-)

Once the cupcakes have cooled, ice the cupcakes.

Since it is October, I couldn't help but add a little bit of Halloween decoration to some of the cupcakes!

VERDICT:
So...not only is that SodaStream FANTASTIC for our beverages, it also comes in handy when experimenting with new recipes.  We liked the cupcakes AND the icing.  Using the soda in place of the other ingredients made for a more dense cake, which was a nice change.  As my hubby said, he usually doesn't like cupcakes for dessert because it's often like eating bread, but he liked these because they were more dense (like a brownie, though not quite as dense). When we ate just the cupcake part (no icing), we could taste a nice, light orange flavour.  Not overpowering but certainly there, and didn't taste fake.  And the icing was delicious too, more great orange flavour...this experiment was a nice change of pace!

**Disclosure - I received product as a thank you for sharing my honest opinion in this review. The opinions on this blog are 100% my own.**

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