• Preheat the oven to 180c / gas mark 4.

For The Cake

• In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, bicarbonate of soda and salt.
• In a jug beat the egg, buttermilk and vanilla extract in a measuring jug.
• In a heavy based saucepan, melt the butter, cocoa powder and Cherry Coca Cola and heat gently.
• Pour the butter and cola mixture onto the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon then finally add the egg and buttermilk mixture and beat well until blended. It will look like soup at this stage but don't panic.
• Pour into the baking tins or moulds. I found this easier if I decanted the batter to a jug to pour or used a ladle to transfer from the mixing bowl.
• Place tins/moulds on baking sheet and bake in the oven for 40 minutes if you're doing one big cake and 20-25 minutes if you're doing four smaller ones. A wooden cocktail stick should just come out clean.
• Leave to cool for 15 minutes in the tin/moulds before turning out.

For The Icing

• Meanwhile make the icing. In a heavy based saucepan, melt the butter, Cherry Coca Cola and cocoa powder until liquid. Do not overheat as it burns easily. Remove from heat and spoon in the icing sugar a little at a time. Beat well until you have a runny glace style icing.
• Spoon the icing over the cake (or cakes). If you are using mini kugelhopf moulds then attempt to drizzle artfully down the sides and whilst also coating, but not entirely filling the centre bit. Allow to set for a couple of minutes then zig zag your little tube of chocolate writing icing backwards and forwards from the centre to the outside of the kugelhopf going all the way round. Don't worry about how tidy it is, you'll probably get better as you go round.
• Tumble over the pitted cherries and you're good to go! Four cherries will be about right for a mini Kugelhopf.