Cherry Chip Cake
Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-CHERRY BOMB!
Well my my my, this post has been a long time coming. I have to admit these photos have been sitting in my memory card for a couple months now. I don't have any excuse! I'm sorry for leaving you hanging but I assure you this Cherry Chip Cake was worth the wait.
My earliest memories of cherry chip cake, of course, come from that beautiful little Betty Crocker box. Light, fluffy, pink, and full of artificial cherry flavoring what kind of kid wouldn't be drawn to cherry chip?! Even the name is fun! Did you have a favorite cherry childhood treat? From cherry Poptarts with pink frosting and red sprinkles to cherry coated Dilly Bars from Dairy Queen, I've always been a fan of maraschino.
When adapting this childhood classic to my own oh-so-grown-up version, I knew I wanted to keep the color and flavor but make it MORE special, MORE dense, and MORE CHERRY!
To start, I loaded up a vanilla butter cake with dozens of chopped maraschino cherries, finely diced, and a dash of almond extract. The slight almond flavor only enhances the cherry taste, I assure you. Admittedly, I made the mistake of not tossing my diced cherries in a light coating of flour to prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the cake while baking; do not make the same mistake! The flour coating won't affect the flavor of the cake, but it will make your rounds more evenly speckled.
I accompanied this beautiful pink, dotted cake base with a creamy and easy American Buttercream but knew I need something else to take it to that "next-level." Instagram videos inspired me to go the route of a dashing red drip topping à-la-Dilly Bar. What better to it off than a GLITTERY cherry-on-top?!
Cherry-o, fellow bakers!
Cherry Chip Cake
- 3 1/3 cups cake flour, sifted
- 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder, sifted
- Large pinch of salt
- 1 3/4 cups milk, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup egg whites
- 3 tablespoons maraschino cherry juice (straight from the jar)
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 1/4 cups bakers sugar
- 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cubed and at room temperature
- 1 cup finely diced maraschino cherries
First, preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and line with parchment and flour two round 9-inch pans. Put the pans on a baking sheet to prevent any spillover in the oven.
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a medium sized bowl.
In another medium bowl whisk together the milk, eggs, cherry juice/syrup, and almond extract.
Cream your butter and sugar on medium speed In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until it becomes pale and fluffy. This should take about 5 minutes. With the mixer still on medium speed, alternate additions of the flour mixture and milk-egg mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Mix until batter is uniform.
Fold in your finely chopped cherries and divide batter evenly among 2 cake pans, and spread batter as evenly as possible.
Bake until a fork comes out with little to no crumbs. Cakes should be springy to the touch after about 30 minutes.
American Vanilla Buttercream
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 lb confectioners sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
In a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, whip butter on high speed until light and fluffy, about five minutes.
Reduce speed and sift in powdered sugar. Mix on low speed until incorporated. Increase to medium speed and add in one teaspoon of heavy cream at a time until you reach your desired consistency. Lastly, beat in your vanilla extract for 30 seconds and frost that cooled cherry chip delight!
Red Drip Glaze
Follow manufacture's instructions
Maraschino Cherry Garnish
- Stemless maraschino cherry
- disco dust optional
Coat slightly dried off maraschino cherries in a fine dust of edible glitter.
Au revoir, mes chéries!