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A slice of homemade chocolate cherry cake with rich chocolate layers, creamy frosting, and a topping of fresh cherries and cherry sauce, dripping onto a white plate.

Easy Chocolate cherry cake Recipe

A rich and moist chocolate cherry cake made from scratch with deep chocolate flavor, real cherries, and luscious frosting. Perfect for special occasions or a treat for family dinners.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Cooling Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings: 12 slices
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American, European
Calories: 430
Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients
  

  • ¾ cups All-purpose flour Can be swapped with cake flour.
  • ½ cup Cocoa powder Use natural not Dutch-processed.
  • 1 teaspoon Baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon Baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon Salt
  • ½ cup Butter Unsalted softened.
  • 1 ½ cups Sugar Granulated.
  • 2 Large Eggs room temperature.
  • 1 cup Buttermilk Add ¼ cup cherry juice to buttermilk.
  • ½ cup Coffee Hot enhances chocolate flavor.
  • 1 ½ teaspoon Vanilla extract
  • 1 cup Cherries Fresh chopped.
For the Cherry Filling:
  • 1 cup Cherries Fresh or frozen.
  • ½ cup Cherry preserves
  • 1 tablespoon Kirsch Optional for Black Forest style.
  • 2 tablespoon Sugar
  • 1 tablespoon Cornstarch
For the Frosting:
  • 8 oz Dark chocolate Melted.
  • ½ cup Heavy cream
  • 4 oz Cream cheese Softened.
  • ½ cup Butter Unsalted softened.
  • 1 ½ cups Powdered sugar

Equipment

  • 2-3 9-inch cake pans Use light-colored aluminum pans for even baking.
  • 1 Stand or hand mixer To cream butter and sugar.
  • 1 Mixing bowls For dry and wet ingredients.
  • 1 Offset spatula For spreading frosting.
  • 1 Pastry brush To apply cherry juice on layers.
  • 1 Cherry pitter For preparing fresh cherries.
  • 1 Serrated knife To level cake layers if needed.

Method
 

Prep Work
  1. Preheat oven, grease pans, pit and chop cherries, mix dry
Mixing
  1. Cream butter and sugar, add eggs, alternate dry ingredients and wet, fold in cherries.
Baking
  1. Divide batter into pans, bake 25-30 mins at 350°F, cool completely.
Cherry Filling
  1. Cook cherries, preserves, sugar, and cornstarch until thickened.
Assembly
  1. Layer with filling, frost, and decorate with cherries.