Moist Cherry And Almond Cake Recipe

Fresh sweet cherries and a simple vanilla cake featuring all-purpose flour, almond flour, and almond extract come together to make this light and flavorfulfresh cherry almond cakemade completely from scratch. The cherries are mixed throughout the batter and also nestled on top of the cake for a pretty finish. Add a dusting of powdered sugar and you have dessert, or a dollop of yogurt for coffee cake.

I have good news: this fresh cherry almond cake is equally at home on the dessert table as it is for a breakfast coffee cake or tea cake, which means: cake for all meals, hooray!

As often happens in the summer, I was recently a little overzealous in my cherry buying. Sweet cherries compete with peaches for my favorite summer fruit and I can never resist them. I eat them by the handful and the pits always pile up way faster on my plate than they do on Brian’s…oh well.

Indulgent Cherry Chocolate & Almond Cake :: Exceedingly Vegan

But sometimes I buy way too much, even by my standards. When that has happened in the past, I’ve turned to cherry cobbler or roasted cherry ice cream to use them up…but this year I felt like cake. I’ve always loved cherry almond flavored desserts so it was a no-brainer to create a cherry almond cake!

This cake is adapted from my rhubarb cake (also seen in my plum coffee cake) which is a standard buttermilk-based cake with a mix of all-purpose flour and almond flour. I decided to eliminate the buttermilk here in favor of regular milk (to let the almond flavor shine through) and increased the amount of baking powder to compensate for the lost chemical reaction between buttermilk and baking soda.

Here are the ingredients you’ll need for the cherry almond cake. For the full list of ingredients and measurements, go below to the recipe card.

Cherry Almond Coffee Cake Recipe

Step 2: Whisk together your dry ingredients in a medium bowl (and ideally, just measure them into that bowl using a scale for most accurate results!). This will let them blend better with the wet ingredients later so we don’t have to mix as long and risk over-developing the gluten.

Step 3: Cream together room temperature butter, sugar, and lemon zest until light and fluffy. The mixture will be fragrant! Then beat in eggs, vanilla and almond extracts, and milk.

Step 5: Set aside a handful of the halved cherries to press on top of the cake batter, then fold the rest directly into the batter using a rubber spatula. Spread batter into your 9-inch springform or cake pan.

Cherry Almond Cake Recipe

Step 7: BAKE! This will take about 45 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few crumbs attached. Cool completely before removing from the pan and serving!

The cake can be stored at room temperature for up to 24 hours, although it is best the day it’s made with the crunchy sugar top.

Cake can be frozen, tightly wrapped, for up to 3 months. Leave on the counter to thaw for at least 2-3 hours, or thaw in the fridge overnight before serving.

Cherry Almond Breakfast Cake

Frozen cherries: you can substitute frozen cherries for the fresh as long as you thoroughly thaw and drain them first. Make sure to slice them in half before using so they don’t sink to the bottom of the cake.

Almond extract: there is no real substitution for this, but if you don’t have it, you could add an additional teaspoon of vanilla extract for an assertively vanilla-flavored cherry cake.

Sweet cherries and a simple vanilla cake featuring all-purpose flour, almond flour, and almond extract come together to make this light and flavorful fresh cherry almond cake made completely from scratch. Fresh cherries are mixed throughout the batter and also nestled on top of the cake for a pretty finish.

Date Cake With Cherry Almond Topping

Storage: Cake with keep, well-wrapped at room temperature, for up to 24 hours.  It will keep up to 5 days in the fridge.  I think it’s best served at room temperature!  You can freeze the cake for up to 3 months, tightly wrapped.  Let it come to room temperature on the counter for at least 2-3 hours before serving.This Sweet Cherry Almond Cake recipe is tender and packed full of jammy, plump sweet cherries! It’s such an easy cherry cake recipe to pull together and with a hint of almond, vanilla and lemon, it’s full of flavor. Use the freshest summer fruit in this cake and in other summer favorites like Blueberry Cornmeal Crisp and Carrot Cake with Pineapple. This recipe is vegetarian and easily dairy free. [ UPDATE 5/22: read notes above recipe card for update.]

This easy cherry cake recipe is a loosely adapted version of Marian Burros’s famous Plum Torte recipe originally printed in 1983 in the New York Times. I tried it for the first time years ago and its become a beloved late summer cake easily adaptable to just about any juicy fruit. My favorite, turns out, is fresh sweet cherry. But I wouldn’t pass up strawberry, peach or the original plum, should an opportunity arise.

An ultra tender, delicate, moist and light crumb, with just the right balance of sweet, this homemade cherry almond cake recipe is easy to pull together and freezer friendly, least you attempt to eat it all in one setting (seriously). The cherries turn into soft, jammy goodness and the crumb is the most tender of crumbs with a nice texture thanks in part to almond flour. A sprinkle of sugar on the batter pre-bake turns into a thin layer of crackly crust. My heart is all a flutter!

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After pitting the cherries, mixing this cake is super simple. You’ll need a mixer for the butter version. If using the dairy free version, a whisk and strong arm will do. In summary, here’s how to make it (see recipe card below for details):

This cherry almond flavored cake will need to cool completely before sharing. Enjoy with a dollop of whipped cream or vanilla bean ice cream.

A non stick 8″ spring form pan makes this sweet cherry cake easy to depan. Simply ease the ring off and the cake is ready to go. But this sweet cherry cake can also be made in a regular 8″ round cake pan.

Cherry And Almond Christmas Cake

Either way, even if using a nonstick pan, grease the pan, place a parchment round on the bottom and lightly oil the bottom again. This will ensure an easier release.

This cherry cake recipe can be made with other juicy summer fruits as well. I’ve made plum, strawberry and this cherry cake. I’m thinking peach or apricot would be fun to play with too.

The bake time will be longer however, if using juicier fruit. Deb at Smitten Kitchen shares the original plum torte recipe. Worth a look if you plan on making it.

Cherry And Almond Cake

This cake has received glowing five star reviews here and on social media, but also, several makers reported the cake soggy or under done. I’ve remade the recipe, baking it right at 38 minutes. The results were as expected. Here are a few additional tips to help ensure success.

Made with fresh cherries, this easy Cherry Almond Cake recipe is tender, super moist and packed full of jammy fresh sweet cherries! It's easy to make too. You can make this recipe vegetarian or, it's easily dairy free.

UPDATE (5/22): read *update* notes above the recipe card. This cake has received glowing five star reviews here and on social, but also, several makers reported the cake soggy or under done. It's my hope that the additional notes will support success.

Marzipan And Cherry Cake

UPDATE (5/22):Please read *update* notes above the recipe card. This cake has received glowing five star reviews here and on social, but also, several makers reported the cake soggy or under done. It's my hope that the additional notes will support success.

Once completely cool, Sweet Cherry Almond Cake freezes with ease. Wrap snugly in cling wrap or foil, then freeze for up to two weeks. Thaw at room temperature. 

This recipe is adapted from NYT Original Plum Torte by Marian Burros. However since only visible with a subscription through the Times, see Smitten Kitchen for the original Plum Torte Recipe if needed.

Easy Cherry Almond Cake (small Batch) • Zona Cooks

Nutrition is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate. If this information is important to you, please have it verified independently.

Calories: 277 kcal | Carbohydrates: 35 g | Protein: 4 g | Fat: 14 g | Saturated Fat: 8 g | Cholesterol: 71 mg | Sodium: 55 mg | Potassium: 167 mg | Fiber: 1 g | Sugar: 23 g | Vitamin A: 435 IU | Vitamin C: 2.9 mg | Calcium: 50 mg | Iron: 1 mg

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Almond Cherry Cake

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Ridiculously Easy Fresh Cherry Almond Cake