Cherry Cake (with sour cream)
This is a simple seasonal cherry cake recipe made with sour cream. It has juicy cherries and a wonderful crumb. It's great for snacking and for afternoon tea. It's soft and remains moist for a few days. And it can be frozen. If fresh cherries are not available, use frozen.
Servings 8 servings
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 6 tablespoons sour cream at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 eggs at room temperature
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon vanilla paste
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract optional
- 2 cups pitted halved cherries
- 1 tablespoon sugar to sprinkle before baking
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC).
- Grease with butter or shortening (or use baking spray) a 9-inch round, springform cake pan.
- In a large mixing bowl beat the soft butter and sour cream with an electric mixer until smooth and no lumps remain.
- Gradually add sugar while beating at medium/high speed, until light in color and the sugar is partially dissolved, about 3 minutes.
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. The batter might look curdled at this point but it will be fine after the dry ingredients are added.
- Add the vanilla and almond extracts and mix.
- Sift the flour mixture (flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt) and add it in 2 parts. I have them measured and sift them directly into the batter, but you can sift them separately if that’s more convenient for you. Mix well at low speed, but don’t overbeat at this point; otherwise, the cake will be tough after it’s baked.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth out the top.
- Scatter the cherry pieces on top of the cake, covering most of the surface.
- Sprinkle with the tablespoon of sugar.
- Bake for about 50-60 minutes, until the top is golden and a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Important: if the top is browning too quickly, cover it with a piece of aluminum paper after 40-45 minutes of baking. This will prevent it from darkening further but the cake will still continue to bake. Start checking for doneness at the lowest time specified in this recipe and have patience until it’s fully baked. It might take a little more (than the highest time specified) depending on your oven, especially for round cakes.
- Let cool on a wire rack and carefully remove the cake from the pan.
- Dust with powdered sugar if you want before eating and serve plain or with a dollop of whipped cream and extra cherries.
- It keeps well for a day or two at room temperature, covered in plastic wrap or under a cake dome. After that refrigerate or freeze, always well wrapped.
Notes
Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperature, utensils and equipment needed, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier.
Baking time: consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as possible, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend keeping track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
Cherry chip cake: sprinkle ½ cup of chocolate chips together with the cherries.
