Chocolate Cherry Cake

Chocolate Cherry Cake — filled with cream and homemade cherry sauce and covered with chocolate ganache, a cake recipe that is totally worth the effort and an all time favorite.

A scrumptious chocolate cake for a great dessert with family and friends, that always puts a smile on my face when I see how everyone is enjoying it.

I find it great on its own though sometimes I enjoy it with a scoop of ice-cream or a cup of espresso.

You will like how the chocolate and cherries blend smoothly together to give this cake its moist, rich texture.

Plan to spend a bit of time to make this cake but trust me it is so worth it.

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Ingredients Needed:

For the Cake

To make the cake you need eggs, sugar, vanilla extract, milk, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and melted butter.

For the Cherry Sauce

You will also need cherries, sugar and lemon juice to make the cherry sauce, or you can use ready made cherries if you like.

For the Chocolate Ganache

You will need equal measures of heavy cream and semi-sweet chocolate chips for the ganache, in addition to 1 tablespoon of honey.

You will also need whipped cream to add between the cake layers.

How to Make Chocolate-Cherry Cake

Making the Cake

Lightly grease and line a 6-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 350F (180C).

Whisk the eggs and sugar in a stand mixer fitted with wire attachment for 10 minutes to double in volume and become creamy. Add vanilla and milk and whisk well.

Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt, and gently fold this dry mixture into the batter in 2 batches using a spatula.

In a separate bowl, mix some of the cake mixture with the melted butter. Combine well, then gently fold this butter mixture into the rest of the cake mixture.

Pour the cake mixture into the baking pan and bake for 35 – 40 minutes

Making the Cherry Sauce

In a small pan on medium-low heat, cook the cherries with water, sugar and corn starch. Simmer for 15 – 20 minutes until the cherries are fully cooked. Add the lemon juice and let cool completely before using.

You can preserve this sauce in a tight jar in the fridge for a couple of weeks.

Making the Chocolate Ganache

In a saucepan, heat the cream to the stage just before boiling; once little bubbles start forming on the side of the pan, remove from heat and pour over the chocolate chips.

Let the chocolate chips sit for 3 minutes in the cream, then mix together until they completely dissolve and you have a nice creamy sauce. Add a spoon of honey to give the ganache a shiny sweeter look if you like.

Assembling the Cake

Cut the cooled cake into two equal parts. I use a sharp long knife to do that. There are many innovative ways to cut the cake evenly. I rely on my good knife and a stable surface.

Lather one layer with cream and then top it with cherry sauce.
If the cake turns out to be a bit dry, do not panic! You can drizzle cherry sauce on it before applying the cream and the cake will be moist and delicious.

Cover the creamy part with the other cake layer and pour over the ganache.
There is something magical about seeing chocolate pouring over a cake and dripping from the sides…heaven!!!

Chill your assembled cake for an hour in the fridge and enjoy a slice or two with your loved ones.

What to Have with Chocolate-Cherry Cake

Chocolate-Cherry Cake is great with:

• Espresso Coffee
• A scoop of Pistachio Ice-cream

Try my other decadent chocolate cake recipes;

Chocolate Blueberry Cake
Chocolate Raspberry Cake
Epic Chocolate Cake

— DID YOU TRY THIS RECIPE? —
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