Name: Easy Cherry Chocolate Cake
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 250 g cherries; 125 g caster sugar (superfine sugar); 125 g butter; 2 eggs; 125 g self-raising flour (baking flour); 1/2 tsp baking powder; 2 tbsp cocoa powder; 1 tbsp cream cheese; 3 tbsp icing sugar (confectioners sugar); 1 tsp kirsch (optional); 2 tbsp butter; 250 g icing sugar (confectioners sugar); 50 g dark chocolate

Recipe

This super easy cherry chocolate cake is rich and moist, packed with flavour and goes perfectly with your favorite cuppa or as a dreamy dessert too.

Cherry chocolate cake covered in cherries and daisies

Why you’ll love this recipe

This chocolate cherry cake is so super moist and tasty it is way better than anything you could possibly buy even in your favourite bakery!
Although this cherry chocolate cake looks amazing it is super easy and quick to make.
This is a great way to celebrate cherries!

This chocolate and cherry cake is a super spring/summertime treat when cherries are available in the shops at a good price.

While this cake looks fancy it really is super easy to make and is smart enough as a dinner party dessert or a great treat for a family party or picnic.

I love making full use of cherries when they are in season and make everything from cherry chutney to cherry gin liqueur and even Spanish style pickled cherries and a whole lot more.

Ingredients for chocolate cherry cake on table

Ingredients for cherry chocolate cake

There aren’t that many ingredients for this simple chocolate cherry cake recipe. It’s a basic chocolate sponge cake with a cream cheese filling and frosting and of course those all-important cherries!

Cherries – The cherries we buy here in the UK are a deep red almost purple/black colour. Some of these cherries are going to be your boozy cherry filling so you will also want a wee glass of red wine to help them along in this quest – you can polish off the extra wine!

Sponge ingredients – self-raising (cake) flour, eggs, butter, sugar, cocoa and baking powder.

Filling – cream cheese, icing sugar, cherries, Kirsch (optional) see my post on how to make homemade Kirsch.

Frosting – butter and icing sugar

The complete list of ingredients and full instructions for making this recipe can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Can you use frozen cherries?

Yes you can use frozen cherries in this cherry chocolate cake. Just make sure they are fully defrosted and you drain off excess liquid. Remember they won’t be as good as fresh cherries though.

spreading the chocolate cake batter into two cake tins

2 baked sponge cakes with jar of cherries behind

How to make cherry chocolate cake

First things first, prepare all your cherries by removing the stones, after all you don’t want anyone to incur a dental bill due to munching on a slice of your delicious cherry chocolate cake! Either use a cherry stone (great for pitting olives too) or put the cherry into the mouth of a bottle and push the stone out using a drinking straw.

Half about 10 of the stoned cherries and pop them into a small pan with about half a glass of red wine and warm gently for five minutes then pour into a small jar and set aside to let those cherries really soak up that lovely red wine flavour while you get on with making your chocolate sponge cake.

Make your sponge cake by creaming the butter and sugar together then adding the eggs and sifting in the dry ingredients and mixing everything really well till you have a lovely smooth batter.

Using 2 x 6″ (15cm) baking tins divide the cake batter evenly and bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick/cocktail stick comes out clean when popped into the middle of the cakes.

cake base with frosting filling and wine soaked cherries on top

Mix up your filling by beating together the cream cheese with icing sugar and a little Kirsch if you are using it and spread thickly on one of the cooled cakes.

Add your red wine-soaked cherries on top but drain off the wine first or they will be too wet and soak into the filling too much. This is when you can polish off the remaining wine!

Pop the other cake on top and you are ready for the decorating.

cake covered in frosting with cherries on top

drizzling melted chocolate on top of the cherry topped cake

Make your simple frosting with butter and icing sugar and spread this all over the cake. This is a casual looking cake so don’t get hung up on making the perfect solid covering of frosting. Let some of that gorgeous chocolate show through on the sides.

Top the cake with more of the cherries and then drizzle over some rich and luscious melted dark chocolate.

Finish your cherry chocolate cake off with some flaked pistachios for a splash of green against the dark red cherries and I’ve gone all summery with some tiny daisies from my garden which are of course edible.

How many does this cake serve?

You will get 8 slices from this delicious cherry chocolate cake.

How long does it keep?

Chocolate cherry cake will keep for up to 3 days under a cake dome or in a cake tin.

slice of cherry chocolate cake with cake fork and remaining cake behind

Serving ideas

Serve your chocolate cherry cake just on it’s own with your favourite cuppa as a tea time treat.

You can also serve this as a decadent dessert as it really is such a pretty cake and a bit of a statement piece for a party.

Looking for more great cherry recipes to try? Then check these out before you go;

Homemade cherry chutney

Easy cherry jam/conserve

Spanish style cherry cheese

Easy cherry clafoutis

How to make cherry brandy

Finally, if you do try this recipe don’t forget to leave a comment/star rating below as I just love to hear from readers. Want more Larder Love? Then follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter and sign up for my newsletter too of course.