Name: Easy Cherry Snack Cake
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 1/2 cup unsalted butter (, room temperature); 1/2 cup granulated sugar; 3 large eggs; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 1 1/2 cups cake flour; 2 tsp baking powder; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 2 Tablespoon milk; 1 cup dark sweet or sour cherries ((canned, drained well))

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This Easy Cherry Snack Cake is a fluffy, tender vanilla cake topped with cherries. A great dessert made completely from scratch in less than 10 minutes.

Easy Cherry Snack Cake

Fresh cherries are one of those fruits that you can’t find year-round in the supermarket. They are only available for about 4 months, usually from the end of April to early September. I’m always excited for the cherry season to start.

When I was little my grandparents had a big cherry tree in their garden and I loved to help harvest the ripe cherries. I probably wasn’t the biggest help for my grandpa but those are one of my favorite memories from my childhood.

My grandparents used to can most of the cherries from the tree because there were just too many cherries. The whole basement was filled with glasses of canned cherries. So many fun memories!

This easy cherry cake is similar to the cakes my grandmother used to make. It’s a minimalistic cake – no fancy frosting, glaze or layers like my Strawberry Cake. Just a simple vanilla cake topped with cherries. But sometimes the simplest things are the most delicious! Like this easy cake with cherries or my 3-ingredient Lemon Curd Mousse.

How to make Cherry Cake

The batter of this cake is similar to the batter of my Lemon Raspberry cake. To make it, I recommend using a stand mixer. Creaming the butter and sugar together until the mixture is pale and fluffy takes a few minutes so I prefer letting my stand mixer do the work.

When that is done add the eggs and vanilla extract. Add one egg at a time and mix after each addition to give the mixture time to emulsify. It is also important that the eggs (and the butter) are at room temperature. The butter mixture won’t get fluffy and pale when you use it straight out of the fridge and because all ingredients should have the same temperature to combine into a smooth dough your eggs should also be at room temperature. My tip is to put the cold eggs in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes so they have the right temperature.

Now you just have to add the flour mixture and the milk. Begin with the flour, alternate with 1 tbsp milk and just mix until everything is incorporated evenly. Don’t over-mix the batter, over-mixing will activate the gluten in the flour and your cake will be tough, not fluffy and tender.

Pour the batter into a 9×9-inch pan and spread it evenly. I like to use parchment paper because it makes it easier to lift the cake out of the pan. The last step is to top the batter with the cherries. You can use fresh (stemmed and pitted) or canned cherries (drain off all the juice) for this recipe.

Easy Cherry Snack Cake

4.86 from 7 votes

This simple Cherry Cake is so easy and quick to make! A fluffy and tender vanilla cake topped with cherries that is a great spring and summer dessert and made completely from scratch in less than 10 minutes.

Servings 6

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 40

Total Time 50

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Ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter , room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoon milk
1 cup dark sweet or sour cherries (canned, drained well)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F and line an 8x8-inch pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the sides to lift the finished cake out. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream butter and sugar together at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes.
Add one egg at a time and mix for 20 seconds after each addition. Add vanilla extract. Mix until combined.
In a small bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt.
With the mixer running at medium speed, alternately add flour mixture and milk in two portions. Mix until just combined. Don't overmix.
Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly. Top with cherries and spread evenly.
Bake for about 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake rest for about 10 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack.