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Active Time
45 minutes
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Total Time
4 hours
This chocolate cherry cake recipe delivers the flavors ofBlack Forest cake但是需要承诺的一小部分。有no days-long prep time or (let’s be honest) fussy icing, and you can use either your fresh summer cherry haul or that stash of frozen cherries you’ve had your eye on. Just promise us one thing: You’ll use sour or tart cherries, not sweet, as their tang will offset the rich chocolaty crumb. And by all means, avoid canned cherries, Technicolormaraschino cherries, and packaged cherry pie filling, all of which may contain sweeteners that could make the cake cloying.
To start you’ll toss those cherries with sugar and almond extract, then set them aside at room temperature until their juices form a flavorful syrup. You’ll only need ½ cup of this syrup for the cake batter, but save any extra toadd to seltzeror use incocktails.
For the chocolate, spring for good-qualitycocoa powdersince it’s the main flavoring in the cake batter. Pouring hot water over the cocoa may seem strange, but this action blooms the powder, unlocking its bold chocolate flavor. For the mix-ins, use chopped dark chocolate (bittersweet or semisweet) if you prefer it overchocolate chips.
To serve, simply dust the top of the cake with powdered sugar. Or if you want to get a little extra, add a scoop of vanilla ice cream along withchocolate fudge sauceand a dollop of whipped cream to each slice. For birthday cake vibes, decorate with swoops ofcream cheese–chocolate frostingor achocolate ganacheglaze.
Ingredients
12 servings
Step 1
Toss1 lb. fresh or frozen pitted sour cherries (about 3 cups)with⅔ cup (134 g) sugarand1 tsp. almond extractin a small mixing bowl and let stand at least 2 hours. Drain cherries, reserving ½ cup cherry juices.
Step 2
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour a 13x9-inch metal baking pan, knocking out excess flour. Whisk together1 cup boiling waterand¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)in a small bowl until smooth, then whisk in reserved cherry juices and1 tsp. vanilla extract.
Step 3
Whisk2 cups (25 g) all-purpose flour, 1¼ tsp. baking soda, and½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¼ tsp. Morton kosher saltin another small bowl.
Step 4
Beat2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softenedwith1¼ cups (250 g) packed dark brown sugarin a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add4 large eggs, one egg at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture and cocoa mixture alternately in batches, beginning and ending with flour mixture and mixing at low speed until blended (batter may look curdled).
Step 5
Pour batter into pan, smoothing top, and scatter the reserved cherries and1 cup (7 oz.) semisweet chocolate chipsevenly over the batter (they’ll sink as it bakes). Bake in middle of oven until a toothpick or tester inserted in center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool cake completely in pan on a rack, then cut into squares. If using, dust withpowdered sugarand serve withwhipped cream.
Do ahead:The chocolate-covered cherry flavor of this cake becomes more pronounced after a day or two. Cake can be made up to 3 days ahead and kept in an airtight container at room temperature.
Editor’s note:This recipe was first printed in the July 2003 issue of ‘Gourmet.’Head this way for more of our best chocolate cake recipes →
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Reviews (38)
Back to TopGREAT recipe, but you MUST use tart pie cherries. Don't even bother if you don't have them. Bings just do not have the flavor and intensity necessary. I did make one change. When I strained the cherries I used all the sweetened juice. Just added water to make the 1 1/2 cup liquid total and heated that and mixed with the cocoa. I then decreased the brown sugar to one cup. I wasn't about to throw all that extra cherry flavor away. Served it with whipped cream, and it was truly decadent!
robinc275
Spokane, WA
7/13/2012
Delicious! Although it looks overly rich and dense, the final product is "fluffy" and just right in terms of richness of flavors. Will definitely make again.
KKid
Maryland
6/24/2011
For those who added Kirsch, how much did you use? I'm surprised how strong Kirsch can be.
passanie
Fresno, CA
6/12/2010
This recipe turned out really well despite my modifications. I only had 1/3 of a cup of white sugar to mix with the cherries so the juice produced was slightly less than 1/2 a cup. Additionally, the only cherries I had were farmer's market sweet black cherries- I actually tried this recipe for the sole purpose of finishing up my fruit before it went bad- and as far as I can tell there was no damage done to the overall scrumptiousness of the dessert. While the cherry flavor in the chocolate cake is on the subtle side I found that the chunks of fruit were plentiful enough when chopped up that the cake still tasted deliciously of cherries. My end product was very moist, chocolaty and fruity- I couldn't imagine a better use for leftover cherries. I recommend serving the cake warm with vanilla ice cream:)
jmg271
San Francisco, CA
7/17/2009
Poker Guys loved this one
JimWithrow
6/17/2009
Im European so Im familiar with cooking with sour cherries, and I like to try out new recipes. Have to admit though, as the cake was baking I was hesitant. It looked like it is going to be dry. Once baked it did not smell glorious or nothing, it just looked sad and not promising. But once it cooled in the fridge I tasted it and it tasted like heaven. I utilized some of the others recommendations and cut cherries in pieces. Also did not have any kirsch but had sour cherry syrup, yummy! We dont eat white sugar, so I used splenda. Instead of chocolate chips I added cherry chips and followed the recipe from there on. It did not disappoint. The cake is awesome! I will take them to work but I think I'll put some cherry frosting on them just so they look better. Not that they need it but just for visual. WARNING: You have to use sour cherries, otherwise it will NOT DELIVER. Sour cherries are the key. Bon Appetite!
ajelavic
Croatia, Europe
12/14/2008
This is an excellent way to use cherries from the farmers market and has become one of my all time favorite recipes. The bars are wonderfully chewy and dense. Totally delicious and I love that they are good for a few days!
Anonymous
Chicago
8/2/2007
WOW-this was amazing. I only had 2 cups of cherries and it turned out just fine. Also added a splash of kirsch to the juices = yummy. It was DEFINITELY better on the second and third days, so I would advise to make it at least a day before you plan to serve it (if you can wait that long before cutting into it!).
lesleyont
Ottawa, ON Canada
7/7/2006
Well, I made many modifications and this turned out pretty swell surprisingly enough. First off, I halved the recipe since I only had a smaller square pan. I reduced the butter and sugar by about 30% (I don't like my cake very sweet or oily). Lastly, I hate cleaning more bowls than necessary so I just dumped the cocoa mixture in with the flour, then added the butter/sugar/egg mixture to it. I baked it for about 30 mins and it turned out moist and delicious. Next time I will chop the cherries into smaller pieces so they are more evenly distributed.
Anonymous
Vancouver, BC
5/13/2005
Me and my family loved this cake and I will definitely make it again. I did make a few adjustments. I cut down the granulated sugar to 1/2 cups and brown sugar to 1 cup. Of course, we like deserts less sweet so this depends on taste. The biggest difference was definitely the cherry liqour. I added a tablespoon of cherry liqour to the 1/2 cup of reserved cherry juice and that has really enchanced the flavor.
Lal
London, UK
3/27/2005
Even though I had to substitute some of the ingredients (ie. couldn't find sour cherries and used bing instead; only had Dutch-process so had to use that one), this recipe turned out great! It was not overly sweet, but very rich and chocolatey. I can imagine how much better it would be if I could use sour cherries. I would definitely make it again.
ayse_lynn
San Francisco
9/7/2004
I'm a chocoholic so, when I pulled this cake from the oven and saw that it was dark and moist -- like a devil's food cake, I thought I would be in heaven. But the cake just didn't work for me. It seemed like something a young inexperienced baker would make. It was moist to the point of seeming undercooked and the cherry flavor was lacking. I put half the cake in the fridge and left the other half out, and tried both every day for three days. I did not think it improved at all with age. I did, though, prefer the refrigerated cake to room temp. I'm very glad that I did not make this for company!
Anonymous
Oakland, CA
7/11/2004
Just made these for some friends who will be stopping by tonight after dinner. They haven't had any yet, so they can't rate them, but I've eaten enough to say that I like them a lot! They've been in my refrigerator for two days, and although the cherry flavor isn't very pronounced (next time I'll add some kirsch to the batter before baking) they have a great chocolate/fudge flavor and are quite addictive! Will definitely make again...
Anonymous
Madison, WI
6/22/2004
This cake was a BIG hit when I brought it in to the office. People had difficulty leaving the room without going back to the pan for one more nibble. I used half tart cherries and half sweet cherries. I also substituted 1 cup of maple syrup for 1 cup of brown sugar. I will definately make this one again!
Anonymous
Cincinnati, OH
1/23/2004
As previous reviewers have stated, this cake gets better with age. The longer baking time is a must too . . . about 15 minutes more does it.
Barbara
New Jersey
8/22/2003
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