Cherry Cake (Almond Flour)
An ultra tender, delicate, moist and light crumb, with just the right balance of sweet, this homemade cherry almond cake recipe is easy to pull together and freezer friendly, least you attempt to eat it all in one setting (seriously). The cherries turn into soft, jammy goodness and the crumb is the most tender of crumbs with a nice texture thanks in part to almond flour. A sprinkle of sugar on the batter pre-bake turns into a thin layer of crackly crust. My heart is all a flutter.
2 cups sweet cherries, such as Bing (300 g)
½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature or ½ cup unrefined coconut oil, melted (113 g)
¾ cup cane sugar (165 g)
lemon zest, freshly grated
2 tsp. lemon juice, freshly squeezed (~ ½ lemon)
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
¼ tsp. pure almond extract
2 whole eggs large, at room temperature
¾ cup all-purpose flour, unbleached (110 g)
¼ cup almond flour (30 g)
1 tsp. baking powder
⅛ tsp. fine sea salt
Garnish:
1½ Tbsp. cane sugar
Using unsalted butter or coconut oil, grease an 8" (20 centimeter) non stick spring form or cake pan. Line the bottom with parchment. grease the parchment. Set aside.
Pit and Slice the Cherries:
Cut about a hand full in halves about ¼ cup), set aside. Cut the remaining in quarters. The halves will be used to dot the top of the cake with so keep those separate. The quarters will be folded into the cake. Set aside.
Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4). Arrange an oven rack in the center of the oven.
If Using Butter: In the bowl of a stand mixer add the room temperature butter and sugar. Set a timer for 5 minutes and using the paddle attachment (or handheld beaters), beat on medium (speed 4 if using a KitchenAid) for five minutes. The mixture will be light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl.
If Using Coconut Oil: In a large mixing bowl, add the melted coconut oil (it should be warm to touch) and sugar. Using a whisk, beat the mixture until the sugar is smooth and the ingredients come together, about 1-2 minutes. (You can use a stand mixer or handheld beaters here if you like). Scrape down the bowl.
To the sugar/fat mixture, add the lemon zest and juice and extracts. Add eggs, one at a time and whisk for about 10-15 seconds each or until each egg is broken up. The mixture will look broken at this point. Scrape down the bowl, all the way to the bottom. Into the mixing bowl, sift in the flours, baking powder and salt. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until combined and no more dry flour is visible. The batter will be thick. Fold the quartered cherries into the batter.
Scrape the batter into the pan, pressing it in and evenly smooth the top. Arrange the halved cherries on top of the cake, cut side facing up or down (no need to press them in - just set them on top - the cake will bake up and around them). Sprinkle the top of the cake with 1½ Tbsp. of sugar.
Bake the cake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top is golden and springs back when gentle pressure is applied.
Cool for 20 minutes. Use a pairing knife to ease the cake away from the pan around the circumference of the pan, then remove the cake from the pan. Cool completely on a cooling rack.
Share simply or top with a dollop of sweetened whipped cream or ice cream. Store at room temperature, covered for up to three days. Reheat in a 325°F oven for about 10 minutes.
Cook's Notes:
- Use firm, fresh cherries. Older fruit tends to be softer and juicier.
- Employ an oven thermometer. New and old ovens alike vary in calibration. An oven thermometer will allow you to know the exact internal temperature of your oven, and you can adjust if necessary. It's essential in every baker's kitchen.
- Use a kitchen scale if you can to weigh your ingredients. It's more accurate than volume measurements, reason professional bakers weigh their ingredients.
- Use the toothpick test to see if your cake is done. When a toothpick is inserted in the cake, it should come out with very few crumbs, if any on it. You may have to poke around to avoid poking into a cherry.
- Keep the oven door closed until the last minutes of baking to do the toothpick test.
- Allow your cake to cool in the pan for 20 minutes. Once out of the pan, allow the cake to cool completely at room temperature before removing the bottom part of the spring form pan and/or cutting into into the cake. Cooling is an important part of crumb development in baked goods (it even has a name, carryover).
- Use room temperature ingredients.
- Once completely cool, Sweet Cherry Almond Cake freezes with ease. Wrap snugly in cling wrap or foil, then freeze for up to two weeks. Thaw at room temperature.