Cherry Swirl Cake

  • Cherry Swirl Cake

    It’s fun to cheat sometimes, isn’t it?  (Except in marriages, I suppose.  Or as a med student taking an exam in a really important course that might matter one day- like, say, the one called “How To Not Kill People”.)

    But when it comes to baking, cheating has low stakes.  Most of the time no one will know you’ve made something from a mix or a can, and even if they do find out, most people won’t care.  So if the 25% of the assholes left in this equation judge you for cracking open a can of cherry pie filling (like I did in this recipe) to swirl into a vanilla-almond cake batter, then they shouldn’t be eating your dessert in the first place.  Yank the cake out of their mouths if you sense a sneer.

    Making things from scratch is noble and fine, but not everyone has the time to be Martha Stewart with every baking event.  Today, for example, I woke up and knew I wanted to bake, but didn’t have the energy or desire to slave over both the cake batter and the pie filling.  So I compromised and made the batter on my own.  Maybe you’ll be smarter than me and make both from a mix/can.  Cheaters unite!

     

    Adapted from King Arthur Flour’s recipe…

    2 cups sugar

    3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

    2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

    1 teaspoon salt

    3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

    1 1/4 cups milk, at room temperature

    2 teaspoons vanilla extract

    1 teaspoon almond extract

    4 large eggs, at room temperature

    1 can cherry pie filling

    1. Preheat oven to 350°F.  Lightly grease a 9 x 13″ pan and set aside.
    2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt.  (I know, it’s weird to add the sugar in at this point.  Do it.)
    3. Add the butter and beat at low speed, until the mixture looks sandy.
    4. In a measuring cup, combine the milk, vanilla and almond extract, and add to mixing bowl, all at once.  Mix at low speed for 30 seconds, then increase the speed to medium and beat for 30 seconds (scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl once or twice throughout).
    5. With the mixer running at low speed, add 1 egg.  Increase the speed to medium and beat for 30 seconds.  Repeat this procedure with the remaining eggs (scraping the bottom and sides of bowl after each addition), until all 4 are added.  Beat at medium-high speed for 30 seconds.
    6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.  Scoop cherry pie filling over top of cake in about 15 large blobs; run a sharp knife through the blobs to gently swirl the cherry filling through the batter without stirring it in.
    7. Bake for 55 – 60 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack.

    Tips:

    • This is one of the strangest ways to make cake.  I have never added the ingredients in this order before (usually you cream the butter and sugar, then add eggs, then alternate the dry & wet stuff), so it’s blowing my mind about all the baking science I thought I knew.  Nothing is what it seems.
    • Want a different flavor of cake?  I couldn’t help but notice, in the baking aisle this morning, the plethora of canned pie filling choices.  The Husband wanted cherry, but we could totally have done blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, peach, and even apple.  Wow.  Endless ways to cheat.  (Omit the almond extract if using any flavor other than cherry.)
    • No almond extract?  It’s okay to skip it.  I think almond and cherry go like gangbusters together, but it won’t kill you to leave it out.
    • The cherry filling will sink into the cake.  I thought the cherries would stay on top and look all pretty, but they sunk under the weight of their greatness.  The swirl marks do remain, though (see picture above).
    • I would totally have added a glaze if I had confectioners’ sugar in the house.  I’d have mixed 2 cups with a tablespoon of milk or water, a drop or two of almond extract, and poured it over the cake while it was still warm.  Oh.  My.
    • Serve with vanilla ice cream.
    • Yes, this freezes well.
    • Enjoy!

     

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    March 28th, 2015 | More Sweets Please | No Comments | Tags: ,

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