My maraschino cherry cake combines tasty chunks of sweet maraschino cherries in a tender white cake mix! Top it with my homemade cherry buttercream for a picture-perfect pink dessert that's ideal for Valentine's Day, birthday parties, or anyone who loves cherry flavor! Vintage heart cakes are trending right now, and this is the perfect cake mix to pour into your heart-shaped cake pans!
Try my cherry blossom cookies, chocolate maraschino cherry brownies, or maraschino cherry chocolate chip cookies if you're a cherry fanatic!
Jump to:
I'm 100% cherry obsessed! This homemade cherry cake mimics the flavor of my fave cherry chip cake mix that I traditionally pair with the neon pink canned cherry frosting.
This year, I swapped the canned frosting for my homemade maraschino cherry buttercream, and wow, this cake did not disappoint! The double dose of cherry flavor makes this cake unbeatable!
Pro Tip
For a truly 'copycat' version of cherry chip cake mix, rinse, dry, and finely chop the cherries. Spread on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and dehydrate at your lowest oven temperature for 5-6 hours. Check frequently and stir if needed to speed up the drying process.
🥘 Ingredients
Cherry Cake
- Cake Flour - Cake or all-purpose flour if you don't have it. You can make your own cake flour from all-purpose flour, too!
- Sugar - White granulated sugar or a suitable sugar substitute. Learn about all of the different types of sugar here!
- Baking Powder - Baking powder or a baking powder substitute to give your cake lift.
- Salt - Regular table salt works fine.
- Butter - Cold butter or a butter substitute cut into cubes.
- Eggs - Set your eggs out 30 minutes beforehand to take the chill off, then separate the whites.
- Almond Extract - Pure almond or vanilla extract works best.
- Milk - Room-temperature whole milk or your preferred milk substitute.
- Maraschino Cherry Juice - Reserved from the jar of cherries.
- Maraschino Cherries - Chopped into small pieces to fold into your cake batter.
Cherry Frosting
- Butter - For the frosting, set the butter out 30 minutes in advance to soften at room temperature.
- Maraschino Cherry Juice - It's a great recipe for using a whole jar of cherries!
- Cherry Extract (optional) - Optional for a stronger cherry flavor or if you don't have enough cherry juice.
- Neon Pink Gel Food Coloring (optional) - Add some food coloring for bright pink frosting!
- Cornstarch - Cornstarch or a cornstarch substitute to thicken the buttercream.
- Salt (optional) - Just a pinch to help balance the sweetness.
- Confectioner's Sugar - Also known as powdered sugar or a confectioner's sugar substitute.
- Maraschino Cherries (optional) - Finely diced to fold into the frosting or leave whole for decorating.
*Be sure to see the free printable recipe card below for ingredients, exact amounts & instructions with tips!*
🔪 How To Make Maraschino Cherry Cake with Cherry Frosting
It's a lot on paper, but the cherry cake and buttercream frosting are pretty simple(especially if you're familiar with baking cakes). Grab your measuring utensils, a stand mixer or a bowl and hand mixer, a silicone spatula, and two 8" or 9" cake pans to get started.
This recipe makes an 8" or 9" two-layer cake, one 9 x 13 single-layer cake, or 24 cupcakes!
Mix The Cherry Cake Batter
Step 1: Prep. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175℃/Gas Mark 4), then grease and flour your baking pans or coat them with non-stick baking spray.
Step 2: Combine dry ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, or the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the dry ingredients: 2 ¼ cups (281.25 grams) of cake flour or all-purpose flour, 1 ¾ cups (350 grams) of sugar, 1 tablespoon of baking powder, and ½ teaspoon of salt.
Step 3: Add butter. Add 1 cup (227 grams) of cold, cubed butter and combine on medium speed (or with a pastry cutter) until you have small, pea-size butter crumbs in your dry mixture, about 1-2 minutes.
Step 4: Mix in eggs and extract. Add 6 large egg whites and 2 teaspoons of almond extract, and continue mixing at medium speed until all the dry ingredients are just incorporated.
Step 5: Add Liquid. Add ½ cup (118.29 milliliters) of milk into the cake batter and then mix until smooth. Add the ½ cup (59.15 milliliters) of maraschino cherry juice and mix until smooth again (about 1 minute).
Step 6: Fold in cherries. Fold in the chopped 1 cup (236.59 grams) of Maraschino cherries until evenly distributed in the batter.
Bake Cherry Cake
Step 7: Bake. Pour your cake batter (divided equally) into your prepared baking pans and bake at 350°F (175°C/Gas Mark 4) for 27-32 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean from the center of your cake.
Step 8: Cool. Allow your cakes to cool in the pans for about 5 minutes before removing them. Transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely before frosting.
Make Maraschino Cherry Buttercream
Step 9: Cream butter and cherry juice. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the softened 1 cup (227 grams) of butter ¼ cup (59.15 milliliters) of maraschino cherry juice, and the optional 1 teaspoon of cherry extract and neon pink gel food coloring if using. *It may not combine immediately; just keep mixing at medium speed for 3-4 minutes.
Step 10: Gradually mix in sugar. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl as you mix. Add just a portion of the 4 cups (480 grams) of confectioners' sugar, 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, and the optional pinch of salt. Mix on low speed, slowly adding the remaining confectioner's sugar until it has all been incorporated.
Step 11: Whip. Increase the speed to medium/medium-high and whip the frosting for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy. Then, fold in the chopped 8 maraschino cherries if using.
Frost, Decorate, & Serve
Step 12: Frost and serve. Spread or pipe your frosting onto your completely cooled maraschino cherry cakes or cupcakes. Garnish with additional cherries if desired, slice, and serve.
💭 Angela's Pro Tips & Recipe Notes
- Salt is optional. The pinch of salt in the buttercream cuts through some of the sweetness. It's optional but adds balance!
- Dry cherries for best results. To keep the chopped maraschino cherries from sinking to the bottom of your cakes, dry the cherries as best as possible before chopping. Then coat in 2 tablespoons of flour and set aside until ready to fold into your cake mix.
- Cherry extract and food coloring work in a pinch. If you don't have cherries or cherry juice, you can get the same effect with cherry extract and red food coloring (gel coloring or liquid drops). The flavor is better with the real thing, but it works in a pinch!
- Let your cake cool! Make sure your cake has cooled completely before frosting, or it can melt and slide off. For tips on frosting your cake with easy-to-follow instructions, see my guide to frosting cakes here!
- Skip the cherry chunks if piping your buttercream. The frosting can have chopped cherries if you spread the frosting or use a large open-tip piping nozzle. The cherry chunks can get stuck if you're using small piping tips.
- Double the buttercream as needed! This frosting amount covers a 9x13 cake, can fill a 2-layer 8" or 9" cake, and can frost up to 24 cupcakes. Double the frosting batch to frost a cake with 3 layers or more.
🥡 Storing
The frosting can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 month. The Maraschino cherry cake can be kept in a sealed, airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for 5.
Freezing
Wrap your cake (whole or slices) tightly in two layers of plastic cling wrap (this is best done before frosting). Freeze for up to 3 months and thaw in the fridge overnight before frosting or eating.
Do you love a recipe you tried? Please leave a 5-star 🌟rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page.
Stay in touch with me through social media @ Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter! Subscribe to the newsletter today (no spam, I promise)! Don't forget to tag me when you try one of my recipes!
📖 Recipe Card
Maraschino Cherry Cake with Cherry Frosting
Ingredients
Cherry Cake
- 2¼ cups cake flour (or all-purpose flour)
- 1¾ cups sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup butter (cold, cubed)
- 6 large egg whites (at room temperature)
- 2 teaspoon almond extract (or vanilla extract)
- ½ cup milk (at room temperature)
- ½ cup maraschino cherry juice (reserved from cherries)
- 1 cup maraschino cherries (chopped)
Cherry Frosting
- 1 cup butter (softened, at room temperature)
- ¼ cup maraschino cherry juice (reserved from cherries for cake)
- 1 teaspoon cherry extract (optional)
- neon pink gel food coloring (optional, for pink frosting)
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 pinch salt (optional, to taste)
- 4 cups confectioners sugar
- 8 maraschino cherries (optional, finely diced or leave whole for decorating)
(Note: 2x or 3x only changes the ingredient list)
Instructions
Make Cherry Cake Batter
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175℃/Gas Mark 4), then grease and flour your baking pans or coat them with non-stick baking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, or the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the dry ingredients: 2¼ cups cake flour or all-purpose flour, 1¾ cups sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder, and ½ teaspoon salt.
- Add the cold, cubed 1 cup butter and combine on medium speed (or with a pastry cutter) until you have small, pea-size butter crumbs in your dry mixture, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add the 6 large egg whites and 2 teaspoon almond extract, and continue mixing at medium speed until all the dry ingredients are just incorporated.
- Add ½ cup milk into the cake batter and then mix until smooth. Add the ½ cup maraschino cherry juice and mix until smooth again (about 1 minute).
- Fold in the chopped 1 cup maraschino cherries until evenly distributed in the batter.
Bake Cherry Cake
- Pour your cake batter (divided equally) into your prepared baking pans and bake at 350°F (175°C/Gas Mark 4) for 27-32 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean from the center of your cake.
- Allow your cake(s) to cool in the pans for about 5 minutes before removing from the pans and transferring to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Make Maraschino Cherry Buttercream
- In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the softened 1 cup butter ¼ cup maraschino cherry juice, and the optional 1 teaspoon cherry extract and neon pink gel food coloring if using. *It may not combine right away, just keep mixing at medium speed for 3-4 minutes.
- Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl as you mix. Add just a portion of the 4 cups confectioners sugar, all of the 1 tablespoon cornstarch, and the optional 1 pinch salt. Mix on low speed, slowly adding the remaining confectioner's sugar until it has all been incorporated.
- Increase the speed to medium/medium-high and whip the frosting for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy. Then, fold in the chopped 8 maraschino cherries if using.
Frost, Decorate, & Serve
- Spread or pipe your frosting onto your completely cooled maraschino cherry cakes or cupcakes. Garnish with additional cherries if desired, slice, and serve.
Notes
- The pinch of salt in the buttercream is simply to cut through some of the sweetness. It's optional but adds balance!
- To keep the chopped maraschino cherries from sinking to the bottom of your cakes, dry the cherries as best as possible before chopping. Then coat in 2 tablespoons of flour and set aside until ready to fold into your cake mix.
- If you don't have cherries or cherry juice, you can get the same effect with cherry extract and red food coloring (gel coloring or liquid drops). The flavor is better with the real thing, but it works in a pinch!
- Make sure your cake has cooled completely before frosting, or it can melt and slide off. For tips on frosting your cake with easy-to-follow instructions, see my guide to frosting cakes here!
- The frosting can have chopped cherries if you spread the frosting or use a large open-tip piping nozzle. The cherry chunks can get stuck if you're using small piping tips.
- This frosting amount covers a 9x13 cake, can fill a 2-layer 8" or 9" cake, and can frost up to 24 cupcakes. You will need to double the frosting batch to frost a cake with 3 layers or more.
- For a truly 'copycat' version of cherry chip cake mix, rinse, dry, and finely chop the cherries. Spread on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and dehydrate at your lowest oven temperature for about 5-6 hours. Check frequently and stir if needed to speed up the drying process.
- The frosting can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 month. The Maraschino cherry cake can be kept in a sealed, airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for 5.
- Wrap your cake (whole or slices) tightly in two layers of plastic cling wrap (this is best done before frosting). Freeze for up to 3 months and thaw in the fridge overnight before frosting or eating.
Comments
No Comments