Description
This Cherry Chip Cake is a delightful and moist white cake filled with chopped maraschino cherries and infused with cherry juice for an extra burst of flavor. Topped with a rich and creamy cherry buttercream frosting, this cake is perfect for any celebration or special occasion. Easy to prepare and beautifully decorated with reserved cherries, it serves 16 slices of sweet cherry goodness.
Ingredients
Scale
Cake
- 15.25 ounce white cake mix
- 10 ounces maraschino cherries chopped, save juice (save some cherries for garnish)
- ½ cup butter
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup milk
- ½ cup cherry juice reserved from above
Cherry Buttercream Frosting
- 2 sticks unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 2 pounds powdered sugar
- 6 tablespoons milk
- 2 tablespoons maraschino cherry juice from above
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit to get it ready for baking the cake layers.
- Melt Butter: Melt ½ cup of butter until fully liquid and set aside for mixing.
- Prepare Cherries: Rinse and dry off the maraschino cherries, then chop them finely. Reserve some whole cherries for garnishing later.
- Mix Cake Batter: In a large mixing bowl, combine the white cake mix, chopped cherries, melted butter, 3 eggs, ½ cup milk, and ½ cup reserved cherry juice. Mix until all ingredients are well incorporated.
- Prepare Cake Pans: Spray two 8 or 9 inch cake pans with non-stick spray to prevent sticking.
- Divide Batter: Divide the cake batter evenly between the two prepared pans, spreading it out smoothly.
- Bake Cake: Bake the cakes in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool Cakes: Let the cakes cool slightly in the pans before removing them onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Make Frosting: In a large bowl, combine the softened unsalted butter, powdered sugar, 6 tablespoons of milk, and 2 tablespoons of maraschino cherry juice. Beat until smooth and fluffy.
- Assemble Cake: Place one cooled cake layer on your cake plate and spread a generous amount of frosting on top.
- Stack Layers: Place the second cake layer on top and frost the entire cake evenly.
- Decorate Cake: Using a piping bag fitted with a star tip, pipe frosting around the top and bottom edges of the cake for decoration.
- Garnish: Decorate the cake with the reserved whole maraschino cherries on top.
- Serve: Slice the cake into 16 pieces and serve to enjoy the delicious cherry chip cake.
Notes
- Be sure to reserve the cherry juice when draining the maraschino cherries; it adds great flavor to both the cake and frosting.
- If you prefer a more intense cherry flavor, soak the chopped cherries in the cherry juice for 10 minutes before adding them to the batter.
- For easier spreading and piping of frosting, make sure the butter is at room temperature.
- You can substitute the white cake mix with a homemade white cake batter if preferred.
- Store leftover cake covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days to keep it fresh.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 400 kcal
- Sugar: 50 g
- Sodium: 280 mg
- Fat: 16 g
- Saturated Fat: 9 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 62 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 70 mg
