Chocolate Cherry Cake

There’s something about cherry and chocolate that just go perfectly together. This chocolate cherry cake is my take on a traditional black forest cake (minus the alcohol). It’s light, not super sweet, and makes a great celebration cake (whether that’s a birthday or just a Tuesday).

This chocolate cake is my all time favorite to make. It is so light and moist that it goes with just about any topping. Adding the cherry filling takes your chocolate cake up a notch, making it the perfect birthday cake or Valentine’s Day.

Table of Contents:

Ingredient List:

For the chocolate cake you’ll need:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 7 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup hot water

For the cherry jam filling you’ll need:

• 1 cup frozen cherries
• 1/2 cup sugar

For the whipped cream frosting you’ll need:

• 1 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 3/4 cup powdered sugar (or to taste)

Jump to Recipe

Step-by-Step Instructions

First, make the cherry jam filling

If you are making your own filling, make that first as it need time to simmer on the stove.

Simply place 1 cup of frozen cherries (or mixed berries) in a small pot with 1/2 cup of sugar and cook on medium heat.

Bring jam to a boil (about 5-10 minutes). When it’s boiling, lower the temperature to low heat and simmer for at least 20-30 minutes (while you are making your cake). Once the mixture has thickened (it won’t be as thick as jam), remove from heat, pour it into a bowl, and chill for 1 hour. 

Now on to the cake!

Combine dry ingredients in one medium mixing bowl. Whisk together.

In a large bowl, add the wet ingredients (except the hot water) and mix together.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix to combine. Finally, add the hot water at the end. The batter will be very thin. This step is optional but I’d highly recommend it. The hot water allows the cocoa powder to “bloom” and produce a rich chocolatey flavor. 

Bake at 300F for approximately 22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. The tops will be a bit shiny and the cake will still be “singing” at you, but that is because there is so much moisture in the cake.

Baking it at this low temperature ensures that the tops of the cake will be flat vs rounded. (Fun fact: Higher temperature ovens make the rising agents react faster and therefore give you a rounded top).

Leave the cakes in the tins for 5 mins or so to let them cool before placing on a cooling rack.

Whipped Cream

For this cake, I’m using whipped cream frosting to make it more like a Black Forest Cake (minus the alcohol). Mix heavy whipping cream on high speed for about 2 minutes until it starts to get thick and fluffy. Add in the vanilla and powdered sugar (in stages).

I like my whipped cream frosting not sweet so I only use enough powdered sugar to taste (about ½ – ¾ cups).  

Assembly

Once everything is cooled and chilled, you can start assembling the cake in any way you’d like. 

Pro tip: Spread frosting across the entire middle layer of the cake before placing the cherry filling (otherwise it can bleed into the cake). Pipe a border of frosting around the outside as a barrier so the cherry filling doesn’t spill over the edge.

Jump to Recipe

Variations & Substitutions

Use store bought cherry pie filling. If you don’t have time to make your own jam, that’s totally understandable! You definitely need some time on your hands to make it. Just use cherry pie filling and it will be just as delicious. It will be sweeter though, so you may want to drain some of the syrup.

Make jam sweeter. I don’t like my filling super sweet so instead of doing a 1:1 ratio like most recipes will say, I leave mine on the stove for a bit longer to thicken up and I put it in the fridge for an hour before using it. If you’d like a traditional filling feel free to use a 1:1 frozen fruit to sugar ratio and cut the cooking time in half. 

Don’t have buttermilk on hand? No worries. Just take any milk (even non-dairy milk) and add a splash of lemon juice (about 1 tbsp). Let sit for 5 minutes and use like buttermilk. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Looking for more cake recipes? Check out my Best Chocolate Cupcakes, Toffee Nut Latte Cupcakes, or Lemon and Elderflower Cake.

Last Updated on January 8, 2023 by Kari Bakes