Cherries and chocolate

I love a good, moist chocolate cake. I don’t make them often, but it’s nice knowing there’s one waiting for me in the kitchen when I really, really want something sweet and it has to be chocolate.

Over the weekend, I tried a very easy recipe for Chocolate Covered Cherry Cake that is made with no oil. The name alone convinced me to try it because I do love chocolate covered cherries!

Then I saw how easy the recipe was (four ingredients) and decided to make it for our Mother’s Day Batts family gathering Saturday night and offer it alongside a dessert fruit pizza.

This is how simple it is. You mix together in a bowl a box of devil’s food cake mix, a can of cherry pie filling, 2 eggs and a teaspoon of almond flavoring. Mix it and bake it and glaze or frost it, and you’re done. I put a simple chocolate glaze on my cake.

Most of my guests decided to have a slice of both desserts, and I don’t remember seeing anything left on their plates.

I found the recipe for this easy cake in a cookbook from the Tar River Piecemaker Guilting Guild that’s no longer available, but after researching a little, I found out it was the 1974 Pillsbury Bake-Off Grand Prize winner. That cake was named Chocolate Cherry Bars and featured a glaze as well that sounds much sweeter than the one I make.

If you want a simple dessert for a birthday party or just a family meal, give this easy cake a try.


Chocolate Covered Cherry Cake

• 1 18.25 oz. box devil's food cake mix
• 1 21 oz. can cherry pie filling
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon almond extract

With a mixer, combine all ingredients in a bowl for 2 minutes until combined.

Pour into a 13X9-inch pan prepared with cooking spray.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.



Chocolate Glaze

• 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pour chocolate chips and butter into microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 1 minute. Stir until chips are blended. Mix in honey and vanilla extract. Frost cake or cupcakes.