Cherry Chip Cake

Moist cherry chip cake with Maraschino cherries and the lush buttery frosting is an easy dessert for Valentine’s Day and cherry lovers.

My trick to whip the whole cake quickly is to use white cake mix for the cake base, and the best tip to keep the cake layer from drying out is to use some Maraschino cherry juice.

I am all for shortcuts so this recipe doesn’t require you to make the cake from scratch, figuring out how to properly measure the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and so on.

The cake mixes nowadays are amazing and you can always make them taste even better at home by simply adding some milk, eggs, and butter (or oil).

And the cherry flavor all comes from one can – the can of Maraschino cherries, as we can use both cherries and juice. Again, it means, we don’t need to pick good cherries, wash them, pit them, etc.

Plus, let’s be honest, there is no guarantee all of the fresh cherries we picked are sweet…

The cake is beautiful in its simplicity and will make a nice nostalgic dessert for your loved ones. Let’s get to it, we have 1.5 hr to whip up a majestic 2-layer cake with proper frosting!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Beautiful and delicious cake for St Valentine’s Day
• Super budget-friendly cake with minimum ingredients
• Packed with cherry flavors and can easily be customized with more flavors and decorations.
• Classic, old-school, layered cake that will easily feed up to 16 people. So if not for Valentine’s, it will be fantastic for a Galentine celebration with your best friends.

Ingredients Notes

The cake and frosting use pretty much the same simple ingredients and the whole cake recipe only calls for 5-6 [antry staples.

Cake

• White cake mix is much easier to find than Betty Crocker’s cherry chip cake mix with pudding in it and yet, white cake mix yields amazing cake flavors too.
• Maraschino cherries chopped (save the juice and a few cherries for garnish). I don’t like using fresh cherries in this cake: they sink, may lose their shape, and color, and can have excess liquid in them which can make the cake soggy. However, fresh cherries will be great for decorating! Maraschino cherries use Royall Ann, Gold, and Rainier cherries and come preserved and sweetened. If no fresh cherries or Maraschino are available, use candied cherries.
• Melted butter. You can use vegetable oil instead but I love the flavors and richness butter adds. Nothing beats that for me.
• Eggs and Milk are what give the layers structure and moisture, they elevate the boxed cake mix and make the cake taste homemade.
• Reserved cherry juice from the maraschino cherries

As you can see I don’t use added granulated sugar for the cake. It will be sweet, as the mix already has sugar.

Cherry Frosting 

• Confectioner’s sugar. Powdered sugar works too.
• Unsalted butter softened to room temperature
• Milk
• Maraschino cherry juice (reserved from cherries)

Kitchen Equipment

• Two 8” or 9” cake pans
• Electric mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment
• Piping bag with a star tip
• Mixing bowls or the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl with a hand mixer)
• Offset spatula and rubber spatula for decorating

How To Make Cherry Chip Cake 

Making cherry chip cake is super easy: you bake two cake layers, whip the cherry frosting, layer the frosting in between cake layers, and top the cake with more frosting and pretty cherries. That’s it!

1: Prepare Cake Batter

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Rinse and pat dry the cherries. Rough chop and then set aside a paper towel until ready to use.
3. Prep two 8” or 9” cake pans – grease, line the bottom with parchment paper, and grease again. Set aside.
4. Combine the cake mix, chopped Maraschino cherries, melted butter, eggs, milk, and reserved cherry juice in a large mixing bowl – beating until thoroughly mixed. (approx 60-90 seconds on med-high)
5. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans.

2: Bake The Cake Layers

1. Bake for 22-25 minutes or until the toothpick inserted returns clean. You can also gently press the center of the cakes with your finger. If it springs back, they are done.
2. Cool in the pans for about 15 minutes. Then flip them out onto a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.

3: Make The Frosting

1. Combine the confectioner’s sugar with the butter in a separate bowl. Gently mix on low speed until the butter starts to absorb the sugar. 
2. Add the milk and cherry juice and then increase the speed to medium speed – whipping until light and fluffy.

4: Decorate

1. Place one of the cake layers (the bottom layer) on the serving plate. 
2. Spread some of the frosting into an even layer on top – it should be about ¼” thick – as this will serve as the filling.
3. Place the other layer of cake on top.
4. Spread the frosting in a thin coat all over the whole cake. It’s okay to see the cake through the frosting – this will be your crumb coat. This is what seals in the crumbs.

5: Chill The Cake

1. Refrigerate or freeze the cake until the frosting firms – approx 30 minutes.
2. Once the cake is chilled, remove it and then add the decorative coat of frosting all over the cake in a smooth, even layer.
3. Use a piping bag fitted with a star tip to pipe along the top and bottom of the cake however you desire.
4. Garnish with the reserved cherries before serving.

Storage

Leftovers can be kept refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

I like to wrap the cake with plastic wrap – keeping the plastic touching any areas of the inside of the cake – this is the part that will dry out over time.

Once wrapped in plastic, then add a layer of foil around that. This will keep the cake as fresh as possible until you serve it again.

Remove from the fridge and allow the cake to come to room temperature again before serving. The frosting will be so much creamier if it isn’t chilled. 

You can freeze cherry chip cake for 3 months tightly wrapped.

To This Cake Make Ahead

Prepare the cake batter and bake the cake layers. Store refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for 3 months until ready to assemble. Make the frosting and finish the cake.

The frosting can be made 2 weeks ahead of time. It is best to beat the frosting again before assembling.

Substitutions & Variations

• Swap the cake mix with any other cake mix or make the flour mixture from scratch. You can use all-purpose flour or cake flour for that. Making from scratch you can use sour cream to make extra moist cake layers.
• Different frosting ideas: buttercream (vanilla or plain), chocolate frosting, cream cheese frosting, cherry icing, and so on. Of course, you can add sprinkles, whipped topping, edible flowers, and cherries on top.
• You can use pink or red food coloring to tint cake layers.
• Add extracts. Cherry extract, vanilla extract, or almond extract are great flavors.
• Add chocolate chips! Chopped cherries and chocolate chips make an amazing flavor and texture combination for the cake layers. You can use semi-sweet, dark, or even white chocolate chips. You can also add chopped nuts to the cake batter.
• Make it in a Bundt pan! Bundt cake always looks stunning and the pans have different patterns. Plus, it is easy to make and you can still pour frosting on top.

Expert Tips To Make The Best Cake

• The simple cake test works for me, we just need to make sure the toothpick or skewer inserted comes out clean. But if you want precise science, use a thermometer and look for 190-200°F.
• You can use a food processor or chopper to quickly chop cherries.
• I use whole eggs instead of egg whites and find it best for making airy cake layers.
• The crumb is really tender and moist in this cake, use really sharp knife to slice it.

Popular Questions

How Do You Keep Cherries From Sinking Into A Cherry Cake?

Use maraschino cherries – they don’t sink and hold color and shape perfectly in the cake batter. Also, make thinner cake layers, to not leave much space for cherries to sink.

Can Maraschino Cherries Be Used In Baking?

Yes! Make sure to remove stems and chop them if adding to the cake batter. You can also use Maraschino cherry juice in baking cakes or making frosting.

If you love this cake recipe, you’re going to love these other awesome cakes too. Please click each link below to find the easy, printable recipe!

More Great Recipes with Cherries

Cherry Pie Bars

Choc-O-Cherry Ice Cream

Chocolate Oreo Cherry Coke Cake

Easy Cherry Pie – Air Fryer

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