Dark Chocolate Cherry Cake with Warm Cherry Sauce
A tall cocoa cake with dark chocolate pieces and cherries, served with a warm cherry sauce made while the cake cools.
- Total
- 1 hr 15 min
- Prep
- 25 min
- Bake
- 50 min
- Level
- Medium
- Serves
- 10
- Tin
- 20 cm springform
The cake has a deep cocoa crumb with pieces of dark chocolate and cherries through the middle. The main thing to watch is the long bake in a deep tin, because the centre needs time to set.
The cherry sauce is cooked while the cake cools, then spooned over each slice at the table.
Ingredients
For one 20 cm springform, serves 10
For the cake
For the cherry sauce
You will need
- 20 cm round springform tin
- baking paper
- large mixing bowl
- balloon whisk
- rubber spatula
- saucepan
- skewer
Oven
175°C fan 155°C 345°F
Method
Oven 175°C · fan 155°C · 345°F
Prepare the batter base
Heat the oven to 175C, 155C fan. Line the springform tin with baking paper. Beat the softened butter and caster sugar with a balloon whisk until pale and creamy, then add the eggs gradually until the mixture looks smooth and glossy. The bowl should smell lightly buttery and the texture should hold soft peaks.
Tip Cold butter can leave small lumps that do not blend into the sugar, so check that the mixture feels smooth before adding the eggs.
Fold in the chocolate and cherries
Add the plain flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and soured cream to the bowl. Fold until the batter is thick and dark, then fold through the dark chocolate and dark cherries until the pieces are evenly spread.
Tip Stop folding when no dry flour remains, because extra mixing can make the crumb firmer.
Fill the tin
Spoon the batter into the lined springform tin and level the top with a spatula. The surface should look even, with small cherry and chocolate pieces visible beneath the dark cocoa batter.
Tip Push batter into the edges of the tin so the centre and sides bake at the same pace.
Bake the cake
Bake for 48 to 55 minutes. A skewer pushed into the middle comes out with a few damp crumbs, and the top springs back. The cake should smell of cocoa and baked cherries.
Tip Keep the cake in the oven until the middle has set, because a deep cake can look ready before the centre is baked.
Cool and release the cake
Leave the cake for 20 minutes in the tin, then remove the springform ring and place the cake on a serving plate. The sides should feel firm and the top should stay intact.
Tip Release the ring gently if the edge is still warm, as the crumb continues to firm while it cools.
Make the cherry sauce
While the cake cools, warm the dark cherries, caster sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan until the fruit softens and releases juice. Stir in the cornflour mixture until the sauce turns glossy and lightly thickened. It should be deep cherry red and pour slowly from a spoon.
Slice and serve
Cut a wedge from the cooled cake and pour the warm cherry sauce over each slice at the table. The crumb should feel soft and rich, with dark chocolate pieces and cherries visible inside.
Tip Use a sharp knife for clean slices, as the chocolate pieces can catch on a blunt edge.
Keep the remaining cake
Cover the remaining cake once it has cooled fully. Keep the sauce separate and warm it gently before serving again.
Baker's notes
- Use dark cherries with a firm texture so the fruit stays visible after baking.
- The sauce can be made while the cake cools and served warm over each slice.
- Allergens: contains dairy, egg and gluten. It also contains no nuts and no alcohol.
- A springform tin helps release this tall cake without turning it upside down.
Keeping it Keep the covered cake at room temperature for up to two days. Store the cherry sauce in the fridge and warm it gently before serving.
Questions, answered
Can I use frozen cherries in this cake?
Yes, thaw the cherries first and drain away excess liquid before folding them into the batter.
Can I make the cherry sauce ahead?
Yes, keep it covered in the fridge and warm it gently before pouring it over slices.
Why is this cake baked at a lower temperature?
The batter is deep in a single springform tin, so a longer bake helps the centre set without drying the edges.
Can I leave out the dark chocolate?
The cake can be made without the chocolate pieces, but the crumb will have a lighter chocolate flavour.
If it goes wrong
- It sank in the middleSeven causes, told apart by the shape of the crater.
- It came out raw in the centreBrown outside, wet inside, and how to rescue the one you are holding.
- The caramel seizedIt is almost always fixable. The lump re-melts.
