This rich and moist chocolate cherry cake is seriously delish! Layers of soft chocolate buttermilk cake are layered with a chocolatey buttercream frosting and sweet cherry jam. For a pop of freshness, chocolate cherry cake is finished with sweet cherries and blackberries.
How to Make Chocolate Cherry Cake
This crazy delicious recipe consists of three main components – chocolate buttermilk cake, easy chocolate buttercream and cherry jam. For the sake of convenience, I used store-bought cherry jam; however, you may use your favorite homemade cherry jam if preferred.
What Makes this Recipe So Good?
- Moist chocolate buttermilk cake
- Sweet and flavorful cherry jam
- Rich and chocolatey buttercream
- Fresh cherries and blackberries balances out the richness of cake
Chocolate Buttermilk Cake
This chocolate buttermilk cake recipe is incredibly moist and packed with rich chocolate flavor. I prefer to use Dutch-processed cocoa powder in my chocolate cake recipes. In particular, I prefer this brand because it adds a deep and rich chocolate flavor in my bakes. To make chocolate cake recipe, you will need:
Key Ingredients
- Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder
- Baking Soda
- Salt
- Granulated Sugar
- Eggs
- Buttermilk
- Coffee
- Neutral Flavored Oil
- Vanilla Extract
Tips for Making Moist and Flavorful Chocolate Cake
- Use Room Temperature Ingredients – given the thinner consistency of chocolate cake batter in general, using room temperature ingredients will make it easier to mix ingredients into a smooth batter. Additionally, it reduces the risk of over mixing or ending up with clumps of unmixed ingredients in batter.
- Coffee is Essential – traditionally, most chocolate cake recipes call for using water, but I prefer to use coffee. Essentially, coffee helps to enhance the natural flavor of chocolate in desserts. You do not actually taste the coffee; just amazing chocolate flavor!
- Use Good Quality Cocoa Powder – since the only form of chocolate in this cake recipe is cocoa powder, it is important to use good quality cocoa powder for the best chocolate flavor in cake. I always use Dutch-processed cocoa powder in my recipes because I find that it results in bakes with a more dark and rich chocolatey cake. My preferred cocoa powder options are Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa Powder or Ghirardelli cocoa powder.
- Do not Overmix Batter – this may seem obvious but with chocolate cakes it is so easy to overmix the batter due to its thinner consistency. I recommend mixing ingredients just to the point where you have a smooth lump-free batter. Over mixing cake batter will not only result in a less moist cake (due to the over development of gluten in the flour) but will create bubbles in batter resulting in air pockets in the final bake.
Easy Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
This chocolate buttercream recipe is packed with amazing chocolate flavor and can be whipped up within minutes! The chocolate flavor in this buttercream comes from cocoa powder which I find works best in this recipe.
As with my chocolate cake, I prefer to use Dutch-processed cocoa powder for its more dark and rich flavor. I particularly love Hershey’s 100% Special Dark Dutched-processed cocoa powder but any good quality Dutch-processed cocoa powder will work. Since Dutch-processed cocoa powder has a richer, darker color and chocolate flavor, I use half the amount of cocoa powder compared to most traditional recipes using natural cocoa powder.
To buttercream recipe, you will need:
Key Ingredients
- Unsalted Butter
- Confectioners’ (Powdered) Sugar
- Dutch-Processed Cocoa Powder
- Heavy Whipping Cream
- Vanilla Extract
- Salt, Optional
Chocolate buttercream comes together easily by mixing the butter and salt together until thick and fluffy in appearance. Next, the confectioners’ sugar and cocoa powder are mixed into the butter mixture until combined. Buttercream is finished by mixing in the heavy cream and vanilla extract. The resulting buttercream should be smooth and thick with a spreadable consistency.
Chocolate Cake with Cherry Jam Assembly
- Level the cooled chocolate cakes
- Place the first cake layer on a serving platter/plate
- Transfer a 1/3 of the buttercream to a pastry bag fitted with a round pastry piping tip
- Pipe a thin layer of buttercream over the entire surface of the cake
- Pipe a border over piped buttercream layer
- Fill border with cherry jam
- Place second cake layer over the first layer
- Frost the entire cake with remaining buttercream
- Top cake with fresh cherries and berries, optional
How to Store Cake
- Chocolate cherry cake is best eaten the day it is baked. Leftover cake stored in an airtight container will last 2-3 days in the fridge and 1-2 month in the freezer. When ready to serve frozen cake, thaw overnight in the fridge to restore soft texture.
- Chocolate buttermilk cake may be baked in advance. Once cooled to room temperature, tightly wrap in plastic/cling wrap and keep in the fridge for up to 2-3 days or in the freezer for up to 1-2 months.
- Chocolate buttercream may be prepared in advance. To store, transfer to an airtight container and keep refrigerated for up to 5 days. When ready to use, thaw at room temperature until soft enough to re-whip and pipe. This can take anywhere between 30-90 minutes depending on the warmth of your kitchen.
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If you make this recipe, please make sure to let me know by tagging me @nourishedendeavors on Instagram or by leaving a comment in the comment section down below so I can find out how this recipe turned out for you! If you have any questions, ask away! I would love to answer your questions! Happy baking!
PrintChocolate Cherry Cake
This rich and moist chocolate cherry cake is seriously delish! Layers of soft chocolate buttermilk cake are layered with a chocolatey buttercream frosting and sweet cherry jam. For a pop of freshness, chocolate cherry cake is finished with sweet cherries and blackberries.
- Prep Time: 2 Hours
- Cook Time: 30 Minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 6–8 Slices 1x
Ingredients
Chocolate Buttermilk Cake
- 1 1/2 Cups (195g) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour, Spooned and Leveled
- 6 Tablespoons (30g) Unsweetened Dutch-Processed Cocoa Powder
- 3/4 Teaspoon Baking Powder
- 3/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
- 1 Cup (200g) Granulated Sugar
- 2 Large Eggs, Room Temperature
- 3/4 Cup (177ml) Buttermilk, Room Temperature
- 6 Tablespoons (90ml) Coffee/Espresso, Room Temperature
- 6 Tablespoons (90ml) Neutral Flavored Oil i.e. Vegetable Oil
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- 1 Cup (226g) Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature, Slightly Firm to Touch
- 2 Cups (240g) Confectioners’ (Powdered) Sugar, Sifted, Plus More as Needed
- 1/4 Cup (20g) Unsweetened Dutch-Processed Cocoa Powder, Sifted
- 2–3 Tablespoons (30-45ml) Heavy Whipping Cream, Room Temperature
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt, Optional
Assembly
- 2 Tablespoons (40g) Cherry Jam (I used this brand)
- Fresh Cherries, Optional
- Fresh Blackberries, Optional
Instructions
Chocolate Buttermilk Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350F(175C). Grease (2) 6” baking pans and line the base of each pan with 6” parchment paper circle cutouts.
- Using a fine mesh sieve, sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Alternatively, the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt can be added into a large mixing bowl and whisked to combine.
- In a separate large mixing bowl, whisk together the oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla extract. Next, whisk the buttermilk into the wet batter to combine.
- Pour the wet batter into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Using a hand mixer at low speed or a wire whisk, mix the wet batter into the dry ingredients followed by the coffee/espresso just until you have a smooth cake batter, about 1-2 minutes. Take cake to not overmix the cake batter.
- Equally divide the batter into the prepared baking pans and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the cakes comes out clean.
- Cool chocolate cakes in the pans for 10-15 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely to room temperature.
Chocolate Buttercream
- In a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment or in a large mixing bowl with a hand-held electric mixer, cream the butter and salt (optional) at medium high speed until it is smooth and fluffy in appearance, about 2-3 minutes.
- Reduce the mixer speed to low and mix in the confectioners’ sugar and cocoa powder into creamed butter. Gradually increase the mixer speed back to medium.
- Once all the sugar and cocoa powder have been incorporated into the butter, mix in 2 tablespoons of the heavy whipping cream and vanilla extract into the buttercream.
- If buttercream appears too thick, mix in additional cream 1/2 tablespoon at a time until the desired consistency (thick but spreadable) is reached.
- If buttercream appears to be too soft, mix in additional confectioners’ sugar 1/4 cup at a time until a thick but spreadable consistency is reached.
- Increase mixer speed to medium high and mix chocolate buttercream for an additional 30-60 seconds. The resulting buttercream should be smooth and fluffy in appearance.
Assembly
- Level cooled chocolate cakes with a serrated knife or cake leveler. This will allow cakes to be evenly stacked and assembled.
- Spoon about 1/3 cup of the buttercream into a pastry bag fitted with a round piping tip. I used a Wilton 1A piping tip.
- Position the first cake layer faced up on a cake stand or serving plate of choice.
- Spoon about a 1/3 cup of the buttercream onto the cake and spread into an even layer using an offset (angled) spatula.
- Use reserved buttercream to pipe a border of buttercream around the other rim of the cake layer.
- Spoon the cherry jam into the center of the piped border and smooth into an even layer using the back of an offset spatula.
- Place the final cake layer faced down on top of the first layer.
- Using an offset spatula, apply a thin layer of the buttercream over the entire surface of the cake starting at the top and working down to the sides of the cake.
- Smooth out the crumb coat using an offset spatula (top of cake) and bench scraper (sides of the cake).
- Place the cake in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to allow the crumb coat to firm up before applying the final coat of buttercream in a similar fashion like the crumb coat. I used this tutorial for textured buttercream design.
- Top frosted cake with fresh cherries and blackberries (optional) before serving.
Notes
- Chocolate cherry cake is best eaten the day it is baked. Leftover cake stored in an airtight container will last 2-3 days in the fridge and 1-2 month in the freezer. When ready to serve frozen cake, thaw overnight in the fridge to restore soft texture.
- I prefer to use Dutch-processed cocoa powder for its more dark and rich flavor. This is the brand I use but any good quality Dutch-processed cocoa powder will work.
- Since Dutch-processed cocoa powder has a richer, darker color and chocolate flavor, I use half the amount of cocoa powder in buttercream frosting compared to most traditional recipes using natural cocoa powder.
- If using natural cocoa powder in chocolate buttercream, increase the quantity in recipe to 1/2 cup. Additionally, increase the confectioners’ sugar and heavy cream to 3 cups and 3-4 tablespoons, respectively.
- This is the store-bought cherry jam I used in recipe.
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Darlene
Thank you for the recipe. I made this cake for our Christmas dessert. It is so chocolatey and decadent. Cherries and berries are not in season where I am right now so I made a white chocolate ganache to drip over. Vanilla ice cream on the side was optional. The perfect size for 4 people to eat over 2 days.
Tiffany C.
First time trying out this recipe and it was amazing. The cake was super moist. Definitely will make again.
nourished endeavors
I absolutely love this cake recipe! I’m so happy that you thought it was amazing! Thank you!