Cherry Cake with Almond Icing
This easy cherry cake starts with a vanilla boxed cake mix and a can of cherry pie filling. You can bake it up quickly and top with my 5-minute almond icing and stemmed maraschino cherries for a sweet and simple garnish.
Ingredients
For the Cherry Cake
- 1 (13.25 oz) vanilla cake mix just the mix, you do not need the ingredients listed on the back of the package
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 (21 oz) can of cherry pie filling
For the Almond Icing
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
- 1/3 cup milk
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- Pinch of kosher salt
For Garnishing
- Stemmed maraschino cherries optional
Instructions
Bake the Cherry Cake
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Spray a 9x13-inch baking pan with cooking spray and set aside.
- Remove just 1/3 cup of cherry pie filling from the can and set aside.
- Add the box of cake mix and the baking powder to a large mixing bowl and whisk them together. Add the eggs, vanilla extract, almond extract, and the remaining cherry pie filling to the bowl. Use a hand mixer to mix them together on low speed. Once combined, increase the speed to medium high and mix for 1 - 2 minutes until creamy.
- Pour half of the batter into your prepared baking dish and spread it into an even layer. Spoon the cherries from the reserved 1/3 cup of cherry pie filling evenly over the layer of batter. These will bake into "surprise" cherry bites when the cake is done. Spread the remaining half of the cake batter over the top.
- Bake the cherry cake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely before adding the icing.
Make the Almond Icing and Decorate
- Melt the butter in the microwave on HIGH. Pour it into a large mixing bowl.
- Add the milk and almond extract and stir them into the butter.
- Add the powdered sugar to the mixing bowl. Use a hand mixer on low speed to blend in the powdered sugar, about 30 seconds. Then increase the speed to medium-high and beat for 1 - 2 minutes or until thick but light and fluffy.
- Add the pinch of kosher salt and beat it in for 5 seconds.
- Spread the almond icing immediately over the cooled cherry cake. Smooth it into a pretty layer and immediately garnish with the stemmed maraschino cherries if using. Once the icing sets, the cherries will not "stick" on top.