Long-term fans of my Vanilla Yogurt Cake will be thrilled to hear there is a new cake-kid on the block.  And this time, it’s packed full of cherries and almond flavour, and it’s simply sublime.

Enter, my Cherry Bakewell Cake.

Made following the basic recipe for my yogurt cake, this is a rich and moist cake filled with either fresh or glacé cherries as liked. It keeps beautifully and is special enough for birthdays or high teas.

To cut the richness and sweetness of the cherries, almond extract and cherry jam filling, I like to add a little lemon extract to the buttercream filling and also the drizzly glacé icing on top. For the grown-ups, I actually splash a little Amaretto liqueur into both and let me tell you, it is all kinds of wonderful!

I love Star Kay White or Steenbergs extracts for my baking and these are the ones I’ve used for years and years:

A little tip for you to help the cherries bake well dispersed throughout the cake, the best thing to do is toss them in the ground almonds before sprinkling them on top of the cake batter before baking.

A few will sink but the better is thick enough to suspend most of them throughout the cake.

One of the bits I love the most about this cake is the crumbled up freeze-dried cherries I sprinkle on top of the icing whilst it’s still wet. They really are little flavour bombs! They twinkle like jewels as well as convey a welcome bit of chew and super ramped-up cherry flavour.

I love the “Lio-licious” brand if you can find them, they appear to be out of stock on Amazon at this time of writing.

You’ll notice how fabulously flat these cakes bake and after making more of them than I can count, I have to ascribe that to baking them low and slow. Keep the oven at of 160˚C and be prepared to bake for longer than the average Victoria sponge and you won’t be disappointed.

I always line my PME cake tins with silicone cake tin liners and highly recommend both to any home baker.

One final question I get all the time on my Vanilla Yogurt Cake posts is which yogurt I use.

I personally use Greek yogurt (full fat or 0% fat both work) but not the Fage brand – usually I go for Tesco, Sainsburys or Asda’s own brand in a 500ml tub.

The Fage brand is gorgeous but it’s way too thick. If yours is more like the texture of cream cheese, simply beat a little milk in it until it is of a spoonable texture – think of sour cream or creme fraîche (both of which are excellent substitutes here too) and that’s the thickness you’re after.

Yield: 10 slices

Cherry Bakewell Cake

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A rich and sweet cake bursting with either fresh or glaceé cherries, cherry jam and the most delicious lemon and Amaretto flavoured frostings you've ever had.

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Ingredients

For the cake:

• 150g softened butter (2/3 cup)
• 200g caster sugar (1 cup)
• 3 large eggs
• 200g Greek yogurt (3/4 cup)
• 1/2 tsp almond extract OR 1 tsp Amaretto liqueur
• 245g plain flour (2 level cups)
• 1.5 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 150g halved cherries, glacé or stoned and halved fresh ones (3/4 cup)
• 25 g ground almonds

To fill:

• 4 tbsp cherry jam
• 100g soft butter
• 200g icing sugar
• 1/2 tsp lemon extract
• 1/2 tsp almond extract or 1 tsp Amaretto liqueur

To finish:

• 100g icing sugar
• Few drops lemon extract
• 1/2 tsp almond extract or 1 tsp Amaretto liqueur

Instructions

1. Grease and line two 8 inch sandwich pans with silicone liners or greaseproof paper and preheat the oven to 160˚C.
2. Beat the butter and sugar for several minutes until very light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time then add the yogurt and almond extract or Amaretto.
3. Sift over the flour and raising agents, then fold in gently. Divide between the two prepared pans and level roughly.
4. Toss the cherries in the ground almonds. Sprinkle over the cake batter evenly in the two tins and gently press into the surface very slightly.
5. Bake for 25-30 minutes until lightly golden brown (see photos in blog post for reference), risen and springing back and carefully pressed in the centre. Cool on a rack for 10-15 minutes before removing from the tins to finish cooling.
6. Beat the butter, icing sugar and extracts together for the filling until light and fluffy. Top tip - drizzle boiling water a tsp at a time into the frosting to loosen and lighten up the texture. 1-3 tsp is usually enough for this amount.
7. Assemble the cake by spreading one cake with jam, then the buttercream and top with the second cake.
8. Make the glacé icing by simply mixing together in a small bowl, drizzling in tiny amounts of water until you get the texture of a slightly runnier-than-usual toothpaste! Spread over the cake and sprinkle with the freeze dried cherries, crumbling them in your fingers as you go. Allow to set for 30 minutes before slicing and devouring!

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