There is a Cherry Blossom Festival happening in Washington DC and there are restaurants featuring cherry-themed dishes on their menus. I’m sharing my own cherry creation, a one-bowl cake covered in cinnamon sugar with canned cherry pie filling.
Every restaurant you go to in DC right now is featuring a cherry something or other on its menu. I have seen cherry cocktails, cherry desserts, cherry cupcakes, even cherry barbecue; all in celebration of the Cherry Blossom Festival happening in the city. The blossoms were really late this year due to our freakish early spring weather, but now the blossoms have finally bloomed and our nation’s capital is covered in pink. Not to be outdone, I had to include my own cherry creation.
Leafing through Bite Me Too, (you might remember this recipe from Julie and Lisa’s first book) I stumbled upon Bubby’s Cherry Cake. I have a Bubby (only mine doesn’t bake), and I was on the look out for a good cherry recipe, so this seemed like it was meant to be. It is so easy to make; a one bowl cake that you can mix easily by hand. The best part, it is covered in cinnamon sugar. My great-grandmother (who did in fact bake) used to make these biscotti-like chocolate chip cookies and she always sprinkled a cinnamon sugar mixture over the top so I will forever associate that smell with Jewish grandmothers. I am not usually a fan of canned pie filling, but I know better than to mess with a Bubby recipe, and really, it is so good in this cake that I cannot imagine using anything else. I do think that she would you allow you to try it with apple, blueberry, or raspberry filling. Mine would say, “Breezy, that is such a good idea. Dollface, you are on to something. “
On a side note, Bite Me Too is another great book to have on your book shelf. Preferably alongside Bite Me. The pictures are cheeky, the recipes are great, and these books are just a whole lot of fun. Would you like a copy? Head on down to the bottom of this post to enter to win of 3 cookbooks that I am giving away.
Cherry Blossom Cake Ingredients
Topping:
- 1/4 cup Dixie Crystals sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Cake:
- 2 cups Dixie Crystals sugar
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 4 eggs
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla
- 3 cups flour
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups canned cherry pie filling
How to Make – The Steps
Step 1: In a small bowl, mix together sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
Step 2: Mix sugar, oil, orange juice, eggs, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Whisk until sugar is dissolved and everything is combined.
Step 3: Fold in flour, baking powder, and salt.
Step 4: Pour half of the batter into a 9-inch square baking pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray.
Step 5: Add cherry pie filling and spread evenly.
Step 6: Add the remaining batter and spread evenly over the top.
Step 7: Sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture over the cake. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for 55 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before slicing.
Classic Cherry Blossom Cake
Ingredients Â
Cake
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 4 eggs
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla
- 3 cups flour
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups Dixie Crystals sugar
- 2 cups canned cherry pie filling
Topping
- 1/4 cup Dixie Crystals sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
InstructionsÂ
- In a small bowl, mix together sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
- Mix sugar, oil, orange juice, eggs, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Whisk until the sugar is dissolved and everything is combined.
- Fold in flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Pour half of the batter into a 9-inch square baking pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray.
- Add cherry pie filling and spread evenly.
- Add the remaining batter and spread evenly over the top.
- Sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture over the cake. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for 55 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before slicing.
I’ve made this recipe a couple times but when I made it this time it turned out runny. Is there any way to avoid that? Could I’ve just added too much oil? Although I did everything as to the recipe.
Yeah, too much oil could definitely make it runny, but there are a few other things that might’ve gone wrong. Double-check your measurements, especially for the flour and baking powder, since not enough of those could mess with the structure. Also, if the cherry pie filling was extra liquidy this time, that could be a factor too. Next time, try draining a bit of the excess syrup from the filling and make sure your oven is fully preheated before baking. Hope that helps!