Cherry Almond Chocolate Chip Delight (The Vegan Cake of Holy Awesomeness )

It's fair to say when you run a cooking blog you are fairly confident in your skills. And it's also safe to say we toot our own horns a lot and say we make the SHIZ when it comes to our area of expertise. Listen, I can't sing, dance, or play a musical instrument. I don't have a good memory either. But I can cook and I can write. I'll toot if I have to.

So here goes: This cake was seriously one of the BEST CAKES I've made in my life.

Maybe it was the contrast of cherries with dark chocolate and almonds. Maybe it was the perfect splash of apple cider vinegar to get that moistness. I dunno but it's mind blasting good.

I don't find fresh cherries often but if you do, you must buy some and make this. If you are like me you don't have a cherry pitter, because honestly no one ever thinks about having a cherry pitter as a basic necessity until you have 50 cherries staring right at you and daring you to make a cake out of them

staring cherries

So I took the challenge and cut up the cherries and separated them from their pits.

I did what I had to folks. Someone has to.

This can be your life too

What you need

For the Cake 

2 cups of fresh cherries (cut up)
2 cups of flour
1 cup of almond mylk (or soya/cashew/oat/rice)
1 cup icing sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Apple cider Vinegar
1/3rd cup oil (vegetable or coconut)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
1/2 cup chopped almonds
10 squares of dark chocolate broken into small pieces (I used Amul dark chocolate)

For the icing & drizzle 

1 cup icing sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
2 tablespoons water OR plantbased mylk
Extra whole cherries for garnish
Berry Jam/Compote


How to Make

In bowl combine almond mylk, sugar, oil, vanilla, almond extract (if using), salt, and apple cider vinegar. Mix well. Add flour, baking soda and powder and mix batter. Add chocolate chunks, almonds and cherries. You'll have a nice pourable batter. If it's too thick add more almond mylk and if it's too runny add just a bit of flour.

in goes them cherries

Preheat oven to 180c. Line a baking dish or grease one. Pour batter in and bake for about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile in a bowl stir your icing sugar with two tablespoons of water/mylk and make into a smooth paste. Add almond extract if you want to. Make sure it's not too runny, add more icing sugar if it is.

In a ziplock bag pour in some berry jam or compote and snip the corner.

cooling before icing and jam drizzle

When you're cake is out let it cool for at least 30 minutes or it will break. Take out cooled cake and pour over icing. Drizzle with jam and decorate with cherries. Eat the best goddam cake you've ever eaten. Or at least pretend it is the best goddamn cake you've ever eaten.

Share with people you'd like to extract favours from at a later date.

Till then keep it kind.