Looking for the perfect sweet treat? Our Cherry Loaf Cake recipe will satisfy your cravings! Moist and flavourful with a burst of cherry in every bite.
I make so many loaf cakes. Far more than anything else.
They are easy. You always get a nice even bake with a loaf cake. They are also easy to slice. And, once you’ve got a basic recipe that you like, you can start adding different flavours and ingredients.
This easy cherry loaf cake recipe is just another variation of my favourite easy loaf recipe, and I love it!
Why I Love This Cherry Loaf Cake
Cherry Bakewell loaf cake is delicious, and I absolutely love it. I think you will too because:
- Glace cherries are super moist and sweet. They flavour your sponge really well, and there are bursts of sweet cherry syrup in every bite.
- There are no fancy ingredients, it’s an easy cherry cake recipe.
- Almonds balance the flavour really well.
- The icing just finishes it off beautifully, without the need for any fancy decoration.
- It’s easy to slice into the perfect afternoon tea treat!
Is this A Madeira Cake?
No. This is not a cherry Madeira cake.
Madeira cakes are often flavoured with ground almonds, and this is a cherry and almond loaf cake recipe.
But, where a simple Victoria sponge cake has equal parts sugar, butter, eggs and flour, Madeira cake typically has more flour, leading to a much denser texture.
This recipe for cherry loaf cake sticks to that basic equal parts recipe, with added almond extract and cherries. So the texture is more like a light, fluffy sponge cake than a denser Madeira.
Ingredients for Cherry Loaf Cake
For my cherry loaf cake, I use:
Margarine – You can use butter if you prefer.
Caster Sugar
Eggs
Almond Extract
Self-Raising Flour – You can use plain flour with a teaspoon of baking powder if you don’t have self-raising.
Glacé Cherries
And then to decorate I make a simple almond drizzle with icing sugar, almond extract, milk, and a handful of toasted flaked almonds.
Do You Have to Add Almonds?
This is a moist cherry and almond cake, and I absolutely love the addition of almond extract to the sponge and the almond drizzle.
But if you prefer the idea of a Cherry loaf cake no almonds, you can skip them all.
Just leave the almond extract out of the cake batter and drizzle, either just mixing icing sugar and milk, or skipping it entirely, and skip the sprinkle of toasted almonds on the top.
How To Make This Cherry and Almond Loaf Cake
This recipe is so easy, you’ll love it!
Step One
This is probably the most time-consuming part of the recipe, to be honest!
Glacé cherries are kept in syrup, so they’ll sink into your cake batter if you add them as they are.
So you want to chop, rinse and dry them.
I chop most of them fairly small, anything between 1/4s and 1/8ths but keep around 5 chopped in half, to place on top of the batter just before baking.
Rinse them all in a little cold water, and pat dry, keeping those bigger bits separate so they don’t get folded in.
Toss the smaller pieces in a tablespoon or two of flour, this will help them to stay in place as the cake bakes.
Step Two
Preheat the oven and line a 2lb loaf tin.
My oven is fan-assisted, and I bake most of my loaf cakes at 160 degrees C. If you find your oven runs a little hot or cold, adjust accordingly.
Step Three
Whisk together the margarine and sugar.
I use an electric whisk, and this only takes about a minute.
Step Four
Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, whisking in the almond extract with the last egg.
Step Five
Add the flour and whisk until smooth.
Step Six
Carefully fold through the cherries that have been tossed in flour. Don’t be tempted to over-mix, stop as soon as they’re spread out. This will stop them from sinking as much as possible.
Step Seven
Pour into the prepared tin, and place the remaining cherry halves gently on top.
As careful as you are, cherries will sink a little, so placing these on top means that they’ll have further to go!
Step Eight
Bake in the oven, for around 45-50 minutes, until a skewer comes out of the middle clean.
Step Nine
Leave to cool fully before removing from the tin.
If you are in a rush, leave for as long as you can, before turning out onto a wire rack and peeling off the baking paper.
Step Ten
Scatter a handful of flaked almonds onto a baking tray, and bake for a few minutes at 160 degrees C, to lightly toast them. Take them out of the oven and leave them on the tray until you need them.
Step Eleven
Mix some icing sugar, milk, and almond extract, until you have a drizzle for the top of your cake.
Roughly drizzle over the cooled cake, and sprinkle on the toasted flaked almonds.
You can get the full quantities in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How to Store Cherry Cake
I keep my cherry loaf cake in a lidded glass cake stand on the side. It stays nice and moist for 3-4 days.
Can You Freeze Cherry Cake?
Yes, you can either freeze this loaf cake whole or chop it into slices to freeze.
Other Easy Loaf Cake Recipes
If you like this cherry cake, you might also want to try:
- Orange Drizzle Cake
- Lime Drizzle Cake
- Lemon Drizzle Cake
- Coffee and Walnut Loaf Cake
- Chocolate Chip Loaf Cake
- Apple and Cinnamon Loaf Cake
- Plum and Almond Loaf Cake
Cherry Loaf Cake
Ingredients
For the Cherry Sponge:
- 170 g Margarine (Or unsalted butter)
- 170 g Caster Sugar
- 3 Medium Eggs
- 1 Teaspoon Almond Extract
- 170 g Self Raising Flour (+ Extra to toss the cherries in)
- 200 g Glacé Cherries
For the Almond Drizzle:
- 100 g Icing Sugar
- 1 Teaspoon Almond Extract
- 3 Tablespoons Milk
- Handful Flaked Almonds (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160 Degrees C (fan-assisted) and line a 2lb loaf tin.
- Chop most of the cherries into small pieces (chop each cherry into around 8 pieces) but keep 5 separate and chop these in half.
- Rinse all of the cherries in cold water, and tap dry, keeping the larger pieces separate.
- Place the smaller pieces in a small bowl and toss in a tablespoon or two of flour.
- Whisk together the margarine and sugar.
- Add the eggs one at a time, whisking before adding the next.
- Add the almond extra with the last egg.
- Tip in the flour and whisk until smooth.
- Carefully fold through the smaller pieces of cherry.
- Tip into the loaf tin and spread the top evenly.
- Carefully place on the larger pieces of cherry.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes, until the top is golden brown, and a skewer comes out clean.
- Leave in the tin to cool completely.
- Scatter a handful of flaked almonds onto a baking tray, and bake in the oven (160 degrees C, fan-assisted) for a few minutes.
- Remove from the oven and leave on the tray to cool.
- Mix the icing sugar, almond extract, and milk in a small bowl until smooth. Add more icing sugar, or milk, if needed to get a smooth, drizzlable texture.
- Use a spoon or piping bag to drizzle onto the cooled cake and sprinkle on the toasted almonds.
Notes
- You can skip the almond extract and almonds if you prefer.
- See the post above for more tips.
Nutrition
Any nutritional information is given as a general guide only and may not be accurate. The information is provided using an online calculator and is specific to my ingredients. Please make your own calculations if you want precise information.
