Cocoa Cherry Cake

The word "cherry" comes from the French word "cerise", which comes in turn from the Latin words cerasum and Cerasus. Cherry fruit has always been very popular as a part of desserts and other culinary purposes. In the ancient days the cherry fruits were also known for their medicinal purposes. Besides the fruit, cherries also have attractive flowers, and they are commonly planted for their flower display in spring; several of the Asian cherries are particularly noted for their flower displays. The cherry fruit extract contains antioxidant flavanoids and are used in many tablets and capsules. These capsules are used to support the pH levels of the body. The cherry fruits are low in cholesterol, fat and sodium. They are also a very good source of fiber and Vitamin C. Here is a simple yet delightful 'Cocoa Cherry Cake' which I like to indulge at any time of the day.

This cake is going to participate in "The Worldwide Blogger Bake Off" a year long campaign running by Breadline Africa to raise 1 million USD. I am happy being part of this campaign. This is open to all. Anyone can participate and there are a number of ways you can contribute. Here are some ways to participate:

Join our campaign.

Make a donation to Breadline Africa.

Submit your bread baking recipe

Vote for your favourite recipe.

Bake many loaves of bread and host a bake sale.

This cake is also going to participate in AFAM-Cherry event hosted by Tangerine's Kitchen and the event started by Maheswari of Beyond The Usual and also to Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen who is celebrating her blog first blogversary.

Image Courtesy : Flickr

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cups Flour
• 1 cup Butter
• 1 cup Sugar
• 1/2 tbsp Baking powder
• 1/2 tbsp Bicarbonate soda
• 2 tbsp Cocoa powder
• 3 Eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup Cherries, washed and cut into halves
• 2-3 drops Almond essence
• 3 tbsp Milk
• 1 tbsp Honey
  

PRPERATION:

• Preheat oven at 325⁰ F.
• In a large bowl, using a strainer (sieve), strain out cocoa powder, flour, baking powder and bicorbonate soda to avoid lumps.
• To this mixture add milk (at room temperature), almond essence, sugar, beaten eggs and butter. Mix well.
• Now add cherries and mix well using a spatula.
• Line the base of the mould with greaseproof paper or baking parchment, then grease the paper and pour in the above mixture. Now add a tablespoon of honey on top of this mixture and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.
• Cool the cake in the tin for 15 minutes before turning it out on to a wire rack to cool.
• Last but not least add your 'love' to the dish to make it 'YUMMY'.