cherry chocolate cake

I feel as though I need to clarify some things.

I do, on occasion, eat something that doesn't require copious amounts of butter and sugar. I would, in fact, say that most of my diet is NOT based on those ingredients, however delicious they may be. In real life we eat things that are green, savory and start with onions and garlic instead of butter and sugar being whipped to a frenzy in my mixer.

In real life I do things like a ten-day-cleanse diet (probably necessary because of the amount of butter and sugar I do consume). This happened, a couple weeks ago, and it felt amazing. Literally, I ate no dairy, wheat, fried things, sugar, or fatty meats, AND I DRANK NO COFFEE. Really. I did that. Voluntarily. At first I thought I was crazy, but then I started to feel a little different: less weighed down, more energetic, less (not more) consumed with food. It took a lot of prep, and lot of produce, but it was such a tasty week and a half that I would definitely do it again. If you're interested in knowing more about detox diets, let me know and I'll point you in a few good directions.

Now that that's out of the way (just kidding: it did actually change my habits for the better), I'm doing things like baking chocolate cake. With fresh cherries. Our landlords/ upstairs neighbors knocked on our door the other night with a GIGANTIC bucket of cherries for us. That guy I'm married to thought they were offering us a handful so he grabbed a few, but NO! The whole darn thing was for us! After eating about half in a single sitting, no joke, I decided these dark red delights would be going into some fantastic dessert. So here it is. Buy, pick, steal some cherries which are SO perfectly fresh and in season right now, and make this cake. Do it.

Next post, I promise something you can actually eat for dinner.



Cherry Chocolate Cake
{inspired by summer}

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a greased 9x5 bread pan with parchment.

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter or spread (i.e. Smart Balance)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar

Cream together until light and fluffy.

2 eggs

Add, one at a time, until incorporated.

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda

Sift together, then add to wet mixture and mix slowly until incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl with a spatula.

2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped and melted
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup milk or milk substitute 

Stir into batter until just incorporated.

1 cup fresh cherries, pitted and halved

Carefully fold in to batter. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 45-50 minutes or until a cake tester/ knife/ skewer comes out basically clean. Remove to a cooling rack as soon as you can touch the paper, and allow to cool or serve warm. Cake will keep a few days wrapped tightly in plastic.