This is one of my favorite recipes from my collection of Southern Living Cookbooks. I just love the cherry flavor and pink color. The original recipe calls for cream cheese frosting, but I think that’s just too rich. I prefer a little icing made from powdered sugar, maraschino cherry juice and milk. This is such a cute cake to make for Valentines Day or Easter.
Notes
Notes:
Original recipe for the Southern Living 1995 Annual Recipes. I also color the frosting with a bit of red food coloring.
Ingredients
- Cake:
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 1/2 cup shortening
- 3 cups sugar
- 6 large eggs
- 1 (6 oz) jar of red maraschino cherries, drained & chopped (keep juice for icing)
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 3 3/4 cups flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup milk
- 2 drops red food coloring
- Icing:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 TBS cherry juice
- 1-2 TBS milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Grease & flour a 10 inch tube pan.
- Beat butter and shortening until creamy. Gradually add sugar and beat for several minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, until yellow disappears.
- Add in chopped cherries & flavorings.
- Measure out flour and place in a bowl. Add in the salt.
- Mix milk with red food coloring.
- Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, alternating with milk, beginning & ending with the flour mixture. Mix at low speed until blended after each addition.
- Pour batter into prepared pan.
- Bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour & 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool pan on a wire rack. After about 30 minutes, carefully remove from the pan.
- While cake is cooling prepare the icing. Combine the ingredients and whisk until smooth. You want the icing to be a little thick so it will form drips down the cake.
