Fresh Cherry Cake & Fresh Cherry Butter Cream

Well it’s that time again. What time you ask? Well, it is time for me to congratulate myself for keeping my little human alive for another whole year!

AKA – Happy Birthday Indigo! You are the big 3! (OK, 3 on the 21st we are one day early but today we celebrate)

Oh how I love thee.

I love you soooo much I made you a Fresh Cherry Cake & Fresh Cherry Butter cream, I have the stained fingers for proof!





There are few things “batter” than cake, but of course I can think of a few..

1. Indigo (except at night at about 130am, OK even then!)
2. Husband (most of the time. LOVE you honey bunny)
3. 3 day weekends
4. Finding a 20 dollar bill in the washer, finders keepers dude
5. Telling your husband that you found 20 dollars, and no he cannot have it back (I’m mean like that)
6. Winning the lottery, never won the lottery but I am quite sure this would be better then eating cake.
7. Indigo





Now, there are also things that are 50 gabillionzillion times worse than eating cake. I won’t get to crazy here but let’s list some out.

1. Your husband finding the 20 dollar bill in the washer
2. Your husband telling you he found the 20 dollar bill and then saying “finders keepers”.
3. Not winning the lottery
4. Winning a lottery that involves you doing the laundry for your household exclusively.
5. The movie SkyLine
6. Zombies, like real ones..not movies because those are awesome

Everything always comes down to Zombies you see.





But let’s get back to the cake and the reason for it.

Indigo I love you, happy birthday daughter. Your are lovely, cool, stubborn, cute, smiley, interesting, chatty, batty, witty, thoughtful, forgetful, awesome, bodacious, spontaneous, and scared of garbage trucks…which makes me love you all the more.





INGREDIENTS for Fresh Cherry Cake
Adapted from this Cake
{Pintable Recipe}

• 2 cups pitted red cherries
• 3 tbs sugar, for the cherries
• 1/4 cup half & half, at room temperature
• 6 large egg whites, room temperature
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cup cake flour, sifted
• 1 3/4 cup sugar
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 12 Tbsp unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), softened





DIRECTIONS for Fresh Cherry Cake

Three hours before baking, toss your halved and pitted cherries with 3 tbs white sugar. Let them sit in a bowl and become nice and juicy (3 hours time). Once ready, puree this mixture in your food processor. Reserve ¾ cup of this puree for the cake, 3 tbs for the Butter Cream.





Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare your baking dishes: coat inside with butter and flour. I made 12 cupcakes, and 1 - 8 inch cake round.

In small bowl, combine puree, milk, egg, vanilla and mix with fork until well blended. In bowl of stand mixer (or with a hand mixer), add sifted flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and mix to combine. Continue beating and add butter. Mix until combined and resembling moist crumbs.




Add liquids and beat at medium speed for about 1 minute or until full and evenly combined. Stop mixer to scrape down the sides of the bowl and hand beat for 30 more seconds. Divide the batter evenly among the pans or into your cupcake liners about half way.

Bake for about 25 minutes (cake round) or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (time will vary, cupcakes are less time). Let cakes rest in pan for about 10 minutes and turn out onto wire racks. Let cakes cool completely (about 2 hours).

PS - The small round cake was used cutting out circles from my cake round and stacking them with some buttercream in between each layer.  So adorable, a mini cake for the guest of honor.




INGREDIENTS for Cherry Butter Cream

• 3 tbs fresh cherry puree
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, firm and slightly cold
• 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract





DIRECTIONS for Cherry Butter Cream

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and salt on medium speed until light and fluffy. Reduce mixer speed and slowly add confectioners' sugar; beat until well combined. Add vanilla and 3 tablespoons cherry puree.


- The result, a wonderful Fresh Cherry Flavored cake and butter cream. It was fabulous. It tastes likes cherries and is speckled with their wonderfulness. Happy Birthday Indigo.