The Itsy-Bitsy Kitchen

recipes to feed your sweet tooth

You are here: Home / Cakes and Cupcakes / Easy Chocolate Cherry Cake

Easy Chocolate Cherry Cake

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

This easy chocolate cherry cake requires just a few ingredients and a little bit of active time, but it’s as delicious as can be. Soft chocolate cake, sweet-tart cherries, and chocolate whipped cream frosting make it impossible to resist!

sliced cake on a wire rack

This post was originally published in June of 2018. I’ve updated the post to add more information about how to make the cake but the recipe remains the same.

Is there anything sweetened condensed milk can’t do?

It probably can’t teach me to change a flat tire—I’m not mechanical. But when it comes to dessert, it adds so much.

This chocolate cherry cake is a case in point. Without the condensed milk, the cake is  still delicious. But with the condensed milk, it’s soft, sweet, and moist beyond belief. I dare you to stop at one slice!

Why you’ll love this chocolate cherry cake:

  • It starts with a box of chocolate cake mix, so it’s easy to make and anyone can make it successfully
  • Because the cherries are actually cherry pie filling, you can make this cake any time of year (and get your cherry fix in!)
  • The cake needs to chill in the fridge overnight so it’s the perfect make-ahead dessert option

How to make your cake

how to make chocolate cherry cake

  • Combine cake ingredients
  • Mix batter until smooth
  • Pour into a 13- by 9-inch baking dish and bake

poke cake steps 4 through 6

  • Cool your cake for 20 minutes, then use the handle of a wooden spoon to poke holes all over the cake
  • Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over the cake
  • Spread the cherry pie filling over the that

Then you’ll refrigerate your cake overnight.

Notes for making your cake:

  • I used a Better Crocker cake mix but you can use whatever brand you prefer, you just want it to be roughly 15.25 ounces (a little more or less is fine as long as the box says you can bake your cake in a 13- by 9-inch pan)
  • Take care not to poke holes all the way to the bottom of the cake, you just want to go about 3/4 of the way down
  • Once your cake is ready to chill, cover it loosely with plastic wrap or aluminum foil

How to make the topping

When you’re ready to serve your cake, you’ll make the chocolate whipped cream topping
chocolate whipped cream topping step by step

  • Whip heavy cream until it thickens
  • Add powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and vanilla and whip to stiff peaks
  • Spread over the cake

Notes for making your topping:

  • Be sure your heavy cream is cold when you start making your topping; cold cream beats up thicker than room temp cream
  • “Stiff peaks” means that when you pull the beaters out of your whipped cream, the peaks hold their shape rather than falling over or collapsing in on themselves
  • I strongly recommend using heavy cream rather than whipping cream because heavy cream whips up stiffer, making it better for frosting a cake

Storing your cake

Uneaten chocolate cherry cake can be stored, covered with plastic wrap or aluminum foil, in the fridge for up to 4 days.

You can also freeze slices, tightly wrapped, for up to 1 month.

I recommend freezing your slices on a parchment- or foil-lined baking sheet until the cake and topping are both pretty solid, about 30 to 60 minutes. Then you can wrap them tightly with plastic wrap and foil without smooshing your cake or whipped cream topping.

What is sweetened condensed milk?

Sweetened condensed milk is milk that has been cooked down (thickened), then sweetened with sugar.

It’s very sweet and adds a lot of moisture to desserts, which is why it’s such a common dessert ingredient—this Nutella fudge and these chocolate macaroons both call for it.

Condensed milk is not the same as evaporated milk and one cannot be substituted for the other. If you use evaporated milk here, your cake will just turn out soggy.

A few more easy cake recipes
White Texas Sheet Cake
Caramel Apple Dump Cake
Strawberry Dump Cake
Vanilla Crazy Cake

slice of cake on a plate with a fork taking a bite out of it and more slices of cake on a wire rack in the background
If you make this chocolate cherry poke cake, be sure to leave me a comment and a rating below–let me know what you think!  Post a pic over on Instagram too.  Tag @theitsybitsykitchen so I can see!

5 from 8 votes
slice of cake on a plate with a fork taking a bite out of it and more slices of cake on a wire rack in the background
Print
Easy Chocolate Cherry Cake
Prep Time
20 mins
Cook Time
32 mins
Chilling Time
8 hrs
Total Time
52 mins
 
This easy chocolate cherry cake will be your go-to dessert for picnics and barbecues this summer!
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 16
Author: Kelsie
Ingredients
Cake
  • 1 15.25-ounce box chocolate cake mix + ingredients to make the cake*
  • 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 21-ounce can cherry pie filling
Topping
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup cocoa powder sifted if it’s lumpy
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
Cake
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13- by 9-inch baking dish with cooking spray and set pan aside.
  2. Mix cake mix according to directions the box. Pour into the prepared pan and smooth the top with an offset spatula. Bake as directed for a 13- by 9-inch cake. Cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes.
  3. Use the handle of a wooden spoon to poke holes about 3/4 of the way into the cake (you don’t want to poke through to the bottom). The holes should be about 1 inch apart.
  4. Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over the cake, then allow the cake to cool to room temperature.
  5. Once the cake has cooled, gently spread the cherry pie filling over the cake. Refrigerate overnight.
Topping
  1. When ready to serve, whip the heavy cream until it thickens.
  2. Add the powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and vanilla and whip to stiff peaks. Spread over the cake. Slice and serve.
  3. Uneaten cake can be stored, covered, in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can also freeze slices, tightly wrapped, for up to 1 month.

Recipe Video

Recipe Notes
  • *I used Betty Crocker Super Moist devil’s food cake but you can use any chocolate cake mix as long as it’s roughly 15.25 ounces
  • Be sure you use sweetened condensed milk NOT evaporated milk
  • To make this cake even easier, you can just frost it with a tub of Cool Whip
  • I strongly recommend using heavy cream rather than whipping cream because heavy cream whips up stiffer, making it better for frosting a cake

Comments

  3. Teesh Osita says

    This looks so yummy (even if I’m not a big fan of cherries). Unfortunately, June is the official start of rainy season, and I’m off work early today because of typhoon weather. Might as well drink my coffee with sweet condensed milk! 🙂

    Reply

  4. Christina says

    Man, I’m falling behind on your amazing posts but this one stopped me in my tracks. I’m on a no sugar diet right now but I would cheat my a$$ off for a piece of this cake. Chocolate and cherry are a match made in dessert-y heaven! I’m pinning the crap out of this!

    Reply

  6. Ben|Havocinthekitchen says

    There’s another thing that sweetened condensed milk cannot do (at least in my house). It cannot stay safe. Sometimes I get a can or two, when it’s a nice sale, for any case in the future. But you know what? It rarerly survives till that “any case” which might be a very short period of time. Importantly, it disappears without me using it in my recipes. Weird, eh? Well, I might need to sample a spoon or two to check its quality once in a while, but that doesn’t explain the whole thing. Love this pie too. I need to buy 5 cans of condensed milk for a chance to use one in the cake:)

    Reply

  7. Maria Doss says

    You are totally right Kelsie. There is nothing that a can of sweetened condensed milk can’t do. Though I haven’t made a poke cake, it sounds so easy and my favorite part is that they need to be made ahead. This chocolate cherry cake will be a great addition to all summer parties.

    Reply

  9. Ashika | Gardening Foodie says

    😂Haha, as I was reading your post, I wondered how on earth can you leave this overnight without at least eating half of it and then you mention to bake it in the evening…I love your reasoning here and will definitely take it into consideration when baking this cake.😂
    It looks so decadent and delicious and will definitely make a great picnic or barbeque dessert. Love it !

    Reply

  16. Milena Perrine says

    If you knew how much I cherish the combo of cherries and chocolate you would know why I am so excited about this recipe! Fresh cherries on the market and your tips here – I will be dessert-ing pretty good:) Fabulous! Pinned!

    Reply

  17. annie@ciaochowbambina says

    I used to wish it could help me with my math homework, but that was one of the only things it couldn’t do for me…. 😉 I LOVE this cake, my friend! My family will love it, too!

    Reply

  18. Dawn @ Girl Heart Food says

    This looks super chocolatey and perfectly indulgent, Kelsie. And I know what you mean about sweetened condensed milk, lol. I’ve been craving cake lately (I mean, what’s new, though, lol) so this would be so awesome right now!! Have a wonderful weekend 🙂

    Reply

  20. David @ Spiced says

    That’s it. I’m updating my fix-all kit: duct tape, WD-40, Windex and now sweetened condensed milk. 🙂 This cake looks amazing, Kelsie! I love the idea of a dessert that’s served cold, too. Let’s make a deal: I’ll gladly man the grill if you’ll show up with desserts like this, ok? Happy last day of May, my friend!

    Reply

    • Kelsie says

      Hahaha! As long as you don’t accidentally use WD-40 instead of condensed milk I think that’s a great idea :). I’ll fire up the grill and have the cake waiting! Thanks, David!

      Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.