Surprisingly moist and soft, this 3-ingredient chocolate cherry cake is a crowd-pleaser. You’d be amazed how easy it is to make it too!
Why you’ll love this recipe:
You only need 3 ingredients and 5 minutes of your time to make this cherry pie filling cake. And in return, you’ll get a surprisingly tall, moist, and soft chocolate cake studded with cherries. If that’s not magic, I don’t know what is.
- Perfect for a party or potluck
- Light and fluffy yet decadent
- Anyone can make it!
Now, I know we’re cheating here big time with a canned pie filling and a cake mix. But it’s SO worth it!
I stocked my pantry with a couple of cake mixes and canned pie fillings for “emergencies”. You know, when you have guests on short notice!
Table of Contents
Cherry Chocolate Cake Ingredients:
- Eggs – Eggs provide structure, tenderness, and height to the cake. Without eggs, the cake would simply fall apart.
- Devil’s cake mix – Devil’s food cake is a dark and rich chocolate cake with a light and airy texture! There’s no need to follow the box directions.
- Cherry pie filling – For a sweet, cherry flavor with little to no effort! Cherry pie filling adds moisture and plenty of cherries.
How to make this chocolate cherry cake:
Before you start, preheat the oven to 350°F and spray 9×13 baking pan with a cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs with an electric mixer for a minute or so, or until nice and fluffy.
- Add the chocolate cake mix and cherry pie filling, then mix it on low speed. This will keep the ingredients from flying outside the bowl. Increase the speed to medium, then beat until smooth.
- Pour the chocolate cake batter into the greased baking dish and use a spatula to spread it around evenly. Bake for 25 minutes or use the toothpick to test to see if it’s done.
- Cool completely on a wire rack inside the pan. Then dust with powdered sugar before serving.
To check the doneness:
Insert a toothpick into the cake and if it comes out clean without batter stuck to it, it’s ready!
Tips for Success:
- If you don’t have devil’s food cake mix, swap it out for another flavor! Vanilla, chocolate, yellow, and red velvet all taste great with cherries!
- Chocolate cherry cake makes amazing cupcakes! Instead of using a baking pan, scoop the batter into a cupcake tin lined with cupcake liners.
- For more decadent chocolate flavor, add 3/4 cup of semisweet chocolate chips to the batter.
- To make this recipe gluten-free, use gluten-free chocolate cake mix.
- Make sure to use cherry pie filling, not canned cherries! Canned cherries aren’t thick enough and the cake won’t set up.
- For easy clean-up, use a disposable foil pan in place of a glass or metal baking dish.
How to serve this easy cake:
This chocolate cherry cake is delicious either warm or cold.
- You can enjoy it warm, topped with vanilla ice cream, and chocolate ganache – HEAVEN!
- I also love serving it with chocolate fudge and maraschino cherries.
- You can also frost this cake with soft cream cheese frosting, recipe included. It complements the cake perfectly!
- Or eat it plain dusted with powdered sugar, or not. Less calories, but we don’t really care about calories around here, right? 😉
Make-Ahead 3-Ingredient Cake Tips:
- Since this chocolate cake with cherry filling lasts for three days in the refrigerator, it’s easy to make ahead! For best results, make it the day before you plan to serve it.
- Let the cake come to room temperature before serving or reheat in a 250 degree oven until warmed through – about 10 minutes.
- If you just want one slice, you can reheat it in the microwave in 15-second increments until warmed through. Don’t overheat or you will lose the soft texture of the cake.
Storing Tips:
- Store the cherry chocolate cake, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Too much cake for you to eat? No problem! Wrap the cake in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months. I like to freeze it in slices in a ziplock bag, this way you can enjoy one slice at a time!
How long is dump cake good for?
Dump cake is good for up to 3 days in the refrigerator, covered.
Chocolate Cherry Cake FAQ:
Yes! Simply use two greased 8-inch round cake pans in place of a 13×9 baking dish. Follow the recipe as directed! Use homemade or store-bought frosting to fill and assemble the layer cake.
The sweet and tart flavor of cherries complements dark chocolate exceptionally well, but any type of canned pie filling works! Blueberry, raspberry, or strawberry filling are all great options!
Yes! Pour two cans of cherry pie filling into the baking dish and top with the devil’s food cake mix. Drizzle 3/4 cup of melted butter on top and bake at 350 degrees for 60 minutes. Dump cakes are supposed to be dense, moist, and served with a spoon!
Other Easy Cake Recipes:
It doesn’t get much easier than this chocolate cake with cherry filling, but even scratch-made cakes can be simple!
Chocolate Cherry Cake
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 1 box Devil’s cake mix Note 1
- 1 can (21oz) cherry pie filling Note 2
Cream cheese frosting (optional):
- 4 oz cream cheese softened
- 1/2 cup (120g) sour cream
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon almond extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Spray 13×9-inch baking pan with a cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl with a whisk attachment, beat the eggs for a minute until fluffy.
- Add chocolate cake mix and cherry pie filling, and continue to beat the mixture until smooth, starting on low speed and gradually increasing the speed to medium high.
- Pour the batter into the baking pan and spread it evenly with a spatula.
- Bake for about 25 minutes, or until the inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool the cake on wire rack in the pan. Serve warm or cold with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, and/or fudge sauce, if desired.
For cream cheese frosting:
- Whip the cream cheese until fluffy. Add sour cream, powdered sugar and almond extract and beat until smooth.
⭐️ Did you make this recipe?
Please leave a review and let us know how you liked it!
Tips & Notes
– Refrigerate the cherry chocolate cake in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
– Freeze it in an airtight container for up to 3 months. I like to freeze it in slices in a ziplock bag, this way you can enjoy one slice at a time!
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published on August 17th, 2017.
My family loved it. Thank you 😊
So glad you tried and loved this recipe! Thank you for your feedback, Nana!
Can you clarify amount in ounces for the cake mix? Betty Crocker cake mix box is only 13.25 oz, while the Duncan Hines cake mix is 16.5 oz. Thank you.
Hi, Amy. That’s a good question. This recipe is pretty forgiving. Either box will work. The last time I made this recipe (2 weeks ago), I used a box that was 15.5oz. Hope this helps.
Can I leave the cherries somewhat chunky? In other words, a not completely smooth batter.?
Hi Pauline. “Not completely smooth batter” meaning the batter has some dry cake mix throughout? If so, I’ve never tried it that way so I can offer any advice. Just FYI, mixing the batter until all the dry ingredients incorporated still yields whole cherries in the cake.
can i add a pak of choclate pudding mix as well
Hi, Evelyn. I have no idea how adding a pudding mix will affect the batter and the final result.
It looks like it has a chocolate glaze! Not cream cheese frosting!
Hi, Janet. I’ve made this recipe countless times with different toppings. If you scroll up from the recipe card, you’ll see a version with cream cheese frosting. 😉
I just made this recipe today for my husbands birthday, and he said it’s the best chocolate cake he’s had in a long time. He requested a cherry chocolate in passing, so he was shocked I actually made this. It was perfectly moist and sweet. I might try adding a half can or so of tart cherries next time for contrast. I’m not a fruit in chocolate kind girl, but I really enjoyed it too!
Yay, I’m so happy you tried and loved this cake recipe, Jessica!! Thank you for your feedback. And let us know how it turns out with tart cherries, I think it’ll be amazing!
Can you make this in a Bundt pan