Chocolate Cherry Cake

We like the way chocolate and cherries go together. We tested several different cherry formats before we came up with the one we liked the best. This recipe uses buttermilk for moistness and dried cherries. We used Dried Pitted Rainier Cherries. If you can't find these, you can buy them from our friends at Bella Viva farm: http://bellaviva.com/Dried-Fruits-and-Nuts/Dried-Pitted-Rainier-Cherries.html .

Ingredients

2 sticks butter, 16 tablespoons
2 cups sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
6 ounces Scharffen Berger 99% Cacao Unsweetened Chocolate
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup dried Rainier cherries, soaked in hot water
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk

Method

Bring all the ingredients to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8x13-inch baking pan.

Melt 6 ounces Scharffen Berger 99% Cacao Unsweetened Chocolate in the top of a double boiler or in a bowl set over simmering water. Remove from the heat.

Cream the butter and sugar. To cream the ingredients, beat them in an electric mixer until they are smooth, a pale ivory color, and whipped in consistency.

While the sugar and butter are beating, sift the flour, baking soda and salt into a bowl.

Add the eggs to the butter/sugar mixture one at a time. Add the melted chocolate. Then add the vanilla.

Alternately, add the flour mixture and the buttermilk in three additions. Drain the dried cherries and add to the cake batter.

Pour into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 45 minutes.

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