Cherry Cake With Marzipan Roses
13
- Prep Time40 mins
- Total Time1 hr 35 mins
- Makes12 servings
Cake design by Camilla Wynne, Produced by Chantal Braganza and Sun Ngo, Photography by Christie Vuong, Prop Styling by Madeleine Johari, Food Styling by Michelle Lucas Larving
This dense, nutty cake—created in the 2010s—has remained a staff favourite.
Cake
1 cup (120 g) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (42 g) almond meal
1 1⁄2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup (149 g) granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup drained Amarena cherries, chopped
Icing
1 227-g pkg marzipan
1 1⁄2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
4 cups (454 g) icing sugar
1/4 tsp almond extract
1 tbsp 2% milk
Green food colouring
Amarena cherry syrup
3 tbsp amaretto, divided (optional)
Amarena cherries, for garnish
Instructions
Put rack in centre of oven; preheat to 350F. Spray two 7-in. round cake pans with oil, then line bottoms with parchment.
Cake: Whisk flour with almond meal, baking powder, salt and baking soda in a medium bowl. Beat 1⁄2 cup butter in a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium, until creamy, 1 min. Beat in granulated sugar, then eggs, one at a time. (Don’t worry if mixture separates; it will come together when flour is added.) Beat in vanilla.
Reduce mixer speed to low, then beat in one-third of flour mixture, then half of buttermilk. Repeat additions, ending with flour mixture. Beat just until blended. Fold in cherries. Divide batter evenly among prepared pans.
Bake until a cake tester inserted in centre of cakes comes out clean, 25 to 30 min. Cool pans on a rack for 10 min. Run a knife around inside edges of pans, then turn cakes out onto rack. Remove parchment. Cool completely, about 30 min.
Icing: Meanwhile, crumble marzipan into a food processor. Whirl until it forms fine crumbs. Add 1 1⁄2 cups butter and whirl until smooth. (Do not overblend.) Scrape into a large bowl. Beat in icing sugar, almond extract and milk, using an electric mixer on medium, until fluffy, 2 to 3 min. Scoop 1⁄4 cup icing into a small bowl. Stir in enough green food colouring to achieve a pale green colour. Beat cherry syrup into remaining icing until desired shade of pink is achieved.
Assembly: Use a serrated knife to cut both cakes in half horizontally. Set one layer on a serving platter. Brush top with 1 tbsp amaretto. Spread with 1/3 cup pink icing right to edge. Top with second cake layer and press down gently. Repeat with remaining cake slices for four total layers. Spread a thin layer of pink icing on top and around sides of cake, smoothing surface. Fill a piping bag, fitted with a #4 open star decorating tip, with remaining pink icing. Pipe rosettes all over cake. Fill a small piping bag, fitted with small plain tip, with green icing. Pipe vines all over cake, then switch to a small leaf tip and pipe leaves. Garnish with a ring of Amarena cherries.