Description: An unusual, not-too-sweet cake that needs no frosting and is great either as a breakfast coffee cake or as a dessert cake.
Serving Size: 8-10
Time: 90 minutes
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:
  1. 1 cup dried cherries
  2. 1 cup boiling water
  3. 1 and 1/2 cup flour
  4. 1 cup white sugar
  5. 2 tsp baking powder
  6. 1/4 tsp salt
  7. 2 eggs
  8. 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  9. 1 cup sour cream
  10. 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
  11. 1/2 tsp almond extract
  12. 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  13. 1/2 cup demerara (coarse grain) sugar
Preparation:
  1. Soak the dried cherries in the one cup of boiling water. Let sit for 20 - 30 minutes and then drain the water and lay the cherries out onto a kitchen towl or paper towels to drain. They'll look a little sad, but they taste great and will bake up plump and pretty. Coarsely chop them and set them aside.
Instructions:
  1. Preheat your oven to 350. Grease and flour (or use a flour baking spray) an 8 or 9 inch springform pan, or a standard 8 inch cake pan or 8 x 8 square pan.

  3. In a large bowl, combine the flour, white sugar, baking powder and salt.

  5. In a smaller bowl, whisk the eggs, sour cream, vegetable oil and the extracts until well combined.

  7. Create a well in the flour mixture and add the wet ingredients. Mix with a spatula until the wet ingredients are incorporated. Fold in the cherries.

  9. Spread into your prepared pan. Sprinkle the top with the pecans and the demerara sugar.

  11. Bake at 350 for about 40-55 minutes (depending upon your pan size). A knife or skewer inserted at the center should come out with a slight crumb.