Question 1

What is the Benefit of Sour Cream in this Cake?

Accepted Answer

Today's cherry pound cake recipe is different than our previous one because it contains sour cream.

The sour cream, as used in our popular Sour Cream Pound Cake recipe, not only adds richness of flavor, but it also thickens the batter, making it perfect for keeping our mini chocolate chips and sliced maraschino cherries suspended!

Another benefit of sour cream in cake recipes is that it adds a bit of acidity to the batter. This softens the strands of gluten, creating a velvety texture and more tender crumb.

Our Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake recipe is another example of a super moist pound cake that contains sour cream.

Question 2

Can this Cake be Frozen?

Accepted Answer

Yes! Just as with the majority of our cakes (from lemonade cake to strawberry pound cake, pineapple cake and more), this cake freezes beautifully.

We freeze our cakes all the time and have never had an issue. It saves so much time as it allows you to bake well in advance if you'd like. As long as the cake is wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and foil, it will stay fresh in the freezer for up to three months!

After baking and cooling the cake (we wrap when the cake is still slightly warm), wrap it in a couple of layers of plastic wrap and then foil. Into the freezer it goes! (You can label and date it if you do a lot of baking & freezing).

When it is time to thaw, move the wrapped cake from the freezer to the refrigerator the day before.

Then, the following morning, move the cake to the kitchen counter to continue warming. If there is no more condensation forming on the foil, it is fine to go ahead and unwrap.

Question 3

Does this Cherry Chocolate Chip Pound Cake need refrigeration?

Accepted Answer

No, this cake can be stored in an airtight container or cake dome at room temperature. (However, if you are topping with maraschino cherries as we did, you should add those just before serving.)

If by chance you just prefer to refrigerate the cake, you should remove it from the refrigerator two hours before serving for best flavor and texture. This will give the cherry chocolate chip pound cake a chance to warm and soften.

Question 4

Do the Chocolate Chips and Cherry Slices need to be coated in flour?

Accepted Answer

You may know of some recipes that advise coating add-ins like chocolate chips in flour to help them stay suspended. I never notice much of a difference with this trick, but luckily we do not need it today!

The cake batter for this recipe is nice and thick (thanks in part to the sour cream in the recipe)! This keeps the chocolate chips and bits of cherries suspended as the cake bakes. No sinking! ;0)

Question 5

How should the Cherry Chocolate Chip Cake be decorated?

Accepted Answer

One of my favorite things about pound cakes and bundt cakes that they don't need a lot of decoration.

They can be served just as they are, or with a light dusting of confectioners' sugar, a simple glaze, or a scoop of ice cream!

For today's cake, we used an easy cherry glaze and topped it with cherries and chocolate chips.

Spring and Summer Recipes