Why This Recipe Matters
These Black Forest Cherry Cupcakes were inspired by a cake my mom always used to buy from Sam’s Club, and let me tell you — it was duuuh-licious. Triple layers of dark chocolate cake with chopped cherries and fluffy whipped cream in between, finished with beautiful chocolate swirls on the outside. It was truly unforgettable.
Sadly, they stopped selling that cake more than a decade ago.
Womp. Wommmmp.
When the kids were little, I made all of their birthday cakes. For Mikey’s ninth birthday, I decided to recreate that incredible Black Forest cherry cake — partly because Mikey loves cherry cordial ice cream and, well… anything cherry-flavored. The cake actually turned out pretty great — but let’s be honest, sometimes making a full layer cake feels like a bit of a production.
So leaning into those same chocolate-and-cherry flavors felt like the perfect place to start.
While I was photographing these cupcakes, Mikey was in the kitchen sampling cherries and popping them into his mouth one by one:
Ew… not that one.
Oh, that one wasn’t good either.
Wait — that one was amazing.
Seriously, try one, Mom. The one I just had was soooo good!
He was fully committed to the cherry roulette: keep going, keep tasting, because eventually you hit those sweet, juicy bursts that make you keep reaching for just one more.
The good news? You don’t have to commit to cherry roulette with these cupcakes — every single one delivers that sweet, juicy burst of cherry flavor.
In short-Mikey’s love of cherries and my food memories of a cake from my teenage years were all I needed to grab an old recipe for inspiration and turn those delicious flavors into cupcakes instead.
And honestly?
They did not disappoint.
Prepare Your Taste Buds
First things first: The Cherry Filling.
I had kirsch in the liquor cabinet, but since I was essentially turning the flavors of an entire triple-layer cake into a cupcake, brushing a little cherry liqueur on the surface didn’t feel like enough.
I think I have a can of cherry pie filling…somewhere in here…
I’m playing pantry shuffle, sliding cans back and forth, when…
Hello there.
…a can of dark sweet cherries is waiting, glossy and deep ruby.
Oh? It’s not the cherry pie filling I was looking for, but let’s give this a whirl for the cupcake filling.
I drained and blended the cherries, simmered them with sugar and lemon juice until thick, then chilled.
Next, the Chocolate Cupcakes — baked, cooled, and ready to be filled.
I scooped out the center of each baked cupcake, filled it with chilled cherry filling, and tucked the little cupcake piece back on top to create a smooth finish.
Then, the Whipped Cream.
Whipping regular heavy cream — or using a can — would simplify things, but since I planned to enjoy these over a couple of days, I needed a whipped cream that would hold its shape. Enter a bit of gelatin (I use trusty old Knox), and voilà — lightly sweetened stabilized whipped cream, piped generously on top. It keeps the cupcakes light and lets the rich chocolate and bright cherry flavors shine.
Last but not least: Chocolate Swirls lightly sprinkled over the tops.
Finally, the balance is just right:
Deep Chocolate, Sweet Cherry, and Delicate Whipped Cream.
File this recipe under things you should probably try: Black Forest Cherry Cupcakes. They’re wonderful any time of year, but especially lovely for February — and they just might make their way onto a cake platter this October for Mikey’s 15th birthday.
For more chocolate favorites, be sure to check out my Easy Chocolate Bundt Cake and Texas Sheet Cake Brownies.
You can find all of my dessert recipes in the Dessert Index.
Happy Baking! Love, Sara
Black Forest Cherry Cupcakes
Rich chocolate cupcakes filled with tart cherry filling and topped with stabilized whipped cream — classic Black Forest flavors in cupcake form.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 12 cupcakes 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Cherry Filling
- 1 can (15 oz) dark sweet cherries, drained (reserve juice)
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of table salt
Chocolate Cupcakes
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt
- 1/4 cup canola oil (or vegetable oil)
- 1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature
- 1/2 cup hot water
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Stabilized Whipped Cream
- 1 cup cold heavy whipping cream
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
- 4 teaspoons cold water
Chocolate Bark (Optional Garnish)
- 2 oz dark chocolate (1/2 of a 4-oz baking bar)
- 2 oz milk chocolate (1/2 a Hershey’s or Lindt bar)
Instructions
Cherry Filling
- Blend the cherries: Place drained cherries in a blender and blend until smooth.
- Simmer the filling: Add cherries, sugar, lemon juice, and salt to a saucepan. Simmer over medium heat, stirring often, 5–8 minutes until slightly reduced.
- Thicken: Whisk cornstarch into the reserved cherry juice until smooth. Slowly pour into the saucepan while whisking.
- Finish: Bring to a gentle boil and cook 1–2 minutes until thick. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
- Chill: Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until chilled and thickened.
Chocolate Cupcakes
- Prep the oven: Preheat oven to 350°F and set rack to the middle position. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with liners.
- Mix dry ingredients: Whisk flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
- Mix wet ingredients: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix oil, buttermilk, egg, and vanilla. With the mixer running on low, slowly stream in the hot water so it doesn’t cook the egg, and mix until smooth.
- Combine: With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Increase speed to medium and mix until smooth, about 2–3 minutes. Batter will be thin.
- Fill and bake: Fill liners about ⅔ full. Bake 12-15 minutes, until a toothpick comes out mostly clean.
- Cool: Allow cupcakes to cool completely.
Stabilized Whipped Cream
- Bloom the gelatin: Sprinkle gelatin over cold water and let sit 5 minutes.
- Melt gelatin: Microwave 5–8 seconds until fully melted (not hot).
- Whip cream: Using the whisk attachment, beat cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla on medium-high speed (speed 6–8 on most stand mixers) until soft peaks form.
- Stabilize: With mixer on low, slowly drizzle in gelatin. Increase speed and whip to stiff peaks.
- Use promptly: Pipe or spread whipped cream onto cupcakes right away, as it will begin to set as it chills.
Chocolate Bark (Optional Garnish)
- Melt Chocolate: Melt dark chocolate until smooth using a double boiler or microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring between each.
- Spread: Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Using an offset spatula, spread the melted dark chocolate into a thin layer.
- Roll and chill: Roll up the parchment from the short side into a loose log and refrigerate until firm, about 20–30 minutes (or freeze 10–15 minutes).
- Unroll: Unroll to create bark or curls.
- For milk chocolate curls: Use a vegetable peeler to shave curls from the milk chocolate.
Assemble the Cupcakes
- Core: Scoop out the center of each cupcake.
- Fill: Fill with cherry filling and replace cupcake piece.
- Frost: Pipe stabilized whipped cream on top.
- Garnish: Garnish as desired.
- Store: Refrigerate cupcakes, covered. Best enjoyed within 2–3 days.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cupcake
- Calories: 241
- Sugar: 24.3 g
- Sodium: 419.1 mg
- Fat: 9.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 36.8 g
- Fiber: 1.4 g
- Protein: 3.4 g
- Cholesterol: 28.2 mg
Handy Hints
- Room-temperature ingredients: Use room-temperature eggs and buttermilk for a smoother cupcake batter.
- Cool before filling: Let cupcakes cool completely before filling to prevent the cherry filling from melting or loosening.
- Adjust filling consistency: If your cherry filling thickens too much after chilling, stir in 1–2 teaspoons of reserved cherry juice or water to loosen.
- Removing centers: A cupcake corer, apple corer, small knife, or piping tip all work well for removing the centers.
- Cold cream matters: For best whipped cream texture, use very cold heavy cream and a cold mixing bowl.
- Quick shortcut: Use canned whipped cream and finish with a dusting of cocoa powder — just plan to serve right away.
Make-Ahead Tips
- Cherry filling can be made up to 3 days ahead and stored in the refrigerator.
- Chocolate cupcakes can be baked 1 day ahead and stored tightly covered at room temperature.
- Stabilized whipped cream can be made up to 24 hours ahead and refrigerated.
- Assemble cupcakes the day of serving for best texture and appearance.
- Store finished cupcakes covered in the refrigerator for up to 36 hours.
Your Table Matters
Thank you for being here in my kitchen. If something from Cook What Matters made its way to your table, I would love to hear about it. Your moments around the table are exactly why I’m here sharing the recipes that matter most.
✔ Leave a rating or comment below — I read every one.
✔ Snap a photo and tag @cookwhatmatters on Instagram — your creations inspire me.
✔ Save this recipe to Pinterest so you can find it again later.
Leave a Reply