Mini Cherry Bakewell Bundt Cakes

These mini cakes taste just as you would image: like little cherry Bakewells. The mini ones are adorable, and look so pretty with a shiny pink or white glaze – although I also like a thick icing that holds its drip.

There's something so scrumptious about bringing almond and cherry together – I just love this combination of flavours.

Cherries are also one of my favourite fruits, although sadly, the ones you can buy all year round taste of barely anything. I recommend making these cakes with frozen cherries, or those grown in the UK in summertime, when they're at their best.

A couple of baking tips: these cakes can be a little reluctant to remove themselves from their moulds, so make sure you grease them well. You could also use the mixture to make one big Bundt cake, although this will require a longer bake and a careful eye.

SERVES:
12 cakes

Ingredients
Instructions

Ingredients

Wet ingredients

150ml oat, almond, or soy milk

100ml groundnut oil

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 tsp almond extract

Dry ingredients

200g plain flour

70g ground almonds

190g coconut or caster sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1 cup fresh or frozen cherries, stoned

For the icing

3-4 cherries, stoned and roughly chopped

150g icing sugar

Good squeeze of lemon juice

To serve

½ cup flaked almonds

Gold leaf (optional)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan 160°C/Gas 4. Grease 12 mini Bundt cake moulds, making sure they're well coated.
Combine all the wet ingredients in a bowl, and all the dry ingredients in another large bowl. Stir the cherries through the dry ingredients to coat them in the flour.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, and stir to combine, being careful not to over-mix. Spoon your batter into the Bundt cases, leaving about 1cm of room at the top.
Bake for about 25-30 mins, after which time they should have risen and feel bouncy to the touch. Insert a skewer and if it comes out clean, they're done (try to avoid hitting a cherry!) If they're not quite ready, give them another 5 mins and try again.
When the cakes are cooked, remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before carefully removing them from their moulds and placing them on a wire rack.
Make your icing by adding your chopped cherries to a small bowl and squishing them with the back of a fork to extract as much juice as possible. Strain through a sieve, and add the juice to the icing sugar.
Mix everything together until smooth, and add a squeeze of lemon juice until you reach your desired consistency.
Spoon some of the icing over the top of each Bundt cake, allowing it to drip down the grooves. Finish each cake with a sprinkling of flaked almonds and a little gold leaf, if you're feeling fancy!