It all began when I saw a blog about making your own cherry pie filling.  So easy!  But the writer went a step further.  She had some cherry pie filling left over and used it on waffles!  Oh my!  I couldn't get that picture out of my head.  I wanted cherry pie filling.  Do you ever get cravings for something?

Fortunately, we have plenty of cherries in the freezer and it's time to use them up.  So I thought about what I could make that would involve cherry pie filling that wasn't a pie or a cobbler.

Of course -- cake.  But wouldn't it be better if the cake were chocolate?  Anyone drooling yet?

Let's be honest, this cake can stand alone.  It doesn't need cherries to dress it up.  You could frost it with your favorite icing (maybe Sheila's cream cheese and maple icing?), sprinkle with powdered sugar, or eat it plain.  

This is a dump cake.  No fancy steps required.  The perfect cake for those times when the phone rings and someone says "we're about two hours away -- do you feel like company?"  Ack! You just dump the ingredients into a mixer, mix, and bake.  Also excellent for midnight madness, when you need something yummy -- fast!

One of these days I'm going to try this as an all chocolate cake with chocolate fudge frosting.  I bet it's perfect for that.

Chocolate Cake

1 9x9 square baking pan

1 cup sugar

1 cup flour

6 tablespoons cocoa powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup butter (melted)

1/2 cup hot water

1 teaspoon instant coffee

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Preheat over to 350.  Lightly grease the pan.

Place all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix.  Pour the balsamic vinegar into the milk and stir (it will make some globs, which is what it's supposed to do).  Place the coffee in the hot water and dissolve.  Add all the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix.  It will be quite thin.

Pour into pan and bake 30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.     

CHERRY TOPPING (optional)

27 ounces frozen Bing cherries

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup cold water

Pour cherries and sugar into a saucepan.  Dissolve the cornstarch in the cold water and add to pan.  Bring to a boil and gently boil, while stirring, for two minutes.  Cool very briefly.  Pour over top of cake.  When cool enough, refrigerate overnight or until the cherries are set.