Quick, easy and delicious sweet cherry kuchen, drizzled with a sweet, vanilla glaze. This one starts with a bit of yeast, but no kneading is required and it rises in the pan! Has an overnight rise option, too!

Skillet Sweet Cherry Kuchen

This delicious sweet cherry kuchen recipe is leavened with a bit of yeast, so it’s lovely and light. Don’t worry though, even though there’s yeast involved, there are no super-long rising times and absolutely no kneading required!

Studded with sweet cherries and drizzled with a sweet vanilla glaze, this dish works as a sweet morning or afternoon treat or as a summer dessert, maybe with a dollop of whipped or ice cream.

Ingredients and substitutions

Cherries – sweet cherries are suggested, either fresh or frozen. For using frozen cherries, thaw and bring to room temperature before using. Using the cherries from frozen will make for a cold batter, that will inhibit yeast rising.

Yeast – you can use either Active Dry Yeast or Instant Yeast for this recipe.

Recipe tips

This recipe was halved from a larger recipe, hence the 1 1/2 eggs :) It’s plenty at this size for normal family fare, but if you’re feeding a crowd, you can double the recipe and bake up in a 9×13-inch pan.

I love to bake this up in my skillet, for a rustic presentation. My skillet (shown) is 8-inches across the bottom and 10-inches across the top. You can also bake this in an 8-inch square or round baking pan.

Skillet Sweet Black Cherry Kuchen

Making ahead

You can make this kuchen ahead and bake it later. Instead of setting it to rise to bake up immediately, cover it tightly with plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator for up to 8 hours. This is perfect for mixing up the night before, and then baking up first thing in the morning!

cherry coffee cake in cast iron skillet

Get the Recipe: Sweet Cherry Kuchen

A delicious cherry kuchen, leavened with a little bit of yeast, but with no kneading required! Great served warm from the oven and best on the day it is made. Also freezes well.
5 stars from 2 ratings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Rising Time:: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

Batter:

  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup light brown sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry or instant yeast
  • 5 Tablespoons butter
  • 1 1/2 large eggs, add 1 egg, then beat another egg in a small bowl and add half of it
  • 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour, spooned and levelled
  • 3/4 tsp. salt

Topping:

  • 3 cups sweet black cherries, fresh or frozen, pitted
  • 2 Tablespoons turbinado or brown sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Glaze:

  • 1/2 cup icing/confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon cream or milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla or vanilla bean paste

Instructions
 

  • *For frozen cherries, thaw and pat dry before using.
  • Lightly great a 10-inch skillet (8 inches across the bottom/10 inches across the top) or an 8 or 9-inch round or square baking pan. Set aside.
  • In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the milk, brown sugar and butter until warm to the touch, and the butter has almost melted, about 105F. Remove from heat and stir in the yeast. Let stand 5-10 minutes, until foamy.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Add the eggs and the milk/yeast mixture and gently stir, mixing just until the wet ingredients are incorporated. Add the batter to the prepared pan and cover with plastic wrap that is sprayed with cooking spray on the underside.
  • Preheat oven to 350 F. Place the pan in a warm spot in your kitchen and leave it to rise for about 45 minutes – 1 hour (I like to set it on top of my pre-heating oven). *Note: If you want to make the night before for enjoying in the morning, you can refrigerate this for up to 8 hours, then bake up.
  • When dough has risen, remove plastic wrap and evenly distribute the cherries over-top. Sprinkle with turbinado or brown sugar, then drizzle the melted butter over-top.
  • Bake in the preheated 350 F. oven for 30 minutes, then reduce the heat to 325 F. and bake a further 10-15 minutes, or until the top is golden and the sides are pulling away from the side of the pan.
  • While the cake is baking, make the glaze by whisking together all the ingredients until smooth. Drizzle the glaze over the warm cake and serve immediately.
Cuisine: American
Course: Snack
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 318kcal, Carbohydrates: 48g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Cholesterol: 63mg, Sodium: 273mg, Potassium: 204mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 25g, Vitamin A: 450IU, Vitamin C: 3.6mg, Calcium: 57mg, Iron: 1.7mg
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