chia cherry-almond bundt cake #bundtamonth

It was my birthday this past weekend. And it was perfect.

What wonderful concoction did I make to celebrate this day? you ask.

Nothing. I did nothing. The whole day long. It was glorious.

I stayed in bed until 10 or so, reading my husband's novel in draft form. My family and I walked around out neighborhood, exploring some new shops that have been cropping up and I've been meaning to visit. I did not take my camera with me. We came home and watched some movies, ordered in sushi and had some chocolate mousse cake. I highly recommend celebrating in this way. Together with no agenda.

On Saturday I rested... and on Sunday I made cake.

I would call this a healthy cake, if I thought you could describe something filled with sugar and fat as healthy. As far as cake's go, this one has some redeeming qualities. I used Bob's Red Mill Banana Blueberry Bundt Cake recipe with some alterations. The glaze is very almond-spicy and compliments the cherry flavor really nicely. This cake works well for breakfast, afternoon snack or dessert and is my entry for the Bundt a Month at Cake Duchess where April is all about CHERRIES.

Chia Cherry-Almond Bundt Cake
Adapted from Bob's Red Mill Banana Blueberry Bundt Cake

2 cups White whole wheat flour
1 cup White flour
1/2 teaspoons Baking soda
1-1/2 tsp Baking powder
1/2 cup Almond meal
1/4 teaspoons Sea salt
1 cup Brown sugar
1/4 cup Canola oil
1/2 cup Applesauce, no sugar added
3 eggs
6 oz Vanilla full fat yogurt (it's what we had in our fridge)
1/2 teaspoons pure Vanilla Extract
2 cups Frozen Cherries
1 ripe Banana, mashed
1/4 cup Chia Seeds, whole

Glaze
1 cup packed confectioner's sugar
2 tablespoons almond extract
Up to 1 tablespoons water (to create drippy consistency)
1/2 ripe strawberry smashed for color

1. Heat oven to 375.

2. Combine the first six ingredients together in large bowl and set aside.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, applesauce, eggs, yogurt and vanilla until combined. Fold the bananas and blueberries into the wet ingredients. Add dry ingredients to wet and fold to combine. Fold in chia seeds.

4. Spray bundt pan with baking spray and then fill with the batter. Bake for about 45 - 55 minutes (test doneness by inserting a toothpick and making sure it comes out 'clean') and allow to cool for 10 minutes and then invert onto a cooling rack and allow to completely cool.  

5. Prepare the glaze by mixing the sugar and almond extract. Smash in the strawberry with a fork and then drizzle over the cake and serve. 

 Here's what others made for Cherry Bundt-a-Month:

• Black Forest Mini Bundt Cakes by Kim at Cravings of a Lunatic
• Cherry Blueberry Cheesecake Bundt by Stacy at Food Lust People Love
• Cherry Bundt Cake by Veronica at My Catholic Kitchen
• Cherry Filled Bundt Cake with Chocolate Cherry Drizzle by Heather at Hezzi D’s Books and Cooks
• Cherry Kirsch Bundt by Tara at Noshing With The Nolands
• Cherry Pecan Bundt Cake by Renee at Magnolia Days
• Chocolate Cherry Bundt Cake by Anuradha at Baker Street
• Chocolate Cherry Bundt Cake by Lora at Cake Duchess
• Chocolate Cherry Coke Cake by Jennie at The Messy Baker Blog
• Chocolate Cherry Dream by Kim at Ninja Baking
• Coconut Cherry Chip Bundt Cake by Anne at From My Sweet Heart
• Lemon Cherry Bundt Cake with Lemon Glaze by Anita at Hungry Couple
• Mahlab Vanilla Bundt Cake by Laura at The Spiced Life
• Spicy Cherry Yogurt Bundt Bake by Paula at Vintage Kitchen
• White Chocolate Black Cherry Yogurt Bundt Cake by Karen at In the Kitchen With KP
• Cherry Bundt Cake by Katerina at Diethood

Here’s how you can be a part of Bundt-a-Month:

• Simple rule: Use cherries – and bake us a Bundt for March
• Post it before April 30, 2013
• Use the #BundtaMonth hashtag in your title. (For ex: title could read – #BundtaMonth: Cherry Bundt)
• Add your entry to the Linky tool below
• Link back to our announcement posts

Even more bundt fun! Follow Bundt-a-Month on Facebook where we feature all our gorgeous bundt cakes. Or head over to our Pinterest board for inspiration and choose from hundreds of Bundt cake recipes.