This Cherry Almond Bundt Cake is a traditional almond pound cake filled with cherry pie filling and topped with cream cheese glaze. It’s perfectly moist, dense, and sweet!

a slice of bundt cake on a plate with a fork.

Easy Cherry Pound Cake

Recently, I’ve been playing around with different variations of my grandmother’s classic easy pound cake—adding various fruit fillings and glazes and whatnot. It’s been so fun to see how they all come together…and also to eat!

Today’s variation is a homemade Cherry Almond Bundt Cake. It’s the traditional pound cake infused with almond flavor and filled with cherry pie filling. It’s finished off with a simple cream cheese glaze flavored with a touch of orange zest.

The flavor combination of this cake is delicious! The perfect amount of fruitiness, sweetness, and nuttiness ready in just a few simple steps!

a baked bundt cake on a blue cake stand topped with icing.

Key Ingredients

Eggs – You’ll need 5 large eggs, brought to room temperature.
Baking Powder – Make sure your baking powder is fresh. Expired baking powder won’t give the cake the lift it’s supposed to.
Milk – Whatever milk you have on hand will work.
Cherry Pie Filling – I use store-bought pie filling, but if you have a cherry pie filling recipe you love, feel free to use that.
Cream Cheese – Use full-fat cream cheese blocks for the best texture.
Heavy Whipping Cream – You can also use milk if you don’t have whipping cream on hand.
Almond Extract – Remember, a little goes a long way!

How to Make Cherry Almond Bundt Cake

This delicious cherry pound cake is so simple to prepare and made extra convenient with a store-bought cherry pie filling! Preheat the oven to 325ºF and generously grease and flour a 10-cup bundt pan.

Combine the wet ingredients: In a bowl, cream the butter until smooth and beat in the sugar until light and fluffy, You’ll want to scrape down the bowl frequently. Then add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the almond extract.
Add the dry ingredients and milk: In a separate bowl, sift the flour, then add baking powder and salt. Add half the dry ingredients and half the milk to the wet batter, mix until partially combined, then repeat and mix well.
Layer the batter and filling: Strain the cherry pie filling through a sieve to separate the cherries from the gel (more on that below! Pour 1/3 of the batter into a greased and floured bundt pan, then spoon on 1/3 of the cherries. Spread evenly, then top with 2-3 tablespoons of cherry juice. Swirl that into the batter, then repeat 2 more times.
Bake and cool: Bake the cake at 325ºF until a toothpick comes out clean. Cover the bundt pan with foil for 20 minutes or so to prevent the bottom from browning. When the cake is done, remove from the oven and cool completely.
Add the glaze: Add softened cream cheese and powdered sugar to a bowl. Stir to combine, then add heavy cream, one tablespoon at a time, until it reaches your desired thickness. Mix in orange zest, almond extract, and salt, then drizzle over the cooled cake and serve.

overhead of a bundt pan with cake batter swirled with cherries and cherry juice.

How to Strain Cherry Pie Filling

Not every pie filling is going to be the same, and some might be more difficult to strain than others. But the point is to remove at least some of the excess juice! Skipping this step can cause problems when baking due to the pan being overfilled, and it will also effect the baking time.

Place a fine mesh sieve over a large glass bowl and pour the cherry pie filling into the sieve. Use a spatula to gently turn the pie filling over several times to separate the fruit and the juice. Tap the sieve and occasionally wipe the bottom clean until strained well.

a bowl filled with cherry pie filling — Pie filling from the can

a bowl with cherries strained out of pie filling — Pie filling from the can

Recipe Tips and Notes

Room temperature ingredients. Room-temperature ingredients combine more easily together. I recommend setting them out 30 minutes or so before you’re ready to make your cake.
Grease and flour the pan. The pie filling can be very sticky. Generously grease with Crisco shortening and then coat with flour. This makes it so much easier to remove the cake when it’s done baking and also helps prevent it from burning on the bottom.
Wrap the pan in foil. The cake needs the full 65-70 minutes to bake all the way through, but the long baking time may also cause the bottom to burn. I recommend wrapping the pan in foil for 20 minutes of the baking time so that it comes out perfectly.
Cool the cake completely. If the cake is still warm when you add the icing, it will become too runny and just melt off.

overhead of a slice of cherry pound cake on a plate with a fork.

Baking Tips to Prevent Dry Bundt Cakes

Don’t over-mix the batter. Mixing too much can over-develop the gluten in the flour causing a dryer, dener texture.
Properly measured flour. To accurately measure the flour, use a kitchen scale to weigh it. Otherwise, you can spoon it into the measuring cup, then gently level it off with your finger. This prevents it from getting too packed in. Here’s my tutorial for properly measuring flour.
Cover the pan in foil. The Long exposure to high heat can cause the cake to dry out. I recommend covering it with foil for 20 minutes of the baking time to prevent that.
Don’t over-bake. A bundt cake can quickly go from perfect to over-baked and dry if you leave it in the oven too long. Make sure you take it out as soon as a toothpick comes out clean.

Storing and Freezing

A finished bundt cake will last covered at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the fridge for 4-5 days. It is best served at room temperature.

If you plan to prepare in advance, bake and store the cooled cake in an airtight container at room temperature, then add the glaze before serving.

To freeze, make sure the cake is fully cooled all the way through. wrap twice in plastic wrap and then again with aluminum foil. Freeze for up to two months.