Individual chocolate pound cakes with cherry-port topping

These individual pound cakes are delightful and make the perfect dessert for a small dinner party or special get-together. Find yourself some mini loaf pans — you'll need five — and gather up some cherries to use in a topping.

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Pound cake is so good — rich and buttery — that frosting or toppings are usually left off. But, since cherries are in season, combine the two for a great dessert. It's best to serve this topping on the side and allow your guests to add as much as they like.

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If you thought pound cake got its name for the weight you might gain from eating it, you're — fortunately — wrong (unless you eat a lot of it)! Pound cake was traditionally made with a pound of each main ingredient: flour, sugar, eggs and butter. Most pound cake recipes, like this one, are made with adjusted ingredients.

Individual pound cakes with cherry-port topping

Pound cake recipe adapted from Bon Appétit

Yields 5 cakes

Ingredients:

For the cakes

• 2 cups flour
• 1-3/4 cups sugar
• 5 eggs
• 1-1/4 cups butter, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 1-1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• Nonstick cooking spray

For the topping

• 1 cup pitted, chopped fresh cherries
• 1/2 orange, peeled, sectioned, pith removed and sections cut in half
• 1/8 cup orange juice
• Zest from half the orange
• 1/2 cup port

Directions:

For the cakes

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Spray the mini loaf pans with the nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
2. In a small bowl, add one-quarter cup of boiling water to the cocoa powder and mix together.
3. In a medium-sized bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.
4. In a mixing bowl beat the sugar and butter until incorporated,
5. Mix in the eggs, one at a time.
6. Add the vanilla and the cocoa.
7. Add the flour, a little at a time, and mix.
8. Pour the batter into the pans, to about one-quarter-inch from the top, and smooth evenly.
9. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of one comes out clean.

For the topping

1. Add all the ingredients to a saucepan over high heat and mix well.
2. Bring the mixture to a boil, then simmer for about 10 minutes.
3. Serve in side bowls along with the cake.

These cakes are perfect for you and for sharing!

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More dessert recipes to try

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French-style macaroons
S'mores-n-berry brownie bars