Cherry-almond coffeecake

After eating a lot of Bing cherries this weekend, there seems to be a lot of it left. As always bags of cherries seem bottomless after you have had a couple of handfuls. This coffee cake is quite tender and the cherries, you may find, have turned into a jam-like mush. The streusel topping and sliced almonds are the highlights of this cake.

I did not have a cherry pitter and this method for pitting cherries (scroll down) worked with some success.

Here is the delicious recipe from Cooking Light:

Cherry-Almond Coffeecake

Topping:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup regular oats
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon chilled butter or stick margarine, cut into small pieces

Cake:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons butter or stick margarine, softened
1 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups pitted sweet cherries, quartered
2 tablespoons slivered almonds

Preheat oven to 350°.
To prepare topping, combine flour, brown sugar, oats, and cinnamon in a small bowl; cut in 1 tablespoon butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Set aside.

To prepare the cake, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl; set aside. Beat granulated sugar and butter at medium speed of a mixer. Add the yogurt, extracts, and egg; beat well. Add flour mixture, and beat at low speed until well-blended (batter will be thick). Spread half of batter in bottom of an 8-inch square baking pan coated with cooking spray, and top with cherries. Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons topping. Repeat procedure with the remaining batter and topping. Sprinkle with almonds. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack.