I was recently introduced to ground cherries, and at first glance, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Ground cherries resemble a tomatillo but a mini version yet the sweetness and flavor share no resemblance. This Ground Cherry Coffee Cake brings together the sweet flavor on the cherries mixed with a moist cake bottom.

I loved the taste of the ground cherries that I decided to plant a bush in my backyard! This recipe will be on repeat every summer when I am harvesting all the produce! Since I hadn’t experienced ground cherries so much I was able to research and found a cake recipe by The Kitchn and change up some ingredients to make it my own.
Ground Cherry Coffee Cake Ingredients
- 2 cups Gluten Free Flour ( Namaste )
- 1 1/2 cup Coconut Sugar ( Nutiva)
- 10 Tbsp Coconut Oil
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 cup almond milk w/ 1 Tb lemon juice mixed in to make it “buttermilk”
- 1 large egg
- 2 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups ground cherries, husks removed.
- 1 cup chopped raw pecans
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon

Coffee Cake Directions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
- Butter and flour a 9″ cake pan (the taller the sides the better) Set aside.
- In a large bowl whisk together the flour, 1 cup sugar and salt.
- Cut in coconut oil with two table knives until it is combined and the coconut oil/ flour mixture is about the size of small peas.
- Remove 1 cup of flour & coconut oil mixture into a second bowl and set aside. You will use this for the topping later.
- Add in baking powder and baking soda to base flour mixture and whisk gently. Add almond “buttermilk”, egg and vanilla and stir until mixture is free of flour streaks.
- Pour flour mixture into prepared pan. Scatter ground cherries over the top. Next, add pecans, 1/2 cup coconut sugar and cinnamon to your small bowl of flour that was set aside. Stir all ingredients together and sprinkle over the top.
Baking Instructions
- Bake for 60 -75 minutes , depending on your cake pan & oven. Check that the cake is done using a toothpick, it should come out with crumbs but not doughy.
- If pecans start to burn, cover cake with tin foil to halt the cooking of the pecans while the rest of the cake cooks.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes in the pan. Slice, serve and enjoy!

Ground Cherry Coffee Cake
Ingredients
Ground Cherry Cake
- 2 cups Gluten Free Flour Namaste
- 1 1/2 cup Coconut Sugar
- 10 Tbsp Coconut Oil
- 1 tsp Sea Salt
- 1/4 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
- 3/4 cup Almond Milk w/ 1 Tb Lemon Juice "Buttermilk"
- 1 large Egg
- 2 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 3 cups Ground Cherries husks removed
- 1 cup Raw Pecans chopped
- 2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
Instructions
Ground Cherry Cake Directions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter and flour a 9" cake pan (the taller the sides the better) Set aside.In a large bowl whisk together the flour, 1 cup sugar and salt.Cut in coconut oil with two table knives until it is combined and the coconut oil/ flour mixture is about the size of small peas.Remove 1 cup of flour & coconut oil mixture into a second bowl and set aside. You will use this for the topping later.Add in baking powder and baking soda to base flour mixture and whisk gently. Add almond "buttermilk", egg and vanilla and stir until mixture is free of flour streaks.Pour flour mixture into prepared pan. Scatter ground cherries over the top. Next, add pecans, 1/2 cup coconut sugar and cinnamon to your small bowl of flour that was set aside. Stir all ingredients together and sprinkle over the top.Bake for 60 -75 minutes , depending on your cake pan & oven. Check that the cake is done using a toothpick, it should come out with crumbs but not doughy. If pecans start to burn, cover cake with tin foil to halt the cooking of the pecans while the rest of the cake cooks.Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes in the pan. Slice, serve and enjoy!
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Be sure to subscribe to my newsletter to never miss a post. In Addition, here are some other recipe posts that I think you would enjoy. Let me know how you like the recipes by leaving a comment, I always love getting your feedback.
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