Nuts-For-You Cherry Cake | Lazy Cooking

Ingredients

• ***For the cake:***
• 6 large egg whites
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 1/4 cup maraschino cherry juice, plus 40 maraschino cherries, chopped
• 3 cups cake flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
• ***For the frosting:***
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ***Optional garnishes:***
• canned whipped cream, to taste
• maraschino cherries (with the stems intact), to taste, drained and patted dry
• walnuts, to taste