How to make Black Forest Cake from scratch

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Black Forest cake or Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte is a dessert originally from Germany, which has gained worldwide popularity due to the classic combination of chocolate, cream and cherry.

In the classic recipe, the cake consists of chocolate sponge cakes, which are soaked with Kirschwasser. What is included in the filling of the black forest? The most delicate air cream is made of whipped cream and cherries. The cake is decorated with cherries and grated chocolate.

To date, there are many variations of the Black Forest cherry cake and everyone has their own proven recipe in stock, according to which a stunning Black Forest cake is made. But they are all based on the classic recipe of the Black Forest, so it’s worth getting acquainted with it first.

Black Forest cake is a refined and elegant cake that would be a great option if you want to prepare something fragrant! This cake is not difficult to cook, but success will largely depend on the quality of the products you use, especially cream. In all the recipes of the Black Forest cake, you can find that the cream is used both inside the cake and for decoration and has a creamy structure. Therefore, the better the cream, the better it will whisk and taste. The basis of the cake is different variations of the sponge cake, we suggest you classic sponge cake, also you can try a sponge cake with the addition of butter or with whisking eggs in a water bath.

Use Kirschwasser (cherry brandy) for this cake, but other cherry bitters and liqueurs will also work well. If you do not have such cherry alcohol for soaking, use cognac, it is perfect for cherries and chocolate.

You can use frozen, canned or fresh cherries. They help to make the Black Forest universal dessert at any time of the year.

Chocolate Cake

It does not differ in any way from the preparation of a classic sponge cake. The flour must be sifted with cocoa and take into account that when adding cocoa, the sponge cake will not rise so high and will be slightly denser, since cocoa absorbs a lot of moisture.

1. Sift the flour with cocoa, separate the yolks from the whites. Preheat the oven to 350 °F.
2. Beat up the yolks with sugar (1) to a fluffy light mass. Separately, whisk the whites with the remaining sugar (2).
3. Mix a third part of the whites into the dough. Then pour in all the flour and gently mix with a spatula until a smooth consistency, so that there are no pieces of dry flour left.
4. The last step is to add the remaining whites and gently mix them so that the consistency becomes smooth, and at the same time, the dough remains bold.
5. Put the dough into the mold (only the bottom should be covered with parchment!) and put it in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. After the cake is ready (if you stick a toothpick, it should remain dry), turn the cake straight in the mold and leave to cool for 10-15 minutes.

Cherry Liqueur Syrup

1. If the cherry is fresh, then you need to remove the stones. If frozen, then it must first be thawed and the juice drained (it can be used for soaking).
2. Combine cherries, sugar, Kirschwasser, and starch in a saucepan and put on medium heat. Bring to a boil and stir, keep on fire for 3-5 minutes until thickened. Let it cool.

Whipped Cream Frosting

1. Put the cream with chocolate in a water bath and stir constantly until the chocolate dissolves. Then put the chocolate cream in the refrigerator until it cools completely.
2. After the cream and chocolate have cooled, beat them up with a mixer at high speed until a dense creamy consistency.

Decoration

1. Divide the chocolate: put 2 oz in a water bath, and chop 1 ½ oz finely.
2. When 2 oz of chocolate melts in a water bath, remove the bowl from the heat and add 1 ½ oz of chopped chocolate. Stir until smooth.
3. Place the chocolate on a silicone mat/paper/plate or on another surface. Smooth out a thin layer and let the chocolate harden.
4. When the chocolate hardens, use a knife to make chocolate curls.

Assembly

1. Cut the sponge cake into three cakes. Prepare a simple syrup (1:1 sugar and water) with a small addition of kirsch. Soak the cakes a little.
2. Put a little cream on the base so that the cake sticks to the base. Put the chocolate cream around (this is necessary so that the cherry under the weight of the cake does not come out from the sides of the cake, spoiling the decor), put the cherry inside. Put more cream on top, smooth it out a little and cover with a second cake.
3. So repeat with all the cakes.
4. Beat the cream with powdered sugar and cover the cake with this cream, leveling the sides.
5. You can decorate by depositing the cream in a circle with a nozzle, adding cherries and chocolate curls.
6. Let the cake stand for 2-3 hours before serving

How to decorate Black Forest cake at home

To decorate the cake, use silicone forms for making chocolate molds (their choice is quite wide). Melt the chocolate in a water bath and pour it into molds.

Most often in shops and restaurants, you can find cakes decorated with cocktail ( maraschino) cherries. Of course, you can use it if you want, but remember that it has a specific taste, too sweet and mawky at the same time. If you want your Black Forest cake having maximum grace – decorate with fresh cherries, straight with vines and leaves or frozen candied cherries.

FAQ

What can be used instead of kirsch?

Kirschwasser, or kirsch– is a light cherry-flavored brandy from Germany. Instead of kirsch, you can use cherry brandy, cherry bitter or cherry liqueur.

Should Black Forest cake be refrigerated?

Freezing a cake is a convenient way to save it if you are not going to eat it all at once. You can freeze the remains of the cake, even if it is not in perfect shape.

It is convenient to freeze the cake in portions. Then you can defrost exactly as much as you need.

But you should remember: Only a completely cooled cake should be frozen.

To prevent the cream from absorbing third-party odors, put the cake in a container with a tightly closed lid. To prevent the dough from drying out at the edges, wrap the product tightly with plastic food wrap. Defrost the products wrapped in clingfilm in the refrigerator so that slow defrosting takes place. After 1 hour after removing the cake from the freezer, remove the plastic wrap from it.

Cakes with high-fat content freeze well. If there is no fat in the cake (for example, it is fat-free), then it will not freeze well. Therefore, do not put such products in the freezer.

Can you make this cake ahead of time?

Yes, you can. But you should not decorate it until you are going to serve it. Don’t forget to wrap it in plastic food wrap and put it in an airtight container, so it will not lose moisture and absorb other odors.