Black Forest Cake

Before you start

Black Forest cake, Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte in German, combines four things: a light chocolate sponge, sour cherries, cherry brandy (kirsch) and plenty of lightly sweetened whipped cream. It is not meant to be very sweet. The kirsch gives a sharp, fruity edge, and the sour cherries keep the cream from tasting flat.

The sponge here is a whipped-egg chocolate cake baked in one tall pan and split into three layers. Soak each one well, since a dry sponge makes the whole cake taste dusty. Stabilize the cream so it holds the weight of the layers, and give the assembled cake a long chill so the flavors settle and the slices hold their shape.

Ingredients

• Chocolate sponge6 large eggs — room temperature
• 180 g (¾ cup + 2 tbsp) granulated sugar
• 90 g (¾ cup + 1 tbsp) cake flour
• 30 g (⅓ cup) Dutch-process cocoa powder
• ¼ tsp fine salt
• 40 g (3 tbsp) unsalted butter — melted and warm
• Cherries680 g (24-oz) jar sour (Morello) cherries in light syrup — drained; reserve the juice
• 30 g (2½ tbsp) granulated sugar
• 2 tbsp (16 g) cornstarch
• 2 tbsp (30 ml) kirsch
• Soaking syrup80 ml (⅓ cup) reserved cherry juice
• 3 tbsp (45 ml) kirsch
• Cream2 tsp powdered unflavored gelatin
• 3 tbsp cold water
• 720 ml (3 cups) cold heavy cream
• 60 g (½ cup) powdered sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• Decoration60 g (2 oz) dark chocolate — shaved with a vegetable peeler
• 12 whole cherries — reserved from the jar or fresh with stems

Method

1. Heat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Line the bottom of the springform with parchment; do not grease the sides. Sift the cake flour, cocoa and salt together twice.
2. Whip the eggs and sugar on high speed for 8 to 10 minutes, until very thick, pale and holding a ribbon for several seconds. Sift in the cocoa mixture in three additions, folding gently each time. Fold a scoop of batter into the warm butter and fold that back into the batter.
3. Pour into the pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the top springs back and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, release the ring and cool completely. Once cool, slice horizontally into three even layers.
4. Set aside 12 whole cherries for decoration. Whisk 180 ml (¾ cup) of the reserved juice with the sugar and cornstarch in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring, and cook for 1 minute until thick and glossy. Stir in the remaining drained cherries and 2 tbsp kirsch and cool completely.
5. Stir 80 ml of the remaining cherry juice with 3 tbsp kirsch for the soaking syrup.
6. Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water and let it bloom for 5 minutes, then melt it in the microwave for 5 to 10 seconds. Whip the cream, powdered sugar and vanilla to soft peaks, add the gelatin in a thin stream with the mixer running and whip to firm peaks.
7. Place the bottom sponge layer on a plate and brush with one-third of the syrup. Pipe a ring of cream around the edge, fill the center with half the cherry filling and spread a thin layer of cream on top. Add the second layer and repeat with syrup, a cream ring, the rest of the cherries and a thin layer of cream.
8. Top with the third layer and brush with the remaining syrup. Cover the top and sides with cream, pipe 12 rosettes around the top edge and set a cherry on each. Press shaved chocolate onto the sides and scatter it on top. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before slicing.

Tips for success

• The cream ring around each layer acts as a dam that stops the cherry filling from leaking out the sides.
• Chill the bowl and whisk before whipping the cream so it stays stable in a warm kitchen.
• Shave the chocolate from a bar at room temperature. Cold chocolate breaks into dust instead of curls.

Substitutions

Kirsch

Use the same amount of extra cherry juice with ½ tsp almond extract in the syrup for an alcohol-free cake. It tastes sweeter and less sharp.

Jarred sour cherries

Use 500 g frozen pitted sour cherries, thawed, plus 240 ml cranberry-cherry juice in place of the jar juice. Sweet cherries make a much sweeter filling.

Gelatin-stabilized cream

Fold 225 g mascarpone into the cream for stability without gelatin. The cream becomes richer and slightly denser.

Variations

Black Forest cupcakes

Bake chocolate cupcakes, core them, fill with the cherry filling, and top with stabilized cream and a cherry.

Troubleshooting

Cream collapsed and the layers slid

The cream was not stabilized or the filling was still warm. Cool the cherry filling completely, stabilize the cream and chill the cake before decorating.

Sponge tastes dry

The layers needed more syrup. Brush until the surface looks damp all the way across, using all the syrup.

Sponge is short and dense

The eggs were underwhipped or the cocoa was overmixed, which deflated the batter. Whip to a long-lasting ribbon and fold gently.

Storage

Keep the cake covered in the refrigerator and eat it within 3 days. Do not leave it out for more than 2 hours. The whipped cream does not freeze well, but the unfilled sponge can be frozen for up to 1 month.

Safety notes

This cake contains uncooked kirsch: the 75 ml (5 tbsp) of 40% ABV kirsch in the whole cake is about 1.7 U.S. standard drinks, spread across 12 slices. Use the alcohol-free swap for children and anyone avoiding alcohol. Contains wheat, egg and milk.