Moist Black Forest Cake with Luscious Cherry Filling
Layers of soft chocolate cake, tangy cherries, and smooth Chantilly cream make this Black Forest Cake a perfectly balanced, indulgent treat.
Ingredients
Cherry Filling
- 400 g jarred cherries in brine not syrup, pitted and chopped (see notes)
- 300 g jar brine divided in half (or water if using fresh cherries)
- 95 g corn starch corn flour
- 315 g granulated sugar
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- Pinch of salt
- 60 g kirsch cherry liqueur
- 1 drop purple food gel optional
- 2 drops red food gel optional
Simple Syrup
- 125 g boiling water
- 105 g granulated sugar
- 40 g kirsch
Chocolate Sponge Cake
- 150 g all-purpose flour plain flour
- 50 g Dutch processed cocoa powder sifted
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 10 large eggs 55g each, yolks and whites separated
- 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
- 210 g caster sugar divided
- 60 g warm water just above room temp
- 7 g vanilla extract
- 12 fresh cherries or maraschino cherries to decorate
Chantilly Cream
- 250 g heavy cream cold (see notes)
- 1 tbsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract see notes
- 250 g mascarpone cold (see notes)
Decorations
- 200 g chocolate curls see notes
- 1/2 batch Chocolate Sauce room temperature
Instructions
Cherry Filling
- Mix corn starch slurry - Drain half the cherry brine into a jug, and half into a a large non-stick pot. Add the corn starch into the brine with the jug and whisk until well combined. Set aside.
- Prepare cherries and begin cooking - Roughly chop the cherries and add half of them to the non-stick pot along with all the sugar, lemon juice and salt. Stir continuously and bring to a boil on medium high heat. Then lower to medium heat and simmer for 3 minutes.
- Finish cooking - Pour the slurry into the pot while continuously stirring. The mixture will be milky at first. Continue stirring until the mixture turns clear and thickens. Turn the heat off and add the remaining cherries and stir through to coat. Then add the kirsch and red food dye (optional) and stir to combine. Transfer to a heatproof bowl, cover with plastic wrap, making sure the plastic is on the surface of the sauce and set aside and allow to cool.
Simple Syrup
- Add the sugar and water into a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Once the sugar is dissolved, take off the heat and add the kirsch. Mix and set aside to cool completely before using. About 20 minutes.
Chocolate Sponge Cake
- Preheat your oven to 170C / 340F (fan off), 150C / 300F (fan on). Grease only the bottom (not sides) of two 20cm / 8-inch cake tins with cold butter and line the bottom with baking paper.
- Combine dry ingredients - To a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- Whip egg whites - To a separate large bowl add the egg whites and cream of tartar. Use an electric hand beater to whisk until frothy. Slowly add 105g (half) of the sugar while the mixer is on high speed. Once all the sugar has been added continue mixing for 90 seconds. The mixture will thicken and become glossy. Take care not to overwhip the mixture otherwise it will result in large air bubbles in your cake.
- Whip the egg yolks - To a separate large bowl, add the egg yolks, remaining sugar, water, and vanilla extract and use your electric hand mixer to whip until pale, thickened, and creamy, about 5 minutes. The mixture should fall off in ribbons when you lift the beaters.
- Fold in dry ingredients - Sift 1/3 of the dry ingredients into the egg yolk mixture and use a spatula to gently fold through. Then repeat with another 1/3 of the dry ingredients until all of it is combined. Take care not to overmix.
- Fold in the meringue - Add half the meringue and gently fold through with a spatula. Then add the other half and repeat. The batter will be light and airy.
- Bake - Divide the mixture between the two cake tins and bake in the middle rack of your oven for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Once baked, allow to cool in the tins for 10 minutes before carefully running a knife around the sides to release them. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- To trim cakes - Once the cake is completely cooled, trim each cake in half which will give you 4 layers of cake. I used a cake leveler, but a large, serrated knife will work as well. Discard or snack on excess cake. Set aside the cake layers and cover with a damp towel until ready to use.
Whipped Cream
- Prepare mascarpone cheese - Add the mascarpone to a large mixing bowl (glass or metal) and use a spatula to stir and break up as some brands can be firmer than others. This helps break it up a little to prevent lumps in your whipped cream.
- Whip remaining ingredients - Add the cold heavy cream and vanilla to the mascarpone. You can use an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer with a whisk attachment to whip to stiff peaks. I actually find it easier to get the right texture with a hand whisk. You’re aiming for a smooth, stiff whipped cream that holds its shape but still looks silky. If it looks split or grainy, it’s been overwhipped.
- Transferring to piping bag - Add to a large piping bag fitted with a large open star tip. While you’re layering a decorating the cake, keep in mind that you will need to keep some of the cream to pipe swirls on top of the cake. So don’t go too heavy on the cream and use your best judgement to use it evenly.
Let’s layer and decorate!
- Layer the cake - Place the first cake layer on your serving plate and brush it with simple syrup. Evenly spread about 1/4 cup of the Chantilly cream over the cake. Use the piping bag to pipe a tube of cream around the thin cream layer. This will act as a barrier to stop the cherry filling from spilling out the cake. Add 1/3 of the cooled cherry mixture and spread that evenly. Repeat this layering process with the remaining layers. Using a cake turntable and offset spatula makes the decorating process smoother.
- Decorating the top - Once the cake is layered, spread a thin layer of cream on top and on the sides of the cake. Then pipe a tube of cream on top and fill with chocolate sauce.
- Cover cake with cream - Coat the sides of the cake with cream. I do this by piping it on then spreading around with a spatula. You should have cream left over to pipe on top of the cake. Spread the cream around the sides of the cake as evenly as you can. Using an offset spatula is the best way to do this! Stick the chocolate shavings around the sides of the cake.
- To finish - Pipe swirls of cream on top of the cake and add cherries on top each swirl.
Notes
Cherries - You can use fresh cherries that are washed and pitted, but I think you get a better flavor from jarred cherries in brine. You can use the brine to make the sauce which boosts the flavor. If you use fresh cherries, cook them down in water instead of brine. You’ll need an extra splash of kirsch to add more flavor and maybe a dash more sugar.
Alcohol - You can leave it out if you like, I do. Or you can add an extra splash if you want to make it extra boozy!
Cream - make sure you use cream labelled heavy cream for this recipe. Whipping cream will work but won’t be as stiff as heavy cream. Low fat cream will not work.
Powdered sugar - I don’t like my cream too sweet, but if you like yours on the sweeter side you can use up to 1/2 cup. Make sure you sift it!
Mascarpone - is an Italian cheese that is similar in flavor to sour cream, but more creamy and less sour. Adding it to your Chantilly cream helps stabilize it so that it doesn’t melt as quickly and holds its shape on top of desserts. It even helps hold the air in the whipped cream until the next day! Opt in for a better brand one as they tend to be thicker and make sure it’s cold straight out of the fridge! Make sure you give your mascarpone cheese a mix before using. Some brands are soft, some are firm and can cause your Chantilly cream to go lumpy.
Vanilla - I have a great recipe for Vanilla extract here on the blog which is alcohol based. It can be used for most recipes. However, I would advise against using it for whipped creams (yes, even stabilized ones like this one) or meringues as it can muck around with the air whipped in the mixtures. Instead use a syrup based vanilla extract. I find vanilla bean paste is best.
Chocolate curls - For the chocolate shavings I used dark cooking chocolate. I have an awesome tutorial on the blog on how to make chocolate curls which takes minutes to make!
Storage - Cake layers (undecorated) can be wrapped tightly in plastic and stored in a cool, dark, dry place at room temperature for up to three days before using. The finished and decorated cake can be store in an airtight container, in the fridge for up to three days.
Nutrition - is an approximate and is based on per slice without the chocolate curls and chocolate sauce toping which are separate recipes. This cake makes 12 slices.
A note on measurements – This recipe uses weight measurements for the most accurate results. Cup measurements can vary depending on where you are, which affects the precision needed for a recipe like this. Here is where you can learn more about how to measure ingredients using digital kitchen scales.
Nutrition
Calories:758kcal | Carbohydrates:81g | Protein:12g | Fat:37g | Saturated Fat:21g | Polyunsaturated Fat:1g | Monounsaturated Fat:7g | Trans Fat:0.01g | Cholesterol:223mg | Sodium:202mg | Potassium:358mg | Fiber:4g | Sugar:52g | Vitamin A:1370IU | Vitamin C:4mg | Calcium:122mg | Iron:3mg
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