Black Forest Cake

I love testing out recipes, especially if it is a dessert. Testing out recipes usually makes me wonder how people did it without the internet of pictures. Suppose you are trying out something you’ve never seen before, how would you have known what it looks like? It’s so fascinating how many recipes there are out there today. Anything you want, it’s right at your fingertips. Recently, I had to test out a black forest cake recipe. Growing up, blackforest was definitely was not my choice of cake. For me, the cake was riddled with things (cherries) that hindered the enjoyment of the cake. Also it always seemed like chocolate cake soaked in alcohol, a combination that I didn’t yet acquire the taste for. I was still working my way around plum cakes. But, every person I talked to, to whom I mentioned the black forest test, got so excited. You see, black forest pastry is everywhere in India, from round birthday cakes in fancy bakeries to small rectangular slices in your local roadside bakery. Blackforest cake was clearly a huge part of their lives. Since I wasn’t entirely sure how I could accurately test the taste, I hired an expert, Ni. 

Turns out, I just ended up converting myself into a black forest lover. 

The key to a good black forest cake is in the balance between the light and airy feel while eating the cake and the decadence that it oozes. The chocolate cake in itself is a very rich chocolate cake, but you end up with thinner layers which are soaked in cherry syrup. Each layer is weighed down by the chopped up cherries that are placed in the center, but the superlight whipped cream carries the whole team with aplomb, so much so that you don’t realise you’ve eaten the whole slice and you still want more.  

This recipe is an adaptation of Sally’s Baking Addiction’s black forest cake. Adaptation mostly because of unavailability of some ingredients during the pandemic lockdown. Sally’s recipes are so well perfected and so wonderfully explained that you understand every part of it and when you understand it, it’s easier to switch out some ingredients without compromising so much on the taste and texture. I absolutely love her and have learned so much from her. The other reason that I tinkered around with that recipe was also to alter the sweetness of the cake. Personally, I find that the sugar content is extremely high in most desserts that we find out here in the West as well as in most recipes. There is a tang-lish (Tamil-English) term for it, “Thegati-fying”. It’s the kind of sweet that hurts your teeth. Plus, I’m a huge proponent of eating without guilt, and cutting down on the sugar reeeaaally helps the cause. 

Let’s start with the superstar of the cake, the cherries. The original recipe called for canned dark cherries, but since I couldn’t get my hands on them, I used frozen ones instead. This did change the taste and compromise on the strength of the cherries, but I actually found this misfortune a good way to control the sugar in the syrup. In a small saucepan, close and cook the cherries down in a sugar syrup with just a splash of cherry whiskey on a low flame for about 20 minutes. Open the lid and let the syrup reduce down to a thicker consistency. Take it off the flame and set it aside. Let it sit while you prepare the rest of the cake. 

The recipe for the cake is actually from my decadent chocolate cake. It’s a one pot, mix all the dry ingredients, mix all the wet ingredients, mix em’ together kinda recipe and to be honest, my absolute favourite. It’s chocolatey deliciousness without being heavy. The trick to this cake is actually in the hot water/coffee that is added to the batter in the end. It helps the flour bloom, creating air pockets that make the light. Remember to bring all your ingredients down to room temperature before starting so that they all mix homogeneously. Divide the batter and bake them for about 15-20 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Allow them to rest on a wire rack and cool down completely. 

Now for the whipped cream. Making whipped cream at home is so simple that I’m actually surprised that it doesn’t accompany everything that I eat. I, like the larger population of the world, absolutely love whipped cream. I love how well it balances against the heavyweights. Think of a deep, dark, chocolate mousse. As decadent as each bite would be, after the 4th or the 5th bite, you’ll be reaching for the water. However, whipped cream can cut through all that richness, giving you the perfect balance. To make the making of whipped cream a lot easier, always start with freezing your instruments, i.e the bowl you are using and the whip. I usually let them sit in the freezer for about 5 minutes. Also only start with cold whipping cream, straight from the fridge. Don’t let it sit out on the counter before you use them. Whip the cream, icing sugar and vanilla essence until it can hold its shape. A good test is to hold the bowl upside down, if nothing moves, you are all good to go. 

Lately, I’ve had the need to make stabilised whipped cream as most of these cakes are orders that are being sent out and I have to make sure that the whipped cream frosting does not melt away by the time the cake reaches their house. Stabilising whipped cream is quite simple. Before starting the whipping, bloom some unflavoured gelatin in a small bowl with a few tablespoons of water for a few minutes. Heat the mixture for 5 seconds at a time (as it heats super quickly) and mix it well until all the granules have disintegrated. Start whipping the cream. Once it is able to hold a soft peak, add the gelatin and continue whipping until it can completely hold its shape. As simple as that. Stabilised whipped cream that can sit out for hours. 

The next and the last ingredient that we need to prepare before assembling the cake is the chocolate ganache. Heat cream in a saucepan until it is hot, but not boiling. Pour it over the chopped chocolate and let it sit for a minute, melting the chocolate. Whisk well until you get a smooth, shiny ganache. Keep this aside while we assemble the cake. 

To put the blackforest cake together, start with the layers of cake. Pour cherry syrup over the layers and let it soak. Place the first layer on your cake circle, add a huge blob of whipped cream. Using a spatula, level the whipped cream and add some of the soaked cherries, and a bit of whipped cream to cover the fruits. Repeat the layers. Use the remainder of the whipped cream to thinly frost the cake. 

Whisk the ganache and pour it on top of the cake. Using an off-set spatula, level the ganache and let it drip off the sides. You can also use chocolate shavings to decorate the bottom of the cake and small swirls of whipped cream on top of the cake. 

Let the cake sit in the fridge for an hour before cutting into it. Good god, look at those layers!!! Who’s up for some black forest cake?

AuthorPriyanka SivaramakrishnanDifficultyIntermediate