I've been meaning to make this cake for sometime, but couldn't find Kirsch locally. Last weekend in Kansas City I remembered to look at a large liquor store and brought a bottle home. It has an interesting smell & is 90 proof, I imagine it could be used in a flambe. Anyway the cake was pretty good, I did not put in the 2 1/4 cup brown sugar- way too much sugar and it seemed very out of proportion. I used 1 1/2 cups. B & I liked the cake, but weren't crazy about the cookie layer. I think a layer of cake would work better and if I make it again I will just use the extra layer of cake the recipe made. The Kirsch did not overpower the cake and surprisingly the sour cherries were not too sour and worked very nicely with the overall cake. Don't let the lengthy directions deter you, if you eliminate the cookie layer, you could very easily use a cake mix for the chocolate cake portion and the rest is just sour cherries with cherry preserves and whipped cream!
Black
Forest Cherry Torte (Schwarzwalder Kirschtorte)
Loosely based on the recipe in
Margit Stoll Dutton’s “The German Pastry Bakebook”
Makes one 12- to 16-slice cake
·
Devil’s
Food Cake (recipe below)
·
Chocolate
Cookie Bottom (recipe below)
·
Cherry preserves
·
Cherry Filling: 1 14.5-ounce can
tart cherries (drained) + 1/4 cup cherry preserves + 1 tablespoon kirsch
(optional)
·
Whipped Cream: 1 pint heavy cream +
1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar
·
3 tablespoons Kirsch, divided
(cherry brandy; look for imported, not American)
·
Maraschino cherries
·
1 ounce shaved, semisweet chocolate
(use vegetable peeler on room temperature chocolate)
1.
Bake and cool the Devil’s Food Cake
layers. Slice one of the cakes in half horizontally. Set aside.
2.
Bake and cool the Chocolate Cookie
Bottom.
3.
Prep the Cherry Filling, if you
haven’t already.
4.
To Make
the Whipped Cream: In the bowl of a standing mixer,
whip cream and confectioner’s sugar until stiff. Place in the refrigerator. (If
you have a smaller mixer, make each quart of whipped cream separately, as
needed.)
5.
To
Assemble the Cake: If you have a cake decorating
turntable, place a cake plate on the turntable, and cover it with a parchment
sheet cut in half. (You want the parchment sheet to fit under your cake, so
that when you’re done decorating, you can quickly pull each half-piece out from
under the cake to have a clean plate.)
6.
Gently remove the Chocolate Cookie
Bottom from the springform pan, and place it on your cake plate.
7.
Spread a very thin layer of cherry
preserves on the cookie bottom.
8.
Evenly spread 1 1/2 cups of whipped
cream over the cherry preserves.
9.
Carefully place the top layer of
cake, top-side down, on the whipped cream.
10. Brush the cake with 1 1/2 tablespoons of kirsch.
11. Spoon the Cherry Filling evenly on top of the cake. (You
might not use all of it, depending on how much liquid drains from the
cherries.)
12. Top the Cherry Filling with 1 1/2 to 2 cups of whipped
cream.
13. Top with the remaining chocolate layer, bottom-side up.
14. Brush the cake with the remaining kirsch.
15. Set aside 1 to 1 1/2 cups of whipped cream for decorating.
16. Pile most of the rest of the whipped cream on top of the
cake, and gently spread the whipped cream to cover the top and sides of the
cake. Lightly slash markings for 12 to
16 pieces in the whipped cream on top of the cake.
17. Fit a pastry bag with a large decorating tip, and fill the
bag with whipped cream. Pipe a rosette (a big swirl) on the outside edge of
each piece you marked.
18. Place the maraschino cherries on a clean kitchen towel to
drain, and pat them (as dry as possible) before placing one in the center of
each rosette.
19. Decorate the top by piling the shaved chocolate in the
center.
20. Pull parchment sheets out from under the cake.
21. If you have any whipped cream left, pipe a border along the
bottom edge of the cake.
22. Refrigerate the cake until ready to serve. Use a long, sharp
knife, and wipe it off with a damp towel between slices.
Devil’s
Food Cake
Adapted from Kathleen King’s “Tate’s Bake Shop Cookbook”
Makes two 9-inch cakes or three
8-inch cakes
·
2 1/4 cups cake flour
·
2 teaspoons baking soda
·
1/2 teaspoon salt
·
1 cup salted butter
·
2 1/4 cups firmly packed dark brown
sugar
·
3 large eggs
·
3 squares (3 ounces) unsweetened
chocolate, melted
·
1/2 cup buttermilk
·
1 cup boiling water
·
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour two 9-inch springform pans or round cake pans (or spray them
with Baker’s Joy). Line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper circles,
and spray them with nonstick spray.
2.
In a large bowl, sift together the
flour, baking soda and salt.
3.
In the bowl of a standing mixer
fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar.
4.
Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing
well after each addition.
5.
Stir in the melted chocolate.
6.
Alternate adding the flour mixture and
the buttermilk in three stages, ending with the flour.
7.
Add the boiling water and vanilla.
Mix well, but don’t overmix. (The mixture will be VERY thin, so don’t freak
out.)
8.
Pour the batter into the prepared
pans.
9.
Bake for 33 minutes or until a
toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (If the cake on the upper
rack finishes first, remove it and place the bottom cake on the upper rack. It
might take a few additional minutes to finish.)
10. Place the pans on a wire rack, and let the cakes cool
completely in the pans before unmolding. (If the middles dip a little, the
cakes are still OK.)
11. Once the cakes are cool, you can wrap them in plastic wrap
and store them in the refrigerator. Or, wrap one in plastic wrap and aluminum
foil, and freeze it for later. (We’ll only be using one.)
Chocolate
Cookie Bottom
Adapted from Elisa Strauss’ “The Confetti Cakes Cookbook”
·
1 cup all-purpose flour
·
1/4 cup cocoa powder
·
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
·
1/2 teaspoon salt
·
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted
butter
·
1/4 cup sugar
·
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.
2.
In a medium bowl, sift together the
flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
3.
In the bowl of a standing mixer
fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed
until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla, and beat until combined.
4.
Add the flour mixture in two
batches, beating until dough just comes together. Finish mixing with your
hands, until the ingredients are fully combined.
5.
Press the dough evenly onto the
bottom of the springform pan. Bake for 17 minutes. Set the pan on a wire rack
to cool completely.
