German Black Forest Cake
This is a moist chocolate cake, drenched in cherry syrup, filled with a rich dark chocolate ganache, piped with sweet cream, and finally topped with cherries. It is a winner as a birthday cake or as a delicious summer treat.
Ingredients:
For the cake:
2 large eggs
350g sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
2 shots of freshly brewed espresso
3/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 tsp vanilla extract
220g flour
65g cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
560g jar of pitted cherries in syrup
For the chocolate ganache:
1 cup heavy cream
500g good-quality dark chocolate
For the cream:
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
Method:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 Fahrenheit) and line two round 9” spring-form tins.
In a large bowl, add the eggs, sugar, and canola oil, then beat for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
Add the espresso, sour cream, buttermilk, and vanilla extract to the egg mixture and beat again until well combined.
Sift in the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and baking soda, then mix until there are no lumps.
Pour the batter into the spring-form tins, dividing the batter evenly, and bake for 25-30 minutes until cooked through.
In the meantime, make a cherry syrup by draining the syrup from the jar of cherries into a small saucepan and reducing it on medium heat until it has reduced to half.
Once the cakes are out of the oven, poke some holes in the tops with a toothpick and spoon the cherry syrup onto the cakes.
Make the chocolate ganache by warming up the cream in a saucepan, don’t let it boil, but heat just until it comes to a gentle simmer. Take off the heat, then add the chocolate and allow it to melt, stirring constantly.
To make the whipped cream, add the cream, icing sugar, and vanilla to a large bowl, then use a hand mixer to whip the cream until stiff. Spoon the cream into a piping bag with a star nozzle (or any that you like).
To assemble, add the first cake layer to a serving plate, then add half of the chocolate ganache to the middle. Pipe cream stars along the border of the cake, around the chocolate ganache. Place the second cake layer on top and repeat with the ganache and cream stars. Pipe any remaining cream over the middle ganache section, then smooth it over and spoon the cherries over the centre.
Keep the cake covered in the fridge until ready to serve. Enjoy!