black forest cherry cake recipe
This homemade Black Forest Cherry Cake is a bakery-quality dessert that folks rave about! It’s a cake you can serve for Christmas, Easter, birthdays, or anytime!
How to store Black Forest Cherry Cake
Black Forest cherry cake is best stored in the refrigerator, as the whipped cream frosting can spoil if left at room temperature. To store the cake, cover it loosely with foil or plastic wrap. It will keep for up to 3-4 days in the refrigerator.
Black Forest Cherry Cake Recipe FAQs
What is the difference between chocolate cake and black forest cake?
Black Forest Cake uses chocolate cake as the base, and then there are layers of whipped cream and cherries. The cake is then topped with chocolate shavings and cherries. Basically, it’s an extreme version of a chocolate cake with cherries and whipped cream.
Does Black Forest cake need to be refrigerated?
Yes, it does need to be stored in the fridge in an airtight container. If it is stored properly, it will be safe to eat for 3-4 days.
equipment
- (3) 9-inch round cake pans
- parchment paper
- mixing bowls
- whisk
- handheld mixer
- rubber scraper
- wire racks
- medium saucepan
- small saucepan
- paring knife
Ingredient
devil’s food cake:
- ½ cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder plus extra for dusting
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ¼ cups boiling water
- 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate chopped
- 10 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- 1 ½ cups packed light brown sugar
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- ½ cup sour cream room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
cherries and syrup:
- 14.5 ounce can red tart cherries in water drained with the liquid reserved
- 21 ounce can cherry pie filling
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- whipped cream frosting:
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- 3 cups heavy cream chilled
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
for finishing:
- 6 ounces chunk semisweet chocolate
instructions
make devil’s food cake:
Adjust the oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease 3 9-inch round cake pan, then dust with cocoa powder and line the bottoms with parchment paper.
Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl.
In a medium bowl, whisk the boiling water, chocolate, and ½ cup of the cocoa powder together until smooth.
In another large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-6 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until combined, about 30 seconds. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla until incorporated.
Reduce the speed to low and beat in ⅓ of the flour mixture, followed by ½ of the chocolate mixture. Repeat with half of the remaining flour mixture and the remaining chocolate mixture. Beat in the remaining flour mixture until just incorporated.
Give the batter the final stir with a rubber scraper to make sure it is thoroughly combined. Scrape the batter into the prepared pans, smooth the tops, and gently tap the pans on the counter to settle the batter. Bake the cakes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few crumbs attached, 15-20 minutes, rotating and switching the pans halfway through baking.
Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Runs a small knife around the edge of the cakes, and then flip them out onto the wire racks. Peel off the parchment paper, and flip the cakes over again. Cool the cakes completely, about 2 hours.
prep cherries and syrup:
Drain the sour cherries and reserve the cherry juice.
Slice the sour cherries in half and place then in a medium bowl.
Reserve 8 of the prettiest cherries from the pie filling for your garnish.
Stir the remaining pie filling into the sliced sour cherries.
Simmer the reserved cherry juice and sugar together in a medium saucepan over medium heat until the mixture is thickened, about 8 to 10 minutes.
Toss 1 tablespoon of the syrup with the cherries reserved for garnish. Toss 3 tablespoons of syrup with the sour and cherry pie filling mixture.
Poke the top of the cake layers thoroughly with the back of a wooden spoon.
Brush the cake with the remaining syrup.
make the whipped cream frosting:
Whisk the sugar and the cornstarch together in a small saucepan and slowly whisk in ½ cup of the cream. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens, 2-3 minutes. Let the mixture cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
In a large bowl, whip the remaining 2 ½ cups cream and the vanilla together with an electric mixer on low speed until frothy, about 30 seconds. Increase the mixer speed to medium and continue to whip the mixture until it begins to thicken, about 30 seconds. Slowly add the cooled cornstarch mixture and continue to whip until the mixture forms soft peaks, 1-3 minutes.
assemble cake:
Line the edges of a cake platter with strips of parchment paper to keep the platter clean while you assemble the cake. Place one of the cake layers on the platter. Spread ½ cup of the whipped cream over the top, right to the edge of the cake.
Then, cover with half of the sliced cherries. Repeat with another cake layer, 1/2 cup more whipped cream, and the remaining sliced cherries.
Place the remaining cake layer on top and press lightly to adhere. Frost the cake with the remaining whipped cream.
Refrigerate the cake until it absorbs the soaking syrup, at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours.
Before serving, let the cake sit at room temperature, 30-60 minutes.
Make the chocolate shavings by placing a chunk of chocolate on a piece of parchment paper or wax paper. Use a paring knife to scrape the chocolate to form chocolate shavings.
Gently press the chocolate shavings into the sides of the cake.
Decorate the top of the cake with whipped cream, the reserved cherries, and chocolate shavings. Finally, slice and serve.
Because of the whipped cream in this cake, I do not recommend freezing it. It will be a soupy mess if you do.
This cake will cut into 10 hefty slices. You can easily get more slices out of the cake for smaller portions.
