A Syrup-Soaked Black Forest Cake Layered with Fresh Cream

A Syrup-Soaked Black Forest Cake Layered with Fresh Cream relies on an airy structure to hold moisture. Whipping the eggs for a full seven minutes delivers the sole leavening needed. Once you bake three 8-inch (20 cm) rounds at 350°F (180°C), refrigerate the stacked dessert for four hours so the interior can absorb the cherry syrup.

The Chocolate Sponge

Large eggs need to weigh between 50 and 55 grams in their shells to provide the correct hydration for the batter. Cold eggs do not whip well. You can warm them by covering them with warm tap water for five minutes. Dry the shells with a towel before cracking them. Wet shells allow residual water to drip into the bowl and alter the batter structure.

You must beat the eggs and sugar for a full seven minutes. The mixture will turn pale and triple in volume. This trapped air provides the sole leavening for the cakes, as the recipe uses no baking powder. A short mixing time leaves the cakes flat and dense.

Sift the plain flour and Dutch processed cocoa powder together. This step minimizes the stirring required later. Dutch process cocoa provides a darker color and stronger chocolate taste, but regular unsweetened cocoa powder works fine if that is what you have.

Fold the dry ingredients gently using a rubber spatula or large metal spoon. Work with a light hand. Too much mixing deflates the delicate air bubbles you built into the eggs.

Divide the loose batter equally among the three prepared pans. Bake the cakes at 350°F (180°C) for 25 minutes, at which point the centers will bounce back when you press them.

Cherry Syrup

Jarred pitted morello cherries offer a softer texture than fresh fruit. The jarred fruit also brings extra liquid for the syrup. You can substitute thawed frozen pitted cherries mixed with their liquid and extra cherry juice if jarred cherries are unavailable.

Drain the jarred cherries over a bowl and reserve the juice. Mix a small amount of the cold juice with cornstarch to create a smooth slurry.

Boil the remaining juice with sugar until it forms a thin liquid. A thin consistency soaks properly into the baked cakes. A thick syrup will just sit on the surface and leave the inside dry. Stir in the traditional kirsch off the heat. Kirsch is a German cherry-flavored brandy. You can skip the alcohol and use extra reserved cherry juice instead.

Chocolate Curls

Melt dark chocolate in the microwave using twenty-second bursts. Stir the bowl thoroughly after each interval so the chocolate does not scorch in spots. Spread the melted chocolate thinly across a smooth baking pan and chill it in the refrigerator until the center is just set.

Tilt a metal scraper halfway between flat and straight up, then push it along the baking tray to form large Chocolate Curls. The texture of the chilled layer determines your results. Attempting to scrape chocolate that has set too firmly will cause the curls to break and splinter. Attempting to scrape a layer that remains overly soft will cause the curls to sag and fail to roll.

Decorating and Assembly

Heavy cream maintains its whipped structure much longer than plain pure cream. Whip the cream with soft icing sugar and vanilla extract until it holds firm peaks. Soft icing sugar contains a blend of pure icing sugar and cornflour to help stabilize the dairy. Pure icing sugar also works fine for the Whipped Cream.

Place the first cake layer on a large plate. Brush the top evenly with the warm Cherry Syrup.

Gently spread one cup of the whipped cream over the moistened sponge to create a layer about 0.5-inch (1 cm) thick. Scatter half of the well-drained morello cherries over the cream, making sure the fruit lays flat instead of piling up so the next cake sits evenly. Place the second layer on top, brush it with syrup, and repeat the process with another cup of cream and the remaining cherries.

Add the third cake layer to finish the stack. Cover the top and sides of the cake with the remaining cream. Use cold hands to press the small chocolate shavings onto the sides of the cake. Warm fingers melt the tiny pieces and streak the white frosting.

Resting and storage

The cake needs to rest in the refrigerator for at least four hours before you slice it. An overnight rest is even better. This time allows the liquid to fully saturate the dry sponge layers.

Pull the cake out of the refrigerator thirty minutes before serving to take the chill off the crumb. Keep a close eye on the cake on hot days so the icing does not melt in the room. The assembled cake lasts for three to four days in the refrigerator when loosely covered. The unstabilized cream will begin to lose its aeration after three days.