Blackforest cake = evergreen or old school ? What do you say ?
I say evergreen (Don’t miss the “evergreen”- “forest” pun!). After vanilla and chocolate , the first layer cake I ever remember eating is the Black Forest or at least the Indianised version of the German classic . I already have a Black Forest cake on the blog – which is absolutely bang on like anything you would have eaten from any bakery.
This eggless Black Forest cake is different in 2 ways – one is that the base chocolate cake is eggless (duh !) and the other is that in between those layers is an easy fresh cherry compote ( the earlier version had chopped up canned cherries ) .
So , the cake has four components :
The eggless chocolate cake : here I have used the cocoa version of my favourite eggless vanilla cake. You can also use the vegan chocolate cake or my one bowl chocolate cake instead .
The filling : a sweet – tart compote made up cooking fresh cherries with sugar and some lime juice .
The cream : a lightly sweetened vanilla whipped cream in between the layers and some more slathered on top .
The syrup : a traditional Black Forest has the cake layers soaked in kirsch or a cherry liquor. This non alcoholic version has some sweetened cherry juice for the same effect . The syrup is optional as the cake is moist enough on its own.
The chocolate shavings : this is as much for visual effect as it is for some added texture. There are several ways of shaving chocolate . Lazy me. I just a potato peeler along all the sides of a dark chocolate slab ( room temperature or zapped in the microwave for 5 seconds).
Now that I have probably successfully scared you by the list of components , let me tell you like I very often do : This is easier than it seems !
Eggless Black Forest cake
Ingredients
For the chocolate cake :
- 240 ml or 1 cup yoghurt or curd at room temperature
- 150 grams or 3/4 cup granulated or castor sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 120 ml or 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 125 grams or 1 cup all purpose flour
- 45 grams or 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
For the cherry compote :
- 1 cup or about 150 grams cherries
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- 3 tablespoons granulated or castor sugar
- 2 tablespoons water
For the cherry soaking syrup :
- 1/4 cup or about 40 grams cherries
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/3 cup granulated or castor sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the whipped cream :
- 240 ml or 1 cup whipping or heavy cream cold
- 2 tablespoons granulated or castor sugar
- 1 teapoon vanilla extract
For the finish :
- 100 grams dark chocolate optional
- Few cherries optional
Instructions
To make the chocolate cake :
- Preheat the oven to 160 C / 325 F .
- Butter and flour a 6 inch round pan . Line the bottom with parchment (optional)
- In a bowl , sift or whisk together the flour , cocoa and salt. Keep aside
- In another bigger bowl , take the curd and whisk in the sugar .
- Add the baking soda and baking powder and whisk well.
- Keep aside for 5 minutes. The curd will get light and bubbly.
- Whisk in the oil and vanilla.
- Whisk in the flour mixture until incorporated. Try not to over mix.
- Immediately pour into prepared pan.
- Bake at 160 C / 325 F for 40 – 45 minutes. You will know the cake is done when the sides seem to be coming away from the pan and the top springs back when pressed gently. A skewer inserted in centre should come out clean.
- Cool in pan for 5 minutes. Then gently run a knife along the edge , remove from pan and cool right side up on a cooling rack.
- Cool completely before slicing
To make the cherry compote :
- Pit and chop up the cherries. You can make quarters if you want a chunky compote or smaller if you want a smoother one.
- In a thick bottomed saucepan , take the cherries , sugar , water and lime juice.
- Bring to boil and then lower the heat
- Continue to simmer the mixture for about 10 minutes until the mixture thickens to a jam like consistency
- Taste and add sugar or lime juice as needed.
- Take off heat and cool before using.
To make the cherry soaking syrup :
- Pit the cherries and puree them .
- Take the cherry puree , water and sugar in a saucepan.
- Bring to boil and then lower the heat when the sugar has melted .
- Simmer for about 10 minutes until the syrup thickens.
- Take off heat , strain if needed and stir in the vanilla
- Cool before using.
To make the whipped cream:
- Chill the cream well.
- Using a whisk or electric beater , start beating the cream.
- After a couple of minutes , add the sugar and vanilla .
- Continue beating until you have stiff peaks – the cream will be thick and hold shape when you lift the whisk or beater blade out . If you upturn the bowl, the cream will not move .`
- Keep chilled until using
To make the chocolate shavings:
- Warm the dark chocolate slab in the microwave for 5 seconds.
- Run a potato peeler or knife along one side of the slab . Collect the shavings on a parchment sheet or plate.
- Every 30 seconds or so , change the side and use the potato peeler on another side. The size of the side , how soft the chocolate is and the pressure you use determines the size of your shavings
To assemble:
- Using a serrated knife , slice the cool cake horizontally into 3 slices.
- Place the bottom slice on a cake board or serving plate .
- Soak the layer with the syrup until damp to touch.
- Fill some whipped cream in a piping bag.
- Spread about 1/4 cup of whipped cream over the layer and pipe a ring of cream around the outer edge of the cake slice.
- Spread half the compote inside this whipped cream ring. The piped ring acts like a dam so that the compote doesnt leak into the outside frosting.
- Place another cake layer on top and press gently.
- Soak the layer. Spread the cream and pipe the cream in a similar way and fill the compote.
- PLace the third layer of cake on top and press gently.
- Soak until damp to touch.
- Spread whipped cream on the top and sides. Using a spatula , spread the cream and smoothen it. This is the crumb coat. Chill for 15 minutes
- You can now finish the cake by adding more whipped cream on the top and sides if you want. Press the shavings along the sides and shake off the excess that doesnt stick to the cream . You can finish the top with more shavings and whipped cream piping / cherries as per your choice.
- Keep chilled until serving time !
Notes
Yes… that recipe is a long long one , but I hope the picture that follows does justice to the length of the recipe !
Ofcourse this is not an everyday cake . This is a celebration cake , a show stopper , an impressive cake – to punctuate a moment that deserves that extra effort. And a slice of this homemade eggless Black Forest cake is worth every bit of that effort !
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