Friday, July 2, 2010

Black Forest Gateau

Black Forest cake (American English) and Black Forest Gateau (British English) are the English names for the southern German Dessert Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte, literally "Black Forest Cherry Torte'.
Typically, Black Forest cake consists of several layers of chocolate cake, with whipped cream and cherries between each layer. Then the cake is decorated with additional whipped cream, maraschino cherries, and chocolate shavings. In some European traditions sour cherries are used both between the layers and for decorating the top.Traditionally, Kirschwasser (a clear liquor distilled from tart cherries) is added to the cake, although other liquors are also used (such as rum, which is common in Austrian recipes). In the United States, Black Forest cake is most often prepared without alcohol.' - Source, Wikipedia.


The Black Forest Gateau is a favorite of mine, among a score other cakes that is:-)  It is easy to make, in the sense, you need to make a chocolate sponge, plain whipped cream, no tricky things like folding in melted chocolate into the cream, no complicated decoration, unless you are extremely creative and artistic. If you are creatively challenged like me, you just do it the regular , boring way. And its specially convenient when the birthday boy or gal gives u the freedom to bake anything and you also happen to have an opened can of precious cherries in your freezer, waiting to be finished:-).  This one was for my brother's birthday. Made a deal with him, he babysits my kids whenever sis needs a short break and I keep passing on goodies I dish up.  Hey Srik, I hear you groaning?? Be a sport !!! More cakes and desserts coming your way!!:-))


The last couple of times I had made the Black Forest cake, it was with a different sponge, recipe here. The older sponge tastes great too, but the texture of the fat less sponge elevates the cake to a different level altogether. With the variety of recipes I have been seeing these day, loyalties towards recipes keep changing now and then. Lol!! Believe me , this is one of the best, best sponges ever!!! Thanks Deeba!! If you have not tried your hand at this yet, grab the first excuse to bake a cake, put on your apron and start baking. Compliments are sure to follow!

Here is what I did:
Chocolate Sponge
Ingredients:
Eggs -3
Powdered Sugar - 1/2 cup
Flour - 1/2 cup minus 2 tbsps
Cocoa powder- 2 tbspns
Method:

  • Preheat oven to 190 degrees C. Line and grease a 9 inch round cake tin
  • Sift flour and cocoa.
  • Beat eggs with sugar till thick mousse like, for about 10 minutes. Fold in flour, gently, so that the beaten air is not released.
  • Pour batter into a lined, greased and  floured tin. Bake for 35-40 minutes till done; lightly colored.
  • Turn out to cool on rack, immediately removing the lining.
  • Slice the cake horizontally into 2 slices.
Sugar Syrup
 1 Cup water
 1 1/4 tablespoon powdered sugar(adjust to taste)
 Mix both together and refrigerate till needed . (You could also use the syrup in the tin if you like, adjust the sugar to your taste, dilute the syrup if needed.)

For filling and frosting:
Whipping Cream( I use Rich's) - 1 1/2 Cups, makes approximately 3 cups of whipped cream(You could use more or less depending on how generously you want to frost, fill and decorate).
Tinned cherries. de-seed and chop up about 7-8 cherries and reserve some for the decoration.
Shaved chocolate for decoration

Chill the whipping cream for at least 10 hours in the fridge. Chill the beaters and the bowl for 2-3 hours at least. Stainless steel works best .Place over a large bowl of ice. Whip first on slow speed for a minute or so and then at medium speed for about 8-10 minutes or till the cream forms soft peaks. Add a few drops of vanilla (clear extract works best when you want the cream to remain white) Be careful not to over whip. Refrigerate the cream if using later.

Place one cake slice on the cake platter and soak well with the syrup using a spoon or a brush. (Do not over do this as the cake will become soggy). Use the bottom layer with the parchment for the top of the cake as it will be smooth and gives a neat and flat finish to the cake.
Spread some of the whipping cream evenly using an offset spatula. Spread the chopped cherries on the cream. I love the sight of the cake at this stage, the bright spots of red against the white. Place the second layer on the cream and soak with sugar syrup. Frost with the cream. Refrigerate for about an hour or so and allow the cream to set.

I like to make the cake up to this stage and refrigerate for a good 10 hours or more. This allows the flavors to mature. Decorate the cake with chocolate shavings and cherries. Sometimes the canned cherries leave a bit of color on the cream, so I save this part of the decoration for the last minute. You could use fresh maraschino cherries instead.

I piped the cream and it was like aaaahhh!! What happened here?? The piping was not defined well enough. I lifted it off using a spoon, added a pinch of milk powder( to the whipped cream) and whipped lightly again. Ah, was it satisfying to see the piping well defined this time!!

I had made two of these and they were hugely relished by the birthday boy and my family. Here comes one slice for you....

This recipe goes to  Champa's weekly Bake Off.

47 comments:

Rach said...

I love black forest pastry, yumm. Looks so yummy!

Jayanthy Kumaran said...

terribly tempting black forest cake recipe...love to give a try..TQ

Vrinda said...

My all time fav cake. too tempting

Prema said...

Perfect cake,My hubby's fav...will try it.

Malar Gandhi said...

WOw, such a beautiful cake, love black forest cake:)

Rachana said...

Wow!!! One of my favourite Cake! Looks awesome :-)

Sum said...

Awwwwwwwwww........... It's mouth-wateringgg...... I badly want a piece of it now........

Champa said...

Nice cake. Thanks for the entry. It has been a long time since I ate black forest cake and the one ate had such a strong smell of rum that I didn't really like it. Your version looks simple and tasty.

Umm Mymoonah said...

Wow! Wow! looks very professional.

Arti said...

Black forest is my favourite too!
This looks so deliciouss!!
Wish I could have some right now...
Great work :)

Sushma Mallya said...

what a beautiful black forest cake!!very very superbly done suma, ...

RV said...

BF is my next favorite cake to chocolate truffle. But both gives me a high... I am simply loving your cake.. it looks so so perfect.

Unknown said...

That is one beautifully decorated cake. I bookmarked and definitely making it.

Simplyfood said...

My fav dessert this looks wonderful I could eat a slice straight away.

Priya Suresh said...

Awesome cake, wat a beautiful,gorgeous, great looking cake, truly tempting..

Rekha said...

Oooh, looks perfect,. I plan to make this for my daughter's birthday which happens to fall in the 3rd week of this month. Just a doubt, there is no need to add baking powder is it?

Suma Rowjee said...

@Rekha - There is no baking powder in this sponge. If you are making this sponge for the first time, would suggest you try it out once before the birthday. Good luck and be in touch!!

divya said...

Woww wat a mouthwatering cake, looks fantastic ......

Indian Khana said...

Wow this looks so perfect dear....yummy...

Padmajha said...

My fav!!Looks so yumm.I have stopped eating this though,but ur click want me take a run to the nearest baker to grab a bite!!!

Parita said...

Black Forest cake looks fantastic! Superb finishing!

Swathi said...

Black forest cake looks gorgeous. Nice one.

Padhu Sankar said...

Looks yummy!!

Anonymous said...

Holy Molly! I love Black Forest Gateaux too...an all time favourite! And I think I've lost count of the number of Black Forest Pastries I've churned out during my college days. Come any birthday, and the gang would turn to me for the birthday cake. I'd be damned if they wouldnt let me make the Black Forest each and every time. I think I can make one in my sleep now...automated motion!
I love what you've done with yours. I've been meaning to ask...do you use a turntable for your cake decorations?

M D said...

Black Forest Gateaux looks fantastic! Love the way you have decorated it. How's ur top so perfect? I adore it :) Agree with Madhuri... I too need to ask...do you use a turntable for your cake decorations?

Suma Rowjee said...

Thanks all!!
@Madhuri & Mallika- This was definitely one my cakes with a smoother top. I sometimes dip my palette knife in hot water, wipe it dry with a cloth and smoothen the top. The cake did have a couple of small creases , which I guess the light has ironed out:-))I am yet to get that turntable,been on my wish list since long:-))

Vanamala Hebbar said...

wow superb!!

Nachiketa said...

my brother has been asking mr to do a black forest from so long... was just putting it off.... now i'm being nudged into it after seeing your totally amazing looking cake :)

cheers,
The Variable, Crazy Over Desserts - Nachiketa
Catch me on facebook @ Crazy Over Desserts

priya seshadri said...

Black Forest Gateau looks mouth watering :) sumakka, i will come down to your place very soon to have a bit of it :)

Anonymous said...

You bet the turntable has been on my wishlist as well, and for too long now! Don't know when the temptation will take over to drive to the store and get me one!!
Btw, I dint know hot water worked for working with whipped cream. I've always dipped my palette knife in cold water to iron out the top :) Will try your method next time.
In the meanwhile, turntableeeee, here I come..... :)

PranisKitchen said...

wow really delicious and yummy cake.. perfectly done good one

Spice said...

hey suma, cake came out so perfect....icing is so smooth.....it's been a while since i made black forest, your cake pic is telling me to make one now.,...

Srikanth said...

It was really yum!! Better than sweet chariot cake.

Suman Singh said...

WOW...love at the first sight with this beautiful looking cake..going to try this one soon..thanks for this recipe..

Ambika said...

This looks awesome!! The whipped cream topping has come out so smooth!! What's your secret?? And my sponge cake recipe is the same as yours, minus cocoa powder and I use 1/2 cup minus 1 tbsp flour plus 1 tbsp corn starch.

Anonymous said...

Hi Suma,

Your cake looks delightful !!!

Just have a few doubts
1. Is this Richs Whip topping non dairy cream that you used? Usually this has to be kept frozen, so what did you mean by 10 hours refrigerated? On the pack, it says that it has to be kept in the fridge from the freezer for 36 hours before its used.
2. Do you add Sugar to the the cream while whipping? Or is it already sweetened.
3. Your previous black forest cake looks more darker... so was wondering if you used melted chocolate instead?

Thats all for now !!! Thanks a bunch in advance

Sangeetha

Divya Kudua said...

I can't believe I missed this post Suma..the BF cake looks so professional!!Love the chocolate curls and the cherry deco.Got to try the fatless sponge asap.Looks cool..good job!!

Suma Rowjee said...

@Sangeetha- Sorry, missed out on answering this query. Yes,its Richs.The whipping cream needs to be frozen, I take out the needed portion(after thawing the pack in the fridge for a couple of hours) and then chill in the fridge for 10 hours. Its already sweetened. The previous one is a different recipe with cocoa and oil in it. Hope this helps!
@Divya - Thanks so much!!

sonia said...

Hi Suma,

This cake looks really tempting and I'd like to bake it sometime over the weekend. Just can't resist the temptation :)
I wanted to know if this sponge cake given in your recipe can be baked in a microwave oven as i don't have an OTG.
I usually bake chocolate cakes in a microwave oven( using cooking oil).Since your cake doesn't use either oil or butter can this be baked in a microwave?

Please let me know as i can't wait to bake this cake :)


Regards,
Sonia

Suma Rowjee said...

@Sonia- You can of course bake this in the convection mode of a microwave. Do try it out!

Parita said...

Hi Suma...my sis just wrote me an SMS 7 in the morning that she wants a black forest cake this weekend! I am planning to make it coming saturday if eevrything goes right :) Will try out the sponge cake..seems good! But I would like to get 3 layers..which size pan have you used? I generally bake in 8 or 9 inch round pan. Also do you know where i can get Rich Whip Topping in mumbai?

monika said...

hi .the cake luks yummy but can u tell me the substitute for egg.want to try this cake.so pls let me know

Anonymous said...

Hi Suma,
I am following ur blog from last few days. Tried this BF cake yesterday & turned out YUMMM!!!..My son & his friends were all excited & finished the cake in no time..Thanks a ton for this receipe!!!..One tiny question: The sponge cake did not rise much on baking like the other cakes would. And the cake portion was slightly hard. I guess had to pour some more sugar water..If u have any tips for a softer cake, pls let me know..Thanks!!!

Suma Rowjee said...

@Monika - Eggs are a must for this sponge. You could try other eggless recipes, but I find this sponge works superb as a base.
@anonymous - Thank you very much! Whipping the eggs to the specified volume and folding in the flour gently without losing the air help get a light and airy sponge. That done, do add more syrup if you feel the need to. This sponge is more a matter of practice, so keep at it!

Manisha said...

Hi Suma,

Great to see a detailed recipe on how to make a black forest cake :)

I would like to talk to you if possible on the basic baking tools required for making a cake. I'm new to baking and need some help in buying my first few tools...appreciate any help. Thank you
Manisha
isha832000@yahoo.co.in

Rakhi said...

Hey, When you said Flour (for making sponge)..is it all purpose Flour (plain maida)or something else like cake flour??

Suma Rowjee said...

Hi Rakhi! Its APF/maida.