AUTHENTIC GERMAN BLACK FOREST CAKE

Authentic German Black Forest Cake image

This is the recipe that my hubby's co-worker's wife gave to me when my hubby was over in Germany on business. There was an entire section missing, and some of the other parts didn't sound right and weren't quite translated correctly, but I researched and researched and this is what I came up with based on what my hubby had there....

Provided by Kelly Williams

Time 1h20m

Number Of Ingredients 25

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Ingredients

CAKE:
1 2/3 cups flour
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs, or you can also make this using 4 yolks (both work)
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2/3 cup kirsch (added after baking)
FILLING:
2 sticks butter, room temp.
3 1/3 cups powdered sugar
1 pinch of salt (1/16 tsp. or less)
1 tsp. very strong coffee or brewed espresso, cooled
2 (14 oz.) cans dark sweet pitted cherries in heavy syrup, drained
FROSTING:
2 regular large marshmallows, melted, optional see *tip
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 Tbl. kirsch
1/2 Tbl. unsweetened cocoa powder
grated semi-sweet chocolate for garnish
extra dark sweet cherries for decoration, optional

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line the bottoms of two 8-inch round pans with parchment paper circles. Sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda and 1 teaspoon salt. Set aside. Cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Beat into flour mixture, alternating with 1 cup buttermilk, until combined. Pour into prepared pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool completely. Remove paper from the cakes. Using a thin but sturdy string (dental floss works well), wrap the string around one of the cakes at the halfway mark, horizontally. Tie the string once and pull slowly, cutting through the cake forming two layers. Repeat on other cake. Sprinkle cut side of each layer with kirsch. In a medium bowl, cream the butter until light and fluffy. Add confectioners sugar, pinch of salt, and coffee, beat adding a little buttermilk as needed for consistency. Place first layer of cake on plate(cut side down works best for frosting). Spread with 1/3 of the filling. Top with 1/3 of the cherries. (*I course chopped them, but you can leave them whole if desired.) Repeat with remaining layers. In a seperate bowl, whip the cream to stiff peaks. Beat in 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1/2 Tbl. cocoa and 1 Tbl. kirsch. Frost top and sides of cake. Decorate with chocolate shavings made with a vegetable peeler or plane hand-held grater. Decorate with additional cherries if desired. Store, covered, in refridgerator. *Tip: To make whipped cream hold up longer, do the "marshmallow trick"! Rule of thumb is 1 melted marshmallow to 1 cup heavy cream. Melt, in this case 2, marshmallows in small, non-stick frying pan over low heat til liquid. Pour and whisk/stir into heavy cream before whipping. Your whipped cream will hold it's shape and last for days in the fridge!