Makes: 10 to 12 servings
Time: About 1½ hours, plus time for the cherries to soak
Black Forest cake is a German classic, and its cherry-soaked layers taste better with every passing hour. The base of this cake is a buttery sponge cake that gets all its lightness from eggs. It’s essential to whip the eggs long enough to develop the cake’s structure—you will need a full 10 minutes. If you like, swap in other fruits and fruit liqueurs for the classic cherry flavor. For a lighter take, top with Whipped Cream and a cherry garnish, but I prefer the intensity of rich Chocolate Ganache.
1. Pit the cherries and soak about two-thirds of them in the kirsch overnight.
2. Heat the oven to 350°F. Place the eggs in a bowl of warm water for 5 minutes; being slightly warm will make them fluffier when you beat them. Grease two 9-inch or three 8-inch cake pans. Cover the bottoms with a circle of wax paper or parchment and butter the paper. Sift cocoa powder over the pans; invert and tap to remove the excess.
3. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the eggs, sugar, and vanilla at medium-high speed until tripled in volume, about 10 minutes. It will be pale yellow. If you pour a spoonful of the mixture back on itself, it should form a defined ribbon. Gently fold the flour mixture into the egg mixture by hand. When it is mostly incorporated, spoon 1 cup of the mixture into a small bowl. Add the melted butter to this mixture and blend gently but thoroughly, then fold this butter mixture back into the rest of the cake batter.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, 25 to 30 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then run a knife around the edge of the pans and invert onto a rack to finish cooling.
5. Put the first layer of cake, top side down, on a plate or cake stand. Poke it all over with a fork. Drain the cherries and reserve the kirsch; pour half the kirsch evenly over the first layer, then top with the soaked cherries. Place the second layer of cake on top, repeating the poking with a fork and drizzling with kirsch. (If you have 3 cake layers, divide the cherries among the layers and sprinkle the kirsch over all 3 layers.) Frost the top and sides of the assembled cake with Whipped Cream or Chocolate Ganache if you like (see headnote) and garnish with the remaining fresh cherries.
6. Store at room temperature (or in the fridge if using whipped cream), covered or wrapped in plastic wrap, for a few days.
FAST BLACK FOREST CAKE For last-minute cake preparation, skip soaking the cherries overnight: Stir together two-thirds of the cherries and the kirsch in a bowl and let sit for at least 30 minutes. Meanwhile, bring ½ cup sugar and ½ cup water to a boil in a small saucepan until the sugar dissolves; remove it from the heat. Drain the cherries and set aside, saving the kirsch. Pour the kirsch into the sugar-water and stir to combine.
CHOCOLATE-RASPBERRY CAKE It’s easy to swap in other fruits for a different taste altogether: Substitute raspberries for the cherries and raspberry liqueur for the kirsch.
CHOCOLATE-PEACH CAKE Substitute peaches for cherries and peach schnapps for kirsch.
BLACK FOREST AMARETTO CAKE For a nutty twist: Substitute ½ teaspoon almond extract for the vanilla and amaretto for the kirsch. Garnish the cake with cherries and chopped almonds.