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Berry Black Forest Cake
Author: Jackie
Ingredients
Perfect Chocolate Cake from Foodess.com
  • 1 ¾ cups all purpose flour
  • 2 cups granulated white sugar
  • ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 cup buttermilk (or substitute by putting 1 tablespoon white vinegar in a cup then filling the rest up with milk; let stand 5 minutes until thickened)
  • ½ cup butter , melted
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee (or 2 teaspoon instant coffee in 1 cup boiling water)
Cherries and Berries
  • 24 ounces of Morello Cherries in Syrup
  • 1 ½ cup fresh berries such as blackberries , blueberries, and raspberries
  • 6 tablespoon Kirsch or Cherry Brandy
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
Whipped Cream Filling
  • 1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream
  • 1 ½ tablespoon granulated sugar
  • In a mixer , beat whip cream and sugar until stiff.
Chocolate Ganache
  • 4 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate , finely chopped
  • ¼ cup heavy cream
  • ½ tablespoon butter
Instructions
Perfect Chocolate Cake from Foodess.com
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Grease and flour two 9-inch baking pans (or line with parchment paper circles) and set aside.
  3. In the large bowl of a standing mixer, stir together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.
  4. Add eggs, buttermilk, melted butter and vanilla extract and beat until smooth (about 3 minutes). Remove bowl from mixer and stir in hot coffee with a rubber spatula.
  5. Batter will be very runny.
  6. Pour batter evenly between the two pans and bake on middle rack of oven for about 35 minutes, until toothpick inserted in centre comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs attached.
  7. Allow to cool 15 minutes in pans, then run a butter knife around the edges of each cake.
  8. Place a wire cooling rack over top of each pan.
  9. Wearing oven mitts, use both hands to hold the racks in place while flipping the cakes over onto the racks.
  10. Set the racks down and gently thump on the bottom of the pans until the cakes release.
  11. Cool completely before handling or frosting.
Cherries and Berries
  1. Strain the cherries, reserving the syrup in a separate bowl.
  2. Place the cherries and berries in a bowl and gently mix with 3 tablespoon Kirsch. Cover and refrigerate while making the cream filling.
  3. Add the remaining Kirsch and sugar to the cherry syrup, mix until combined.
Chocolate Ganache
  1. In a heavy bottomed saucepan, slowly heat chocolate, cream and butter on medium low.
  2. Stir with wooden spoon until smooth.
  3. Cool for about 10 minutes before placing on top of whipped cream.
Assembly:
  1. Place a layer of chocolate cake on the cake plate.
  2. Brush with ¼ cup of the Kirsch syrup mixture.
  3. Apply half of the whipped cream and spread evenly over cake.
  4. Spread half of the cherries and berries over whipped cream.
  5. Place 2nd cake layer over the berries and whipped cream.
  6. Brush with ¼ cup Kirsch syrup.
  7. Spread remaining whipped cream evenly over top.
  8. Refrigerate cake for 20 minutes.
  9. Make ganache and cool.
  10. Once the whipped cream has chilled, remove cake and spread ganache.
  11. Place a mound of remaining fruit on top of cake and sprinkle with powdered sugar.