The Perfect Chocolatey Black Forest Cake Recipe

Steps

1. 1Chocolate Genoise Cake
2. 2Pre-heat oven to 350F (conventional / no fan) and prepare 4 8" round cake pans by placing parchment paper on the bottom. Do not add oil or butter. If you don't have 4 pans, you can use 3 pans instead, but I don't recommend fewer
3. 3Add the eggs and sugar to the bowl of your stand mixer and use the whisk attachment to whisk on medium high speed for 5-7 minutes until the mixture becomes very pale in color, thick and fluffy in texture, and almost triples in volume. Do not rush this step!
4. 4Now sift in the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt
5. 5Use a rubber spatula to very carefully, gently and slowly fold the dry ingredients into the wet. Take your time and do not use an aggressive mixing motion because you don't want the air to be knocked out of the batter. Stop folding as soon as no more streaks of flour can be seen. You should have a very fluffy batter
6. 6Carefully divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and spread it out
7. 7Bake in the pre-heated oven for 10-12 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Do not over bake!
8. 8Let the cakes cool down in the pans for 20 minutes, then carefully take them out and fully cool down while you work on the other components
9. 9Cherries and syrup
10. 10Drain the canned / jarred cherries and reserve all the juice in a saucepan
11. 11Save a handful of perfect looking cherries for decoration, and roughly chop the rest of them
12. 12Cool the cherry juice for ~3-5 minutes to slightly reduce it, then let it cool down fully
13. 13Chantilly whipped cream
14. 14Add the cold heavy cream, sugar, salt and vanilla to a bowl. Whisk on medium high speed for a few minutes until the cream reaches a medium peak consistency. This means the cream should be able to hold shape but not be too firm or grainy
15. 15Ganache
16. 16Add the chocolate and cream to a microwave safe bowl, and microwave in 20 second increments, stirring in between, until the chocolate has melted and a smooth ganache forms. Let it cool down for 10-15 minutes at room temperature
17. 17Assembly and decoration
18. 18Once all components are prepared and cooled down, it's time to assemble. Place a cake layer on the turntable / serving stand upside down, and brush it generously with the cherry syrup. Spread on a thick layer of the whipped cream. Then spread on a third of the chopped cherries and gently press them into the cream. Lastly, drizzle over 2-3tbsp of the ganache
19. 19Repeat with the next 2 cake layers, then cover with the last layer of cake. Brush it with syrup, then use the remaining whipped cream to fully frost the cake. Chill the cake in the fridge for 15 minutes
20. 20For the drip, warm up the ganache until it's runny but not hot. Pour it on top of the cake, then use an offset spatula to quickly spread it and let it drip down the sides
21. 21For extra decoration (optional), transfer the remaining whipped cream to a piping bag with a star tip nozzle. Pipe dollops around the edge of the cake, and top each dollop with a cherry reserved from earlier. Lastly, sprinkle over chocolate shavings / grated chocolate
22. 22Serve & enjoy!