This Black Forest Cake combines rich chocolate cake layers with fresh cherries, cherry liqueur, and a simple whipped cream frosting.
Black Forest Cake was a staple when I was growing up (much to my dismay…read on).
You know, the grocery store kind with the nuclear red maraschino cherries? My mom loooooved that cake and always got it for her birthday, and often at other times throughout the year as well. This was epically disappointing to me.
Why on earth would you ruin a perfectly delicious cake with those sickly sweet, sticky, artificial tasting cherries? Whyyyyy? Needless to say, I ate around them, but they totally tainted the cake and frosting. Sad times.
Now that I think about it, it’s probably been a good 20-25 years since I’ve had that cake.
I’ve talked about my disdain for maraschino cherries before, and that feeling still holds true to this day. I have caved and used them as a garnish because I will admit, they look pretty and just go with certain desserts, but they get plucked right off before eating the cake.
Thing is, I actually love cherries. Real cherries. Fresh cherries. They are one of my favourite summer seasonal fruits. So, I set off to re-create the decades-old Black Forest Cake my way.
I promise you, this is one of the easiest cakes you will make.
It looks fancier than it is, and the chocolate bark was actually dead easy to make. The trickiest part of this cake is making sure you don’t have any lingering cherry pits in your cherries, which totally happened due to a less-than-stellar cherry pitter that broke after about 10 cherries.
Needless to say, it got returned.
So, super easy chocolate cake, a simple whipped cream for frosting, and fresh cherries. That’s really all you need.
In order to keep it traditional, I also made a cherry syrup (using kirsch – cherry liqueur) to brush onto the cake layers.
You can leave this out if you’d like to keep it kid-friendly or use a non-alcoholic cherry syrup.
How to Make Chocolate Bark
The chocolate bark on the side of the cake is much easier to make than it looks. I first saw this on my friend Janette’s Irish Chocolate Cake. She has a video tutorial to show you how to make it, and I basically followed her steps: melt chocolate, spread on parchment, chill, unroll.
The only difference is that I popped mine into the freezer for 20mins instead of the fridge for 30mins because I’m mega impatient.
I actually didn’t think it would work out, to be honest, since it was my first time trying it and all, but it worked great!
I actually thought my pieces were too big/thick and was thisclose to re-melting it and trying it again, but after I placed them on the cake they looked perfect.
You will have to work quickly with this chocolate bark — since the chocolate isn’t tempered, it will melt on contact.
I recommend using food safe latex gloves so that you’re not touching the chocolate directly. It will help a ton. I also popped the chocolate shards back in the fridge/freezer here and there to cool them off — it was a hot day too, so that didn’t help my plight.
At one point I actually had the cake and bark in the fridge and was placing the shards on the cake with the fridge door open (lol).
Desperate times. Is it Fall yet??
I used a vegetable peeler on a block of chocolate to create the chocolate shavings on top, and then used a 1M tip to pipe rosettes out of the whipped cream on top.
Really though, you could skip all the bells and whistles and just do a rustic frosting job with the whipped cream.
If you’re a Black Forest Cake fan, I hope you try this version! And if you’re not, maybe this recipe will convert you.
It is much better than the ones you can get at the grocery store, I promise!
Tips for this Black Forest Cake:
- You can leave the cherry liqueur out (though it is traditional) or use a non-alcoholic version.
- You can use maraschino cherries or use cherry pie filling instead of fresh cherries.
- When making the whipped cream frosting, make sure everything is chilled, as the cream will whip up better. I stick my mixer bowl and whisk in the freezer beforehand to chill them before starting.
- I used this technique from my friend Janette to create the chocolate bark. I recommend wearing food safe latex gloves when handling the bark, as the heat from your hands will melt the chocolate. Work quickly regardless!
- This cake will not keep incredibly long due to the whipped cream. I recommend eating within 1-2 days and storing in the fridge. I do not recommend freezing.
- To help ensure your cake layers bake up nice and flat, see my Flat Top Cakes post.
Black Forest Cake
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake:
- 2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder sifted
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup buttermilk room temperature
- 1 cup hot water or hot coffee
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Cherry Liqueur Syrup:
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup cherry liqueur
Whipped Cream Frosting:
- 3 cup whipping cream cold
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar sifted
Chocolate Bark:
- 250 g good quality dark chocolate chopped
Assembly:
- 2 1/2 cups cherries pitted and cut in half
- 1 bar dark chocolate for shavings (optional)
- cherries
Instructions
Chocolate Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350F, grease two 8" round baking pans and dust with cocoa powder. Line bottoms with parchment.
- Place all dry ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Stir to combine.
- In a medium bowl whisk all wet ingredients (pour hot water in slowly as not to cook the eggs).
- Add wet ingredients to dry and mix on medium for 2-3 mins. Batter will be very thin.
- Pour evenly into prepared pans. I used a kitchen scale to ensure the batter is evenly distributed.
- Bake for 45 mins or until a cake tester comes out mostly clean.
- Cool 10 minutes in the pans then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Cherry Liqueur Syrup:
- Place sugar and water into a small pot. Stir and bring to a boil. Simmer for 1 min then remove from heat. Stir in cherry liqueur and allow to cool completely.
Whipped Cream Frosting:
- Whip cream and powdered sugar until stiff peaks. Ideally in a cold bowl with a cold whisk.
Chocolate Bark:
- Melt chocolate over a double boiler or in 20 second bursts in the microwave.
- Using a large offset spatula, spread melted chocolate in a thin layer on a large sheet of parchment.
- Roll up from the short side of the parchment. Place on a baking sheet and refrigerate or freeze until firm.
- Unroll to create chocolate bark.
Assembly:
- Cut each cake layer in half horizontally.
- Place one layer of cake on a cake stand or serving plate. Brush generously with cherry syrup.
- Top with approximately 1 cup whipped cream and spread evenly. Top with approximately 1 cup of cherries and gently press them into the whipped cream. Repeat with remaining layers and frost the outside of the cake.
- Decorate with chocolate bark, chocolate shavings, rosettes, and cherries if desired.
Terbear says
I made this cake for my husband’s 65th birthday. I cheated a little and used a Betty Crocker chocolate fudge cake mix. I followed everything else as suggested. I ended up making a little more of the whipped cream as I didn’t have enough and I added pure vanilla extract.
OMG….everyone loved it! So yummy! Definately a keeper! My family said it was bakery perfect. Thank you!
Olivia says
Hi Terbear! Nothing wrong with using a box mix. Have you seen my box mix hack? https://livforcake.com/almost-scratch-cake/ It yields such a good cake! So happy everyone loved it 😀
Rakhee says
Hi, I tried this cake today. Everything seemed fine, the cake was soft and moist. While assembling… my cake collapsed. I can’t think what could have happened. Was my cake too soft ? Do you use the entire amount of syrup for the four cake layers ? (I did not… I still had almost half the syrup left). Should I use less cream between layers? Should I make the cake layers a day before assembling ? We live in Singapore, so the weather is hot and humid.
Hoping to find a solution to this problem.
Thanks
Olivia says
Hi Rakhee! The cakes are delicate and fragile especially once cut in half. I find it easier to work with them if they are chilled. I did not use all the syrup for sure, I only brushed it on the layers and had a lot left over. The heat and humidity would definitely affect the stability of the cake. The amount of whipped cream and cherries would as well. If too much was used it would be too heavy for the cake layers to support it. I would try working with cold cake layers (from the fridge), not using too much syrup, cream, or cherries, and keeping the cake refrigerated as soon as it’s put together.
Rakhee says
Thanks Olivia, am going to try it out again today with all your tips 🙂
Rakhee says
Thanks for the tips Olivia. The cake turned out awesome the second time. Stable, beautiful and yummy 🙂
I wish I could send you the pictures 🙂
Olivia says
Yay! I would love to see them 🙂 You can email me at livforcakeblog@gmail.com
Jenny says
Try this cake. No words. Everyone loved it. I’m not an expert baker and this turned out amazing. Huge hit. Thank you!
Olivia says
Thanks so much Jenny! Glad everyone loved it 🙂
alejandro buenbrazo says
Wow its delicious hmmm I want taste and learn to make it
Olivia says
Hi Alejandro! I hop you like it 🙂
Demi says
Hi.can i use frozen cherries that i thaw for filling??or maybe preserved cherries after strain the syrup?and use syrup for the syrup instead alcohol maybe??its this time of year with no fresh cherries…thank you
Olivia says
Hi Demi! Either of those should work fine!
Demi says
Thanks.will try with frozen cherries first and see.
Venice says
Hi there, just wonder how does it goes with frozen cherries? I’m gonna to make it for my son’s birthday next week and fresh cherries are too expensive and not in season too.
Olivia says
Hi Venice! I would thaw them and pat them dry and see what they are like. If they aren’t too mushy then I think they would be fine between the cake layers 🙂
Pui says
Hi I’ve tried your recipe for the first time and everyone just loved it! Just wondering what other cream recipe I could use to replace the whipping cream frost so I can keep the cake a little longer?
I’ll definitely pin your recipe in our family cook book! X Thank you
Pui
Olivia says
Hi Pui! I am so happy you loved it! I have a lot of different frostings here which would all work well: https://livforcake.com/category/frostings-fillings/ For something closer to whipped cream you could try the 7 minute frosting. It’s light, but sweet. Or the ermine, which isn’t very sweet but is delicious.
Pui says
Beautiful. Thanks for the link. I will give Ermine a go! XX
Pui – Melbourne Australia 😘
Olivia says
Let me know how you like it!
Beth says
This looks like a stunning cake. I am making smaller sized cakes since it’s the pandemic. If I use 6″ pans, would I still cut the cake layer in half? And if I wanted to do two cakes with 6″ pans, do I keep the proportions the same as your original recipe? Thanks!
Olivia says
Hi Beth! It’s up to you if you’d like to cut them in half still. I like to for ratio of cake to whipped cream and cherries. For two 6″ cake layers you should 2/3 the recipe. Change the Servings to 8 and use those amounts.
Swathi says
Hi Olivia
I have tried this cake for last two New years Eve. And both times it turned out wonderful. This time I want to make it without alcohol. I couldn’t get cherry syrup anywhere to substitute the liqueur with. I have a bottle of amarello cherries which I plan to use this time. Can I just boil the cherry preserves with sugar and use it as a substitute for liqueur syrup? Will it be as moist as the regular recipe?
Olivia says
Hi Swathi! How is the syrup that the cherries are in right now? Is it sweet? You could just use that if so 🙂
Swathi says
The bottle says ‘Amarena cherries in syrup’ so I guess it’s sweet. Didn’t open it yet. waiting for the end of month 🙂
Olivia says
Ahh, I think that will probably work just fine then! 🙂
Dhwani says
I have two 6 inch pans, will it work? How would I do it ! Help!
Olivia says
Hi Dhwani! You’ll have to 2/3 the recipe. Change the Servings to 8 to get the amounts.
Dhwani says
Oops I followed the same recipe and filled 3/4 6 inch pans and rest in another pan. How long do I bake them?
Daniela says
Great recipe!
I used coconut oil, still was great!
Olivia says
Hi Daniela! So happy you loved it 🙂
Nandhini says
I made this cake for my son’s birthday today. I tried out your recipe and the cake was absolutely delicious. This is the first time I am making such a big cake all from scratch. Everyone loved it. I was also very happy and satisfied 😊
Olivia says
Hi Nandhini! I am so happy to hear that! Yay for your first time making a cake like this 😀
Karen says
I have made many of your recipes and they have been fantastic. Your detailed instructions and suggestions are always so helpful.
This recipe looks wonderful
What changes would I need to make if I wanted to make cupcakes instead of a cake?
Olivia says
Hi Karen! All you need to do is reduce the baking time. Start checking at 15mins or so. Be sure not to fill them more than half full or so. The batter is very thin and rises a lot.
Rukhsana says
Hi I wanted to check if I can use the chocolate cake recipe from your chocolate mocha cake as a base for the black forest? I can see some measurements are quite different for this one so just wanted to confirm why this would be so? At the end of the day they would both be chocolate cake no?
Olivia says
Hi Rukhsana! The chocolate mocha cake would have made too thin layers in two 8″ pans so I increased the recipe a bit. That’s the only difference, really.
Rukhsana says
thank you. would that mean its okay to use natural cocoa powder for this recipe too?
Olivia says
Yes, that should work fine!
Jo Salerno says
The best recipe for black forest I ever used. Tha cake taste so good.
Olivia says
So happy you liked it, Jo!
Tien says
Can I bake the cake days before I decorate? Will it become hard and dry?
Olivia says
Hi Tien! It will be fine for a day or two at room temperature or you can freeze the cake layers for up to 3 months.
Ludivine says
Hello, my name is Ludivine and I am French.
I have a question about your cake I would like to know in which mold did you use and what size thank you very much for your answer
Olivia says
Hi Ludivine! All of the details are in the recipe 🙂 I used two 8″ round pans that were 2″ tall each. Then I cut each of those baked cake layers in half to make four total.
Mariam says
This cake recipe has NEVER disappointed. The crumb is moist and incredibly soft, and paired with the cherries are just magnificent. I add a little bit of coffee to the water and it turns out so good. This is now my go to!
Olivia says
Hi Mariam! Thank you so much. I’m so happy you love it! <3
Sarah says
Hi Liv, I followed the recipe exactly and used cake strips so they came out flat but the cakes didn’t double in volume? They only came out of the tins about 1 and 1/4 inches 🙁 is there something I can do to help this? They taste absolutely lovely but unsure why they didn’t rise as much as yours have seemed to
Olivia says
Hi Sarah! Did you use 8″ cake pans? If so double check that your baking soda & powder are still fresh and active.
Sarah says
Hiya, yes I used 8 inch cake pans same size as the recipe – just checked my baking soda and powder and both have expiration dates of mid 2022 and I did the hot water /acid test to see if they fizz and they both do when I add it to hot water. Really so confused at this mystery of why they didn’t rise 😂😂 perhaps something to do with having a gas oven? Normally that doesn’t really affect cakes I make cos the texture of these is exactly what I wanted, just the lack of height I have no idea the reason
Olivia says
Hmmm, I don’t think the gas oven would affect it but are you at high elevation by chance? Over 3000 ft?
sarah says
nope, googling my elevation says that it is currently at 12 ft….
Olivia says
Very strange! What kind of cocoa powder are you using?
Sarah says
Just the standard baking cocoa powder from lidl haha
Erin says
This recipe turned out beautiful! Very easy to follow and understand. I have the most random pickiest family ever but every last one of them loved this cake! Thank you!
Olivia says
Hi Erin! I’m so happy you and your family loved this one! Thanks for the feedback 🙂
Mary Kostiw says
so Made the cake came out nice
sent pictures to your email
wanted to post pictures here but can’t
Olivia says
Hi Mary! So glad you loved it. I saw the picture, it turned out great!