INGREDIENTS YOU WILL NEED

• 250g fresh cherries
• 40g white rum
• 30g granulated sugar
• 5g lemon juice
• 70g semi-sweet/dark chocolate chips
• 400g heavy cream
• 30g sugar
• cocoa powder/ganache/chocolate sauce

How to make the chiffon cake base: https://u-taste.com/blogs/recipes/chocolate-chiffon

HOW TO MAKE BLACK FOREST CAKE

1. Wash the cherries, cut in half and remove the cores. Leave 6 whole cherries to decorate the cake. In a clean bowl, put together chopped cherries, white rum, granulated sugar, and lemon juice, mix well, cover with plastic wrap, and keep it in the fridge to cool overnight.

2. Grab a deep plate, pour in the chocolate chips, melt the chocolate chips over a bowl of hot water or melt it in the microwave. Mix well and smooth its surface, put in the fridge to cool until set. Scrape off chocolate shavings. I used a spoon to do this. If you have better tools, use them. This process could take quite some time. My advice is to ask a friend or a family to help. Keep the chocolate shavings cool in the fridge.

3. In a clean bowl, put together granulated sugar and heavy cream, and use a hand mixer to beat until thickened. Save some whipped cream to decorate the cake later. Add some cocoa powder or ganache or chocolate sauce to the rest of the whipped cream, beat or mix until well combined.

The whipped cream:

Notes:

• Save some whipped cream to decorate the cake.

• I have got some ganache left in the fridge, so I used ganache for the cream. You can use cocoa powder or chocolate sauce to replace ganache. The amount of ganache/cocoa powder/chocolate sauce to add in the whipped cream is totally up to you. You can give it a taste test when making it, and adjust the amount accordingly.  

• Keep the whipped cream cool in the fridge until you start to assemble the cake, so the whipped cream will not melt or collapse.

4. Assemble the cake: Daub a dot of whipped cream onto the cake stand, place one cake layer, brush the cake layer with some cherry-rum juice, put on whipped cream, and smooth the cream on the surface and sides with an icing spatula. Add some cherries on it, cover with more whipped cream, spread and smooth the cream and continue with next layer. Repeat the process once and cover with the last cake layer. Spread and smooth the whipped cream to cover the entire cake.

Notes:

• Brush each cake layer with cherry-rum juice.

5. Cover the cake with chocolate shavings using a cake scraper to help. Put the saved whipped cream into a piping bag with a piping tip. Pipe out six cream flowers on the cake and put on the whole cherries.

6.Since the cake has a soft and fluffy chiffon base, I will suggest let the cake cool in the fridge for 30 minutes to help the cake keep its shape. Then slice and serve.

Instruction:

1. Wash the cherries, cut in half and remove the cores. Leave 6 whole cherries to decorate the cake. In a clean bowl, put together chopped cherries, white rum, granulated sugar, and lemon juice, mix well, cover with plastic wrap, and keep it in the fridge to cool overnight.
2. Grab a deep plate, pour in the chocolate chips, melt the chocolate chips over a bowl of hot water or melt it in the microwave. Mix well and smooth its surface, put in the fridge to cool until set. Scrape off chocolate shavings. I used a spoon to do this. If you have better tools, use them. This process could take quite some time. My advice is to ask a friend or a family to help. Keep the chocolate shavings cool in the fridge.
3. In a clean bowl, put together granulated sugar and heavy cream, and use a hand mixer to beat until thickened. Save some whipped cream to decorate the cake later. Add some cocoa powder or ganache or chocolate sauce to the rest of the whipped cream, beat or mix until well combined.
4. Assemble the cake: Daub a dot of whipped cream onto the cake stand, place one cake layer, brush the cake layer with some cherry-rum juice, put on whipped cream, and smooth the cream on the surface and sides with an icing spatula. Add some cherries on it, cover with more whipped cream, spread and smooth the cream and continue with next layer. Repeat the process once and cover with the last cake layer. Spread and smooth the whipped cream to cover the entire cake.
5. Cover the cake with chocolate shavings using a cake scraper to help. Put the saved whipped cream into a piping bag with a piping tip. Pipe out six cream flowers on the cake and put on the whole cherries.
6. Since the cake has a soft and fluffy chiffon base, I will suggest let the cake cool in the fridge for 30 minutes to help the cake keep its shape. Then slice and serve.