Black Forest Cake Recipe (Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte): Homemade Chocolate Sponge with Cherries and Cream

Antonio NEMCD Author

Published Jan 10, 2009 · 6 min

Once for my birthday, I picked up a Black Forest cake at the “Target” supermarket for our holiday table. Both I and everyone who tried a slice loved the dessert – after that, we started buying it regularly for various family celebrations.

Black Forest cake (Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte): rich chocolate sponge layers, juicy cherries, whipped cream, and grated dark chocolate

Back then, a generous cake weighing around 1.6 kg (about 3.5 lb) cost roughly 65 UAH (about $8.50 at the time) when bought with the evening discount. Eventually, my wife suggested trying to bake one ourselves at home: recreating a favorite cake from scratch at least once is always fun, and made with real dark chocolate and fresh heavy cream, it turns out even tastier than the store-bought version.

A Brief History: Where Black Forest Cake Comes From

This dessert originates from southwestern Germany’s mountainous Black Forest region (in German, Schwarzwald literally means “Black Forest”), famous for its dense conifer woods and tart Morello cherries. In German pastry tradition, the cake is called Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte (“Black Forest Cherry Torte”), and its 1915 creation is most commonly credited to pastry chef Josef Keller at Café Agner in Bad Godesberg.

The signature character of the original comes from combining moist chocolate sponge layers, sour cherries, airy whipped cream, generous dark chocolate curls, and fragrant clear cherry brandy (Kirschwasser) or cherry liqueur.

Ingredients for the Homemade Cake

Here is the tested ingredient list with clarified metric weights and missing essentials restored (older handwritten recipes often mention adding vanilla in the instructions while leaving vanilla and leavening out of the ingredient list):

• Chocolate sponge base: 6 large eggs, 1 cup sugar (about 180–200 g), 1 cup all-purpose flour (about 130–140 g), 100–120 g dark bittersweet chocolate, 1 tsp vanilla sugar (or a pinch of pure vanillin), 1 tsp baking powder, and a pinch of salt.
• Soaking syrup: 4 tbsp water, 3 tbsp sugar, and 2 tbsp cherry liqueur (or Kirschwasser).
• Filling cream (homemade version): 375 g powdered sugar, 1 egg yolk, 3 tbsp softened unsalted butter, and 2 tbsp cherry liqueur.
• Layering and topping: 450–500 g pitted cherries (fresh, thawed frozen, or canned – drained net berry weight without liquid), 250–300 ml heavy whipping cream (33–35% fat, or 500–600 ml if frosting and filling exclusively with whipped cream), 2 tbsp powdered sugar, and 150–250 g dark chocolate for curls and shavings.

Two Cream Options: Classic Whipped Cream vs. Cooked Yolk Cream

In many traditional home recipes, the inner layers are spread with a rich mixture of butter, powdered sugar, cherry liqueur, and egg yolk, while whipped cream is reserved for the top and sides. Two culinary details are worth keeping in mind here:

• Safe cooked-yolk cream: To avoid using a raw egg yolk, whisk the yolk with 2 tbsp milk and a spoonful of sugar over a gentle double boiler (water bath) until slightly thickened, just like a classic Charlotte custard base. Let the cooked yolk base cool completely to room temperature before whipping it into the softened butter, powdered sugar, and cherry liqueur.
• Classic German all-cream style: Authentic German Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte skips buttercream altogether – both the inner cherry layers and the outer frosting use billowy 33–35% whipped heavy cream sweetened with powdered sugar. That makes the cake lighter and more delicate (simply increase the heavy cream to 500–600 ml).

Step-by-Step Baking and Assembly Instructions

1. Prepare cherries and chocolate: Drain canned or thawed cherries thoroughly in a colander ahead of time (you can use the drained cherry juice in place of water for the soaking syrup). Break 100–120 g of dark chocolate into small pieces, melt it over a water bath, and let it cool slightly until warm and fluid rather than hot.
2. Bake the sponge: Beat the eggs with sugar, a pinch of salt, and vanilla on high speed for 7–8 minutes until pale, thick, and tripled in volume. Gently fold in the warm melted chocolate, then sift in the flour mixed with baking powder, folding from the bottom up with a spatula to keep the batter airy.
3. Cool and slice: Pour the batter into a 22–24 cm (8.5–9.5 inch) springform pan greased with butter and lined with parchment paper. Bake in a preheated 180 °C (356 °F) oven for at least 30–35 minutes until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the sponge rest briefly in the pan, release the ring, cool completely on a wire rack, and slice horizontally into 3 even layers.
4. Make syrup and cream: Simmer the water (or cherry juice) and sugar for 5 minutes into a light syrup, let it cool, and stir in 2 tbsp cherry liqueur (omit the alcohol if children will be eating the cake). Brush all three sponge layers evenly with the syrup. Prepare your chosen filling cream and separately whip the chilled heavy cream with 2 tbsp powdered sugar to stiff peaks.
5. Assemble and garnish: Spread half of the filling cream over the bottom sponge layer and scatter one-third of the drained cherries on top. Place the second sponge layer over it, repeat with the remaining filling cream and another third of the cherries, and cap with the third sponge layer. Frost the top and sides generously with whipped cream, decorate with the remaining cherries, and shower the cake with dark chocolate curls.

That is the entire recipe – just follow the steps carefully, let the finished cake chill in the refrigerator for at least 3–4 hours so the layers meld together, and enjoy 🙂