So, it’s a “Happy Birthday to me” …!!!

And I baked a cake for my birthday… Yaaay…!!!

Do you make your own birthday cake? I did it for the first time. It’s my first birthday since I started baking and blogging, and so I thought to prepare a cake with my favorite white chocolate. I believe there are two categories of people in this world – dark chocolate lovers and white chocolate lovers; I belong to the second category.

There are few crazy facts about my craving for white chocolate:

1. I love white chocolates so much that when I hear people talking about the benefits of dark chocolate over white chocolate, I usually turn my face away from them… hehe…
2. I just love to crash serious discussions / heated debates with my friends, by dropping the “dark or white chocolate” question and watch their perplexed and surprised faces.
3. White chocolate with cookies, Yummm.
4. I hardly have met any white chocolate lovers.

Anyways, so coming back to the cake, this is the best Vanilla cake I have ever baked and is super soft, rich and moist. One of my key tips to bake a perfect cake is to ensure that the ingredients, especially the refrigerated ones, are brought to the room temperature before preparation. The use of cold eggs, milk, or butter makes big air pockets which affects the texture of cake.

This recipe will make two 9 inch vanilla cakes. Cake frosting can be done in batches and refrigerated, to ensure that each coat sets properly before applying the next.

And finally, decorate with cherry sauce and fresh cherries.

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White Chocolate Cake with Cherry Sauce

Vanilla cake coated with white chocolate butter cream, topped with cherry sauce and fresh cherries. 

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword cake, cherry sauce, white chocolate cake

Prep Time 40 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Servings 10

Author Akhila

Ingredients

For making Cake

• 2 3/4 cup flour
• 1 1/2 tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 stick unsalted butter (softened at room temperature)
• 1 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs (at room temperature)
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup whole milk

For making Cherry Sauce

• 3 cup fresh cherries (pitted and halved)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp corn starch

For making White Chocolate Cream

• 2 stick unsalted butter (softened at room temperature)
• 3 cup powdered sugar
• 4 oz white chocolate (melted)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 5 tbsp heavy whipping cream
• Fresh cherries (to decorate)

Instructions

Preparation of cake

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Apply butter to two 9-inch pan and keep it aside. 
• In a small bowl, swift and mix dry ingredients; flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. 
• In a large bowl using a hand mixer or using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy (3-4 minutes). 
• Add eggs one at a time; scrape down the sides and the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed, beating well after each addition.  
• Mix with the vanilla extract and beat well.  
• Add the dry ingredient mix at this stage, slowly alternating with milk and flour. Batter will be smooth, thick and creamy. 
• Carefully spread batter equally into two pans. Bake for about 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 
• Allow the cake to cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. 
• Unmold the cakes by running a knife or a rubber spatula over the sides of the pan. Carefully flip them over. 

Preparation of Cherry Sauce

• Remove the stem and pit the cherries. 
• Bring a saucepan to medium heat with cherries, sugar, water, lemon juice and corn starch. Allow it to boil. 
• Stir occasionally and bring to low, stir for about another 4 minutes until it is thickened. 

Preparation of White Chocolate Cream

• In a medium bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. 
• Slowly add salt and vanilla extract, followed by adding powdered sugar. 
• Meanwhile, melt the white chocolate in a bowl in the microwave for 30 second intervals. Stir between each interval, until it is completely melted. 
• Combine melted white chocolate into the mix, add milk cream as needed  for desired consistency. Make sure your frosting is not runny or too thick, it should be spreadable.

To frost the cake

• Level the cake by placing on a cake turn table. Using a sharp knife, turn the table, and make a gentle cut to make it even. 
• Apply base coat frosting using a spatula on all the sides of the one cake. Sandwich the other cake and apply base coat to the same. Allow it to cool in fridge for about 30 minutes. 
• Apply second layer of frosting and set for another 30 minutes. 
• Top with cherry sauce and decorate with fresh cherries. 

The post White Chocolate Cake with Cherry Sauce appeared first on Pepper Delight.

Black forest cake is a German dessert named Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte; refers to a set of chocolate sponge cakes sandwiched between cherry and whipped cream. There are different ways to make it, like for example the use of alcohols varying from rum or whiskey, and also like the use of kirschwasser spirit in Germany which is made from sour cherries and used while layering the cake.

The cherries used for layering and topping the cake can either be fresh ones which you will have to soak in rum, or the readily available canned cherries which come in a syrup solution. In this recipe, I have used whole pitted dark sweet cherries. Also to add flavor and give a slight tint to the cream, you can mix a small portion of the left over syrup while preparing the whipped cream.

So, the whole idea to make this cake came while I was planning to gift my dear friend on her birthday, and that’s when she talked about her favorite cake…..

INGREDIENTS

For Cake:
Flour                                    : 2 cup
Cocoa powder                   : ¾ cup
Granulated sugar             : 1 cup
Salt                                       : 1 teaspoon
Baking powder                  : 1 teaspoon
Baking soda                       : 2 teaspoon
Butter                                   : ¾ cup
Brown sugar                      : 1 cup
Vanilla extract                   : 2 tbsp
Eggs                                      : 3
Buttermilk                          : 1 ½ cup

For whipped cream :
Heavy whipping cream  : 2 ½ cup
Powdered sugar                : 5 tbsp
Cherry syrup                     : 1 tbsp

For decoration :
Cherries                               : as required
Chocolate sprinkles         : a small box

 INSTRUCTIONS

For Cake :

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. To prepare the cake, mix the dry ingredients in a bowl by sifting flour, baking powder, baking salt, cocoa powder and salt. Keep aside.
3. In another bowl, beat butter until it is softened. Ensure that the butter is brought to room temperature before softening.
4. Beat granulated sugar and brown sugar into the butter, until blended well.
5. Add eggs one at a time to the butter and beat well. Add the vanilla extract too.
6. Slowly add the prepared dry ingredients to the bowl in portions, alternating with buttermilk, until the cake batter is mixed well without any lumps.
7. Line two baking trays with parchment paper and grease with butter using a brush. Pour the batter evenly into the pans and place in the oven. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes and inspect with a toothpick.
8. Once the cakes are done, take them out of the oven and allow it to cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
9. Unmold the cakes by running a knife or a rubber spatula over the sides of the pan. Carefully flip them over.

For whipped cream :

1. Chill cream for 15 minutes.
2. Whip cream into soft peaks. Add powdered sugar and beat well using a beater.
3. To give a cherry flavor and a slight tint on the cream, add a teaspoon of the cherry syrup to it and mix well.

ASSEMBLING THE CAKE

1. Cut the cakes horizontally into equal halves. Lay the cut halves on a flat surface with the cut sides facing upwards. Brush off any crumbs on top of the cut sides.
2. Out of the 4 halves, both the bottom halves and one of the top halves will be used for layering. Powder the other top half in a blender, and keep aside. We will use this later for decoration.
3. To begin layering, first take one of the bottom halves. Using a rubber spatula, apply a layer of whipped cream evenly on top of the cake.
4. Spread cherries on top of the cake.
5. Now carefully lift the second bottom half and place it on top of the first layer so that its cut side faces up. Repeat steps 3 and 4.
6. Place the third layer; the remaining top half, upside down so that it’s cut side faces the bottom. With this, the layering is done and now it’s time to decorate the cake.
7. Using the spatula, spread frosting evenly on top and on the sides covering cracks and holes on the cake if any.
8. Carefully fill half of a piping bag with the whipped cream.
9. Start piping to make floral designs on the top of the cake.
10. Decorate the cherries on each cream floral pattern.
11. Decorate the center with powdered cake.
12. Decorate the sides and top with chocolate sprinkles.

The post Black Forest Cake appeared first on Pepper Delight.