Black Forrest Gâteau

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For the SPONGE

225g all purpose flour

350g caster sugar

85g cocoa powder

1½ tsp baking powder

1½ tsp baking soda

2 eggs

250ml milk

125m vegetable oil

2 tbsp boiling water

For the jam

850g frozen pitted dark cherries

300g caster sugar

juice from 1 lemon

4 tbsp cornstarch

for the ganache

200g dark chocolate (chopped)

200ml heavy cream

for stabilized cream

500 g mascarpone cheese

6-8 tablespoons confectioners sugar

⅔ cup + 3 tablespoons heavy cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

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for the sponge

1. Preheat the oven to 180C

2. Prepare three 6in cake tins with baking spray & parchment paper

3. In a medium bowl whisk together dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda & baking powder)

4. In a large bowl, using an handheld mixer (or a whisk), mix the wet ingredients (eggs, milk & vegetable oil)

5. Pour the dry into the wet & mix until just combined. Add the boiling water & beat again until smooth.

6. Divide the batter equally between the tins & bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

7. Cool the cakes for 10 minutes in their tin, then turn them out to cool completely on a wire rack.

8. When the cakes are fully cooled, level them & set aside.

for the jam

1. Place cherries, sugar & lemon juice into a in a saucepan over medium/low heat until sugar dissolves.

2. Take off the heat & strain the cherries, reserving their liquid.

3. Measure 4 tablespoons of the liquid, place into a bowl & mix in the cornflour

4. In a mug or a mason jar - set aside another 4-5 tablespoons of the liquid for brushing over the cakes

5. Add the cherries back to the sauce pan & pour the rest of the strained liquid back into the saucepan

6. Stir the cornflour slurry into the saucepan with the cherries, bring to a boil, stirring constantly until thick.

7. Pour the jam into a shallow bowl and transfer to the fridge to cool completely.

for stabilized cream

1. In a chilled bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the mascarpone, cream, vanilla & whip until it begins to thicken.

2. Add the powdered sugar a few tablespoons at a time, until desired sweetness level is achieved.

for the ganache

1. Place the chopped chocolate into a heatproof bowl- set aside

2. Heat the heavy cream in a saucepan until it begins to bubble slightly - but before it boils & scalds

3. Once the cream is heated- pour it over the chocolate and let stand for 1-2 minutes

4. Stir the chocolate and cream until combined.

5. Set aside to cool - we want this to be THICK so it will take a while (*you could place it in the fridge - but if you do, make sure to stir it every 5 minutes)

assembly

1. On a cake stand (or whatever you’re serving it on) place down the first and ugliest cake layer.

2. Brush it with the reserved cherry juice, then spread a thick layer of mascarpone cream.

3. Add some of the cherries on top, gently pushing them into the cream until they form a full layer.

4. Gently place the second (and second ugliest) cake layer on top & repeat the process.

5. Add the last, and prettiest cake layer to the top - spread a thick layer of ganache & pile high with fresh fruit

6. Dust with icing sugar & serve! (if you find it too soft - let it set up in the fridge for a few minutes before cutting)

notes

while this sponge is traditional my taste testers commented on it’s lack of depth compared to other chocolate cakes I’ve made - so if you’re looking for something a bit richer - I’d try it with a this recipe

I most certainly made too many cherries as my cake was only 6in, it would make enough for an 8in cake

If you’re serving it immediately or if you’re opting for less/thinner cake layers you could use a whipped cream, but otherwise I think a stabilized cream (with mascarpone or cream cheese) would hold up better.

THIS CAKE DOES NOT KEEP WELL. Like at alllllll. Anything with cream, fruit (fresh or frozen) should be eaten same day -8 hours after & what was left of this cake had slid to mush.

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INSPIRED BY THIS RECIPE & THIS RECIPE

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Self Saucing Pudding

INGREDIENTS

2-3 tbsp cocoa powder, for dusting

165g dark chocolate 70% cocoa solids

165g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing

3 medium eggs

3 medium egg yolks

85g caster sugar

2 tbsp plain flour

6 heaped tsp smooth peanut butter

EQUIPMENT

6 pudding molds

large baking tray

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INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400F

2. Prep 6 individual pudding molds with baking spray (or butter) and a thin coating of cocoa powder

3. In a double boiler, melt the chocolate and butter together - once melted, remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly

4. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, whip eggs, egg yolks & sugar until thicccq & mousse-y.

5. Using a spatula and gentle figure 8 motions, fold the cooled chocolate into the thicccq eggy sugar mixture.

6. Sift in the flour, and gently fold in until fully incorporated, being careful not to knock out any of the air from the eggs.

7. Spoon the mixture evenly into the molds, filling only about halfway (you’ll have left over)

8. Place about a teaspoon & 1/2 of peanut butter into the center of each mold, then fill with remaining chocolate batter, and smooth.

9. Bake the puddings on the tray for 7-11 minutes - just until they’ve risen and still have a wobble in the middle.

10. Do some black magic witchcraft and turn them out from the molds immediately

11. Dust with cocoa powder & serve

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RECIPE BY PAUL HOLLYWOOD

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Yule Log

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Ingredients

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chocolate sponge

4 large eggs

100g caster sugar

65g self-raising flour (how to make your own)

40g cocoa powder

chocolate ganache

300ml / ½ pint double cream (heavy cream)

300g dark chocolate (I used 60%) - broken into small pieces

cream filling

300ml / ½ pint double cream (heavy cream) - whipped

2-3 tbs caster sugar (to taste)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

150g raspberries

To decorate

powdered sugar (to dust)

raspberries

rosemary sprigs

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Instructions

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making the chocolate sponge

1. Preheat the oven to 400F.

2. Prepare a 13x9in Swiss roll tin, with baking spray & parchment paper.

3. Starting with the sponge, in a large bowl with an electric whisk, whip the eggs & sugar until pale, frothy & doubled in size. Sift the flour & cocoa powder into the bowl and carefully fold it in. You don’t want to knock any of the air out of the mixture, so use gentle figure 8 motions with your spatula until fully incorporated.

4. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and spread evenly.

5. Bake for about for 8–10 minutes, or until the sponge has risen, bouncy to the touch, and you can see the sides are pulling away from the tin.

6. Place clean dish towel on your counter and dust with powdered sugar. While the sponge is still hot, turn it out onto the dish towel and peel back the parchment paper.

7. Tightly roll the sponge up with the dish towel, and place it seam side down on a wire rack to cool completely (anywhere from 1 hour to 3 hours)

making the chocolate ganache

1. Place chopped chocolate in a heat-proof bowl and set aside.

2. In a small saucepan heat the cream until hot, but not boiling. Remove from heat and pour over the bowl of chopped chocolate. Don’t touch it for 2-4 minutes, the residual heat will melt the chocolate. After a few minutes, gently stir to combine & set aside to cool to room temperature.

making the raspberry whipped cream

1. In a chilled bowl, using an electronic mixer, whip together heavy cream, vanilla & sugar until soft peaks form. Finally, very gently beat in raspberries, you want some broken, but you don’t want to make the cream runny.

assembly

1. Unwrap the chilled Swiss roll and remove from the dish towel. Using an offset spatula, spread a generous dollop of cream across the sponge (leaving a 1/2 inch on all sides to account for the cream moving when it gets re-rolled) At this point you could add in whole raspberries, or just tightly re-roll the sponge as is. Us

2. Using an offset spatula, spread a thick layer of ganache evenly all over the Swiss roll. Once all sides are evenly coated, use a fork to gently trace ridges along the ganache, creating a tree bark texture.

3. Dust with icing sugar & garnish with raspberries & sprigs of mint (or rosemary)

slightly adapted from mary berry’s recipe 

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