How to prepare an aerial black forest: recipe and tips

Ingredients

Preparation time : 1 h
Cooking time : 45 min
Resting time : 3 h

For 8 people

Génoise

40 g butter (+ 15 g for the mold)
130 g flour (+ 1 tbsp. for the mold)
30 g of cocoa
20 g cornstarch
6 eggs
170 g caster sugar
1 pinch of salt

Topping

600 g frozen cherries
3 packets of vanilla sugar
200 g caster sugar
10 cl of kirsch + 2 tbsp.
50 cl full cream
1 teaspoon of natural vanilla flavouring

Finishing touch

2 tsp. tablespoons of cocoa
200 g dark chocolate
2 tbsp. powdered sugar

Preparation

3 hours before starting the preparation, let the cherries thaw in a colander over a container.

Preparation sponge cake:

Butter and flour a 24 to 26 cm diameter cake tin.
Preheat the oven to 200 °C (th. 6/7).
Gently melt the butter. Let it cool.
Sift the flour with the cocoa and cornstarch through a fine sieve.
Set aside
Lightly whisk the whole eggs with the sugar and 1 pinch of salt in a bowl.
Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and whisk the mixture with an electric mixer for 2 to 3 minutes, until it turns white.
Remove from the water bath and continue beating for a good 10 minutes until cool.
The mixture has tripled in volume and should be white.
Take a large spoonful of this mixture and mix it with the cooled melted butter.
Leave to stand.
Incorporate the flour-cacao-Maïzena mixture by lifting the dough with a flexible spatula and then immediately add the reserved butter mixture.
Proceed gently so as not to make the dough fall back.
Pour the dough into the pan and bake.
After 10 minutes of cooking, lower the oven temperature to 180 °C (th. 6).
Continue baking for 20 minutes (30 minutes in total).
Check the cooking by pricking a knife blade in the heart of the sponge cake: it must come out clean and dry.
Turn the sponge out onto a rack and let cool.

Prepare the filling:

Place the drained cherries in a dish. Sprinkle with vanilla sugar.
Bake in the oven for 10 minutes at 150 °C (th. 5).
Prepare a syrup by boiling 10 cl of water with 100 g of sugar and 100 g of cherries.
Blend and filter.
After cooling, add 10 cl of kirsch.
Whip the very cold liquid cream until it is firm.
Add 2 tablespoons of kirsch, 100 g of powdered sugar and the vanilla flavouring while continuing to beat it.
Stop it from sticking to the whisk branches.
Set aside in the refrigerator until the last moment.

Finishing:

Cut the sponge cake into three equally thick disks.
Place the first disk on a plate. Soak it with a little syrup with a brush.
Spread a layer of cream.
Sprinkle with cooled Morello cherries and place a second disk of sponge cake.
Soak more abundantly.
Cover with cream and morello cherries as before.
Cover with the last disk of sponge cake.
Lightly soak the top.
Cover the entire surface of the cake with the remaining cream, smoothing it with a stainless steel spatula.
Grate the chocolate with a vegetable peeler.
Sprinkle the cake with cocoa powder and cover the entire surface with the chocolate shavings.
Refrigerate until last minute.
Serve sprinkled with a veil of powdered sugar.