The unexpected birthday Cake

I never imagined it would be so tough to write a tale about a recipe for a comfortable food that was given to me when I needed it the most.

That's not anything I've ever experienced. But I remember we did it once on my husband's birthday. He like "Black Forest Cake," and my daughter has promised to prepare him one. Of course, I had to pay for all of the supplies and tools she required. So, we began looking for the tools on the Amazon website.

The search was very difficult. We knew all of the tools in German but finding them on a Canadian website was difficult. We planned on having everything ready in two weeks.

We ordered them as soon as we had all of the tools we needed. They arrived promptly. The following step was to purchase the ingredients. The cherries were the source of the trouble. It was difficult to obtain "Sauerkirchen" (sour cherries). Fortunately, we discovered them at a German bakery. The next issue was locating the proper flour. We discovered it in a Canadian bakery that solely makes German cakes, breads, and buns.

After that, we set out to find "Kirsch-Likoer" (cherry liqueur). I can't remember how many liquors stores we visited, but we eventually located one with two bottles. To be safe in case we produced a mistake, we bought both of them.

The remaining ingredients were located in nearby grocery stores. We began working on the cake's dough the morning of the day before my husband's birthday.

The components we need for the cake were as follows:

For the cake layers:

7 medium eggs, at room temperature

pinch of salt

8 oz. (230g) sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups (160g) all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1.7 oz. (50g) cornstarch

1.4 oz. (40g) cocoa powder

1/4 cup (60g) melted butter

For the cherry filling:

12.43 oz. (350g) morello cherries

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1/4 cup (50g) sugar

1.7 oz. (50g) cornstarch

1 pinch of cinnamon

2-3 tbsp. cherry schnapps

For the soaking liquid:

1/4 cup (60ml) cherry schnapps

1 tbsp. water or cherry juice

For the cream filling:

2 1/2 cups (600ml) heavy cream, cold

2 1/2 sachets whipping cream stiffener

2 tbsp. sugar

1 sachet vanilla sugar

For the decoration:

1 2/3 cups (400ml) heavy cream, cold

2 sachets whipping cream stiffener

1 sachet vanilla sugar

12 cherries

3.5-5.3 oz. (100-150g) chocolate shavings

Then we started the real work, the cake. Here are the preparation steps we did:

1. Set the oven temperature to 375°F (190°C). A springform pan (10 inches/26 cm) should be greased and lined with parchment paper. Place aside.

2. Separate the eggs and place the yolks in a big basin. Set aside after whipping the egg whites with a sprinkle of salt until stiff peaks form. In a dish with the egg yolks, combine the sugar and vanilla essence. Beat the mixture for 5 to 6 minutes, or until it is light and fluffy. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, corn flour, and cocoa powder. Sift this mixture over the egg yolk mixture. Add the stiff egg whites and thoroughly combine before folding in numerous sections. Mix in the melted butter after adding it. Fill the prepared baking pan with the batter, and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove from the oven, allow to cool for approximately 15 minutes within the pan, then gently remove and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

3. Pour the cherry filling ingredients into a strainer, let them drain, and then gather the liquid in a saucepan. Mix in the cinnamon, sugar, corn flour, and lemon juice. Remove from the fire after the mixture begins to thicken, then stir in the cherry schnapps. Mix in the cherry juice after adding it. Place aside.

4. Dividing the cake into three equal layers, horizontally. Place the first layer in the shape of a cake ring on a serving dish. Brush the cake layer with a mixture of cherry schnaps and water or cherry juice. Place the cherry filling on top, leaving the sides with about 0.4 inches (1 cm) of filling free. Place for about 15 minutes in the refrigerator.

5. For the cream filling add the cold heavy cream to a bowl. Mix the whipping cream stiffener with sugar and vanilla sugar, then add gradually to the bowl with the heavy cream, whipping constantly until stiff peaks form. Add about half of the cream filling on top of the cherries in the cake ring and smooth out the top. Add the second cake layer on top and brush this layer as well with the schnapps mixture. Spread the remaining whipped cream on top and finish with the last cake layer. Brush again with schnapps and then place in the fridge for at least one hour.

6. Whip the vanilla sugar, stiffener, and cool heavy cream for the filling until firm peaks form. Put roughly 6 to 8 tablespoons of it into a piping bag fitted with a star tip, then put it aside. The remaining whipped cream should be used to cover the cake. Sprinkle chocolate shavings on the sides, adorn the top with 12 cream swirls around the perimeter, and add a cherry to each swirl. Add a few shavings of chocolate to the center. For at least two hours, place the cake in the refrigerator.

Even though we had to make the cake batter three times, the results were better than expected.

When my daughter delivered her hard work to her birthday-daddy the next day, he was the happiest birthday parent on the planet. The cake was wonderful, and there was not a crumb left.