Tuesday, May 11, 2010

A Black Forest Cake For Taureans

My relationship with baking is getting more and more comfortable. Okay, its another story that I cheated on this one. I used an instant cake mix to get myself ahead of the game for a birthday cake I was baking for all my family and friends who have their birthdays in May!41040CLThis special occasion cake reminds me of the American childhood I never had! Back then, in the Hindi heartland, my parents had very little choice. It was either to bake a pound cake at home and stick little plastic cake decorations and wafer biscuits on the top, or go to the local cake shop called Cake Palace and get a “heart-shaped” cake. Some birthdays later, the cake shop evolved and they came up with made-to-order cakes in the shape of a ship, guitar, swimming pool and a doll for the birthday parties my sister and I would have.

Yesterday was a good day to work on a Black Forest Cake for my friends and family who like me are May-born. I know we Taureans are known for our sweet tooth. I especially have a pretty relaxed guilt-free approach to desserts. I keep reminding myself of a very relevant Oscar Wilde quote - If you can’t overcome temptation, the best way is to yield to it!

Yield to it I did, by opening a box of instant cake mix and baking two eight inch cakes for my homemade Black Forest CakeIMG_7886 IMG_7887 IMG_7890 I let them cool off completely before I started on my layering.
IMG_7892Meanwhile, I started on my cherry filling, mixing a pie-filling with some cornstarch and thickening it on low-medium heat.
IMG_7894 The cherry filling needs to be cooled off completely too before we spread it on the cake.

The next thing to prepare was to beat the cream with some sugar to make it stiff. I do not have a hand blender, so I used my regular blender to do it for me and the result was satisfying!IMG_7895Putting it all together seemed less daunting than I had anticipated it would be!
IMG_7896 IMG_7897 IMG_7898 IMG_7899Place the second cake layer onto the whipped cream/cherry filling, squishing it down ever so gently. IMG_7901 Spoon as much of the cherry filling onto the top of the cake as your whipped-cream wall will hold.IMG_7902 IMG_7903I left the sides of the cake un-iced so that the two layers could be seen with the whipped cream in between. Decorate the top with chocolate shavings and of course, maraschino cherries!

Chill for a couple of hours before you serve.
IMG_7909 IMG_7913 IMG_7925IMG_7907 I followed the recipe and the steps from here, though I did make some changes to give myself a decadent homemade treat.
IMG_7924This slice of homemade Black Forest Cake was speaking for itself and it did say some nice things like – Happy Birthday!

12 comments:

? said...

:-D

Rajni said...

Thanks for the cake :)

Piper .. said...

I recently came across your blog through a friend`s link on FB and instantly got hooked! I even tried the Shrimp biryani, which turned out great! :):) And now this!! Incidentally, I recently celebrated my bday, though your pictures make me want to celebrate some more :):)
You have an awesome blog here!

PreeOccupied said...

@Piper, thanks for stopping by. Hope you had a good one. Enjoy the birthday month!

A tip on the Shrimp Biryani which came on an afterthought, do not cook the shrimp in the green chutney. Just add it and stop the heat and then mix everything with the rice. Did I make sense? :-(

Soma said...

This cake has to be for me, all of it. I am a taurean and my fav cake is black forest so I have every right to own this all to myself. And I will have the churmur too. Whoa .. what a treat!

Soma(www.ecurry.com)

Sanyukta Gour(Bayes) said...

thats an awesome cake..my all time fav...lovely clicks..

first time here...u have a lovely space...just started blogging..and love to add u in my list..
ur comments/suggestions r highly appreciated..happy blogging...following u>>>>>>



sanyuktagour(bayes)
http://creativesanyukta.blogspot.com/

PreeOccupied said...

@Soma, oh you a Taurean too? That explains your creativity! :-)

P.S. Sending you a slice of Black Forest and some churmur. :-)

@Sanyukta, thank you for those lovely words.

Unknown said...

Di! am awed....how do u do all this...am afraid to go to the kitchen bcoz I end making junk!!! although I really don't want it turn bad...coz I love to cook...If only I do!!!or I can...!!!:(

PreeOccupied said...

@Nahid, get over your apprehensions by going to the kitchen more often. But only if you LIKE it. Don't force anything on yourself. We all have to find our niché, maybe yours is just to have a stethoscope around your neck! :-)

scribblehappy said...

yummy...must try this one,and soon !!didnt quite get the cherry filling bit though..how to make the filling from cherries available locally ?

PreeOccupied said...

@Shaili, you get these ready-to-use cherry (and other fruit) filling here in the supermarkets. You could check one of the bigger stores there which have international food. Sorry, but I do not know how to make it with fresh cherries. :-(

Piper .. said...

Of course it makes sense. In fact,next time I will do the exact thing you mention now. Because the shrimps got a little overcooked last time! :)