Glazed Black Forest Cake Roll
The classic European cake made with cherries, chocolate, cream and Kirschwasser is turned into a cake roll covered with chocolate glaze.
servings
Ingredients
Cherries
- 2 cups sour cherries (drained, juice reserved (see note 1))
- 4 oz granulated sugar (½ cup)
- 4 oz Kirschwasser (½ cup)
Chocolate Genoise
- 2 oz unsalted butter
- 1 ½ oz cocoa powder (⅓ cup)
- 3 oz boiling water (⅓ cup)
- 6 large eggs
- 6 oz granulated sugar (¾ cup)
- ⅛ teaspoon table salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 oz cake flour (¾ cup, see note)
Assembly
- 16 oz heavy cream (2 cups)
- 1 oz confectioner's sugar (¼ cup)
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- reserved cherry juice
Chocolate Glaze
- 8 oz semi-sweet chocolate (chopped)
- 4 oz unsalted butter (cut into 1" chunks)
- 3 ½ oz light corn syrup (⅓ cup)
- 1 tablespoon Kirschwasser
Instructions
Prep the cherries
- Combine the drained cherries with the sugar and Kirschwasser, set aside for at least 1 hour (I like to soak the cherries the night before baking).
Chocolate Genoise
- Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Line a half sheet pan with parchment paper.
- Melt2 oz unsalted butter in a small saucepan. Continue heating the butter until it foams, bubbles, and the milk solids fall to the bottom of the pan and turn brown. Pour the browned butter into a small dish, leaving the browned milk solids in the pan.
- In a small bowl, combine 1 ½ oz cocoa powder and 3 oz boiling water, whisk until smooth and set aside.
- Combine 6 large eggs, 6 oz granulated sugar and ⅛ teaspoon table salt in a mixer bowl. Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water (make sure the bowl doesn't touch the water). Whisk until the sugar melts and the eggs are a little warmer than body temp.
- Remove from the heat, add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and whisk on the mixer until the eggs are "ribboned" (see note 2). Whisk a cup of the egg mixture into the cocoa mixture. Sift3 oz cake flour over the remaining eggs and gently fold until the flour is barely incorporated. Fold in the cocoa mixture and the browned butter, careful not to over-fold and deflate the batter.
- Gently pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth to an even layer. Bake until the center of the cake springs back when lightly touched, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, cover with a damp kitchen towel and cool to room temperature.
Assembly
- Whip16 oz heavy cream with 1 oz confectioner's sugar and 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract to stiff peak. Drain the cherries, reserving the Kirschwasser. Add the Kirschwasser to the reserved cherry juice, adjust sweetness to taste.
- Lift the cake out of the pan, leaving the parchment paper attached. Flip the cake onto a clean sheet of parchment and peel off the old parchment. Flip the cake back over and remove the parchment from the top.
- Brush the cake generously with Kirschwasser syrup. Spread the cream evenly over cake. Sprinkle the cherries evenly over the cream. Use the parchment paper to lift the long edge of the cake closest to you. Roll the cake, using the parchment to lift and curl the cake. Flip the roll, seam side down and wrap with the parchment paper. Set on a sheet pan and refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours.
Make the Glaze
- Combine 8 oz semi-sweet chocolate and 4 oz unsalted butter in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 1 minute increments (stirring between increments) until the chocolate is completely melted. Add 3 ½ oz light corn syrup and 1 tablespoon Kirschwasser. Stir until smooth and glossy. Cool until the glaze is room temperature, but still pourable. If the glaze gets too thick warm briefly in the microwave.
Finish
- Set the chilled cake on a cooling rack over a clean sheet pan. Pour the glaze over the cake, use a small spatula to pick up glaze from the sheet pan and fill in gaps on the cake.
- Chill until the glaze is set. Use a long spatula to transfer the cake to a serving platter.
- Trim the ends of the cake, decorate with whipped cream rosettes and maraschino cherries, if desired.
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Notes
If measuring the flour by volume use the “dip & sweep” method. That is, dip the measuring cup into the flour bin, overfill it, then sweep away the excess.
If using fresh cherries, stem and pit the cherries then drain the juice from the cherries (save the juice). If using jarred or canned cherries, drain the cherries and save the juice. Depending on the type of cherries you use, you may need to adjust the amount of sugar in the syrup to taste.
To check if eggs are "ribboned", lift the whisk above the bowl and let the eggs trail across the top of the mixture in the bowl. If it leaves a "ribbon" that stays for several seconds, it's ready.
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