Black Forest Cake - The Easy Way!

Chocolate and cherry is a favorite flavor combination for my son. When I saw this recipe, I knew I had to keep it on hand and share with you.

Vegetable oil spray a 9 x13-inch baking dish. I like using the glass, Pyrex type. No such pan in your kitchen? Use a couple of layer cake pans or even a tube cake pan. Just adjust the time for the changes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1 box chocolate cake mix - your choice.
20-ounce can of cherry pie filling
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of cinnamon
Grated zest of one orange (optional)

Combine all the ingredients in your mixing bowl and mix on medium speed until the mixture is just combined. Pour mixture into prepared pan(s). Bake for 40-45 minutes (depending on size you used for pans). Test cake  by inserting a toothpick in the center of the cake. It should come out 'clean' with no wet batter.

Cool completely and serve with freshly whipped cream.

1 pint heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons sour cream
1 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place all the ingredients in a mixer bowl and beat until stiffened and fluffy. Don't over beat as you aren't looking for making butter here!

You can either frost your cold cake with the whipped cream or serve it along side a generous slice. The whipped cream holds up well for about three days in the refrigerator.

Fresh Plum Cake

As I mentioned, I baked several plum cakes, yesterday. I developed this liking for plum cakes on my first trip to Germany, many years ago. It was plum season and they showed up in sauces, stewed, and in a variety of cakes. Most of them used a yeast-based cake. I prefer this one because I want the plums to be the dominant taste with just enough cake to make it interesting.

Plum Cake

3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 stick of butter, softened
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
zest of one lemon
1 cup all-purpose flour (or half white and half wheat flour)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

12-15 Italian plums, pitted and each half cut in half again - four sections from each plum
1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup granulated sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

This makes one cake. If you bake a lot, you probably have a tart pan or a spring form pan. If you are of a more basic frame of mind, you can use a couple of 8-inch round cake pans, or an oblong baking dish about 9x11-inches. Generously use vegetable oil spray on your pan. If you have parchment paper, you can use that and then respray the paper.

Cream together the butter and sugar. Whip in the eggs and vanilla, add lemon zest. Stir in the flour and baking powder. Spread the batter (it will be thick but sticky) into your pan(s) of choice. Arrange the plum quarter pieces with the skin side up on top of the batter.

Bake for approximately 30-45 minutes, depending on the size pan(s) you used. Cool and remove to a serving plate while still warm. The plums can bake on sticky and make it hard to remove later.

Ideas . . .

Substitute fresh pitted cherries for the plums.
Try peeled and sliced peaches.
Scatter fresh blueberries over the batter.

Note: Italian plums are much smaller than the usual plums we put in the fruit basket. They have a bit less juice which works better for the recipe.