Black Forest Layer Cake Recipe
with homemade cherry filling and white fluffy icing (dairy-free recipe!)
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Homemade Black Forest Cake inspiration
With its rich flavors and impressive presentation, this black forest layer cake is sure to be a hit at any gathering or celebration. The fluffy white icing is homemade on the stovetop in less than 10 minutes and adds the perfect contrast to the dark chocolate cake layers. The homemade cherry filling is made with frozen dark sweet cherries and has a hint of amaretto. The thin chocolate bark garnish is easy to make and adds to the ambience, giving it a “forest” look of tree bark. I am lactose intolerant, so I created a dairy-free recipe for black forest cake for everyone to enjoy, but if you want to substitute the coconut milk for buttermilk and use real butter in equal amounts, feel free to!
What was my inspiration for this delicious cake? I don’t know what it is about the first part of the year (January/February) but I sure do crave a chocolate cherry combination! I already have a few healthy recipes for a chocolate cherry smoothie and chocolate cherry breakfast oat bars, but I have always wanted to create a dairy-free recipe for a chocolate cherry cake combination for a little indulgent treat and this black forest cake was the way to go. I think it’s a perfect winter cake or Valentine’s dessert…stunning and delicious!
Let’s begin!
Ingredients for black forest cake
Ingredients for homemade cherry filling
Ingredients for easy stovetop fluffy white icing
Instructions:
You will need three 6-inch round silicone cake molds (or 6-inch cake pans.) Preheat oven to 350℉ / 176℃ and if using metal pans, grease and lightly dust with cocoa powder (I also recommend cutting out parchment rounds to place on bottom of pan and grease and dust that also.) If using silicone, wait until just before adding cake batter to spray with non-stick cooking spray.
After removing from oven, let cool on rack in pans for about 5-8 minutes, then release onto a cooling rack to cool completely before frosting. These bake fairy evenly, so very little leveling will be needed before assembling cake. While cake is cooling, make chocolate bark garnish, cherry filling and icing.