Traditionally, cakes are round but I find that square is better for home baking. Most of us don’t bake cakes unless there is a special occasion, because we can’t eat all that cake. And, storing a cake is awkward because of the shape. Instead, bake a square cake and store it plain without filling or frosting. Whenever you want a piece of cake, cut a small portion of it and add your own filling and topping.
I thought of this after researching about Black Forest cake. It’s filled and frosted with whipped cream and soaked in cherry liquor, which means it doesn’t last long. Unless you are a family of 10, you won’t be able to eat it in time. But the only time-consuming part of making a Black Forest cake is the baking part. The cake part without any cream or liquor can last a long time in the fridge. So, bake a square cake, cut it into two long rectangles, and wrap each in plastic to store it. When you feel like having a freshly made Black Forest cake, slice off two pieces of the cake, drizzle the cherry liquor, sandwich the bottled cherries and whipped cream, and top it off with more cream, chocolate shavings, and cherries. Voila! It should be better than a Black Forest cake that has been sitting around in a bakery fridge.
In the picture above, I filled the cake with mascarpone and topped it with chocolate fudge. This scheme allows me to experiment with many different combinations of filling, topping, and soaking.
So, yeah, @nigelsie, perhaps we should experiment in this way to come up with the best possible Black Forest cake? Try different cream, cherries, liquors, and chocolates?
#cake #homebaking #baking #blackforest #castella #nycfoodie #fudge #mascarpone #chocolate
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