Eggless Black Forest Cake

Be it a Birthday or just a lazy day....Any day can be made special with a moist Black Forest Cake.

For the cake: Here's what you need
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Dry ingredients :
 
3 cups all purpose flour
6 tbsp cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s Dutch process cocoa)
2 cups sugar 2 tsp baking soda ¼ tsp salt
 
 
Wet Ingredients :
 
2 cups water
2 tsp distilled white vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract ½ cup flavorless oil (I used Crisco Canola)
 
The Cooking Process :
 
With the rack in the middle, preheat the oven to 350 deg F.
Sift flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt thrice.
Whisk sugar, oil, water, vinegar and vanilla till sugar dissolves.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix well with a hand mixer on medium speed for 2 mins.
Grease and flour the two 8 inches round cake pans.
Pour the mixtures equally in both the pans and bake for 35-40 mins or until the toothpick when inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
After 20 mins unmold and transfer on a cooling rack. Let it cool completely for at least an hour before you begin to frost.

 
 For the syrup:
 
¼ cup water
¼ cup sugar
½ lb pitted fresh cherries (I used ¼ pound each of cherries and strawberries)
1 tsp vanilla extract/cherry liquor/rum (I used vanilla extract)
Boil water and sugar till sugar dissolves. Drop in the cherries and vanilla extract mix well and remove from flame. After this mixture stands covered overnight (or atleast 4-5 hrs) separate the cherries from the sweet syrup.
 
 For the Frosting:
 
3 cups double heavy cream
4 tbsp confectioners’sugar
1 tbsp vanilla extract /rum/cherry liquor Beat all ingredients well with a hand mixer on medium high speed together till it form soft peaks.
 
For Garnishing :
 
Cherries reserved from the syrup Chocolate shaving Shave off fine flakes from your choice of dark or milk chccolate bar with a vegetable
peeler.

Assembling the cake.
Prick the top of both the cake with a fork and brush them with 3 tbsp of syrup. Place a cake layer on a cake stand or on a clean surface at a convenient height so that it’s easy to frost. Spread 1 1/2 cup of frosting over one cake layer and arrange the cherries evenly. Now place the other layer and slightly press. Frost the entire cake-the top and sides evenly .Decorate with remaining cherries and chocolate shaving. Refrigerate for couple or hours or until ready to be served. Note:For a easier version you could use any chocolate cake mix and bake two 8 inch cakes as per the instructions on the box.