CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH CHERRY FILLING LAYER RECIPES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Butter and flour 2 x 9" round pan.
• Combine sour cream, cocoa and water, blend well (set aside).
• Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt into bowl (set aside).
• In a large bowl beat butter and sugar on medium high speed for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
• Lower speed and add vanilla and almond extracts, add eggs one at a time, blend well.
• Add flour 3 times to butter mixture, alternating 2 times with milk mixture-- starting and ending with flour.
• Mix well.
• Pour batter evenly into both pans and bake in a 350 degree oven for 20- 25 minutes.
• Cool on racks for 20 minutes before removing pans.
• Cool completely before frosting.
• Beat whipping cream with icing sugar until stiff but not dry.
• Place one cake on platter, frost with 1 cup whipped cream to 1/2" from edge of cake, sprinkle white chocolate chips on top of whipped cream and top with the chopped and drained cherries.
• Put 2nd cake overtop of first cake and frost the top and sides with the remaining whipped cream.
• You can add chocolate curls or marashino cherries to decorate if desired.

Steps:

• The chocolate cake: Butter and flour 2 (8-inch) round cake pans and preheat oven to 350°F. Sift together cocoa and flour into a bowl; set aside.
• Using an electric mixer, whisk together eggs and sugar. Set bowl over a saucepan with an inch of barely simmering water and whisk constantly until eggs are warm to touch, about 2 minutes. Return bowl to mixer and beat at medium-high speed until eggs quadruple in volume, about 12 minutes.
• Beat vanilla and salt into egg mixture at medium speed. Sift a third of reserved cocoa mixture on top; fold in until just incorporated. Repeat twice more with remaining cocoa mixture. Fold in melted butter in two parts. Do not overmix.
• Gently scrape batter into prepared pans and bake until a cake tester comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Let layers cool in pans for 10 minutes; turn out onto racks to cool completely.
• The sweet cherry filling: Reserve 1/4 cup cherry juice from cherries, placing 2 Tbsp. into each of 2 small cups. Place remaining cherries and juice in a small saucepan; stir in 7 Tbsp. sugar, cornstarch and salt. Bring to a boil, stirring; then reduce heat and simmer, stirring, until mixture is thick, about 3 minutes.
• Stir remaining 2 Tbsp. sugar into 1 portion of reserved cherry juice and set aside.
• The cherry-ganache filling: Combine chocolate and 1/4 cup heavy cream in a small bowl. Microwave at medium power for 2 minutes. Stir until smooth. Transfer mixture to a large metal bowl and whisk in remaining 1 cup cream and reserved 2 Tbsp. cherry juice. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Add confectioners' sugar and vanilla to chilled cherry ganache. Beat with an electric mixer until fluffy and thick enough to spread.
• The whipped-cream frosting: In a large, chilled, metal bowl, beat cream, sugar and vanilla with an electric mixer until stiff.
• The cake assembly: Using a serrated knife, split each cake layer in half to make 4 layers. Place 1 layer on a platter. Spread half of sweet cherry filling on top; cover with a second cake layer. Drizzle half of reserved cherry juice mixture on top and then cover with half of cherry ganache. Repeat layering with cake, cherry filling, cake, cherry juice and ganache.