BAKING,  CAKES,  DESSERTS,  LAYER CAKES,  TEA CAKES

Swiss Black Forest Cake … whipping up low fat cream into submission!

2010/06/14 / 106 Comments
“Bakers are born, not made. We are exacting people who delight in submitting ourselves to rules and formulas if it means achieving repeatable perfection”
Rose Levy Beranbaum
final+2
Was missing from bloggerville for a while as we took the kids for a vacation to a charming town called Gangtok tucked away in the Himalayas in the North East of India. It was a 2 hour flight from New Delhi, and then a 5 hour bumpy car ride to the resort. From there, I thought I would tweet and blog a bit, but surprise surprise … we had no connectivity there! It was a surreal feeling in some ways not to be able to keep in touch with the external world. In my free time I experienced twitter cravings, FBC withdrawal symptoms etc and at times felt I had disappeared into oblivion. Thankfully there was loads to do there, so these feelings were pretty short-lived!
Gangtok+day+trip+G9

Time to return after a good 6 day break in the beautiful Himalayan hills, and we landed on the eve of the lad’s birthday! Didn’t know what hit me as I faced his extreme birthday excitement, piles of laundry, the feeling of extreme food disconnect, and the panic that in 6 days I might have forgotten how to cook & bake! I was mighty relieved that I had baked the basic sponge for his birthday cake and frozen it before we left. Phew!!

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Crept out early the next morning, while the rest of the family luxuriously snoozed in dreamland, cursing my luck, but the cake had to be assembled, and that too in soaring temperatures! Yes indeed, we were back into summer. From a cool 15C in the hills, we landed the night before at 39C The day highs here are back to 42-44C. The impending task of frosting a cake in such smoldering conditions was not exactly appealing, but I was  determined to stick to my choice of Swiss Black Forest Cake. The upside was that almost all parts of the cake can be made in advance, so assembling it is a breeze! In retrospect, it was the best Black Forest Cake we’ve ever had! Am still ruing the fact that it disappeared rather too quickly!

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Rose Beranbaums version of the Black Forest Cake, a German Classic, was inspired by Confiserie Tschirren in Berne, Switzerland. They brought the recipe from Germany after World War II, and it has since become the national cake of Switzerland. In her words, the Swiss version is far lighter and more delicate than the original German one, which also includes buttercream.

rohan+1+collage

My version of the cake is one which is quite popular in bakeries and patisseries all across India. I think it’s referred often as the Black Forest Gateau here, and is made with whipped cream and canned cherries. I took advantage of fresh cherry season, and loved the way the cake came together. The crumb was light and very moist, the filling luxurious and the flavours outstanding. Mr PABs verdict … the best BFC he’s ever had!
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A very sweet reader of my blog, Zareena from the UAE sent me this beautiful book a short while ago. I used The Cake Bible last month to make these Cherry and Matcha Cheesecake Pots. I waited impatiently for the son’s birthday to arrive so I could bake a cake from it. On the cover it says, “If you ever bake a cake, this book will become your partner in the kitchen”! Words that ring true for me! I am also happy to blog about this because I get a large number of requests from home bakers especially in India for a BFC recipe, and even more queries for whipping up low fat cream. Our basic problem in India is that we get just one sort of cream here, a 25% low fat cream {Amul}, and in warm weather, it almost never gets whipped up. I was thrilled to read how Rose Beranbaum found a way to get the butterfat back into the cream. To quote her, “I am both abashed and delighted to announce that it is the very soul of simplicity“… music to my ears!!

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Swiss Black Forest Cake
Minimally adapted from The Cake Bible, Rose Beranbaum
Serves 12-15
2 moist chocolate genoise cakes {recipe follows}
500gms cherries {fresh, frozen or canned}
1 cup syrup {recipe follows}
1 portion Real Old Fashioned Whipped Vanilla Cream {recipe follows}
Fresh cherries, grated dark chocolate and chocolate flakes for garnishing

Moist Chocolate Genoise
Adapted minimally from The Cake Bible, Rose Beranbaum
230gms dark chocolate
3/4 cup water
8 eggs
1 cup vanilla sugar
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup cornflour

Preheat the oven to 180C. Prepare 2 9 x 2″ spring form cake tins – greased, bottoms lined with baking parchment, greased and floured again.
Sift the flours. Reserve.
In a large pan, bring the chocolate and the water to boil over low heat, stirring constantly. Simmer for 5-10 minutes, or until the chocolate thickens to a pudding like consistency. {The original recipe has 1 cup of water, but I found it way too much and the chocolate took forever to thicken}. Cool completely.
Beat the eggs and sugar in a large bowl on high speed till tripled in volume, about 7-10 minutes. {I use an electric hand beater}
Sift 1/2 the flour mix over the beaten egg mixture, and fold in gently but rapidly until some of the flour has disappeared. Repeat with the remaining flour until all the flour has disappeared. Fold in the chocolate mixture until incorporated.
Pour immediately into prepared pans {about 2/3 full}, and bake at 180C for 30-35 minutes, until a tester inserted in the centre comes out clean. Loosen the sides with a metal spatula/butter knife, and invert onto lightly greased cooling racks. Re-invert to cool. {At this point, the cake stays at room temperature for 2 days, in the fridge for 5 days, and in the freezer for 2 months. I froze it for 10 days, and brought it down into the fridge the night before I was due to use it}
Syrup:
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
3 tbsp cherry brandy / liqueur / kirsch {optional}
Bring the sugar and water to a rolling boil, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Take off heat, stir in the liqueur if using, cover and allow to cool. {Can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a month}
cherries
Cherries:
500gms fresh cherries, pitted {reserve 8-10 for topping}
1/4 – 1/2 cup sugar {depending on how sweet they are}
I tossed the cherries in the sugar and froze them as suggested by Rose Beranbaum in The Cake Bible. The sugar helps them hold shape. I brought them down into the fridge the night before, drained any liquid, and roughly chopped them up for use. I think you can use freshly pitted, chopped ones too. I have used canned cherries in the past. Halve the cherries if they are too big.
Real Old Fashioned Whipped Vanilla Cream:
Adapted from Rose Beranbaums recipe
800gms low fat cream {I used 25% Amul Cream}, chilled
2/3 cup unsalted butter
1 vanilla bean scraped
3-4 tbsp powdered sugar {increase if desired; as per taste}
Refrigerate the bowl and beater for 15 minutes.
In a small pan, melt the butter and 1/2 cup cream, stirring constantly till the butter has completely melted. Add the scraped vanilla seeds, and bean, mix well. Transfer to a heatproof measuring cup to cool to room temperature. {Remove the bean before use}.
Beat the remaining cream with sugar until soft peaks are reached. Now begin adding the butter in a gradual stream, beating constantly on low speed, until stiff peaks are formed. {Because the temperature that day was about 43C, I didn’t get very firm whipped cream, but it was good enough to fill and frost the cake.}
finALS
Assembling the cake:
Split the chocolate genoise horizontally to get  4 layers. Sprinkle both sides of each layer with the syrup, and reserve on platters. Place the bottom layer on the serving platter.
Reserve about 1/2 the cream for the topping and frosting. Take a third of the remaining cream and spread over the bottom later. Distribute 1/3 of the cherries over the cream, poking into the cream. Repeat with the remaining 3 layers.
Put about 1/2 a cup of cream in a piping bag to make rosettes on top if desired. Frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining cream. Cover the sides with grated dark chocolate. Pipe rosettes on top, sprinkle chocolate flakes in the centre, and place cherries on the rosettes. Chill until ready to serve. {I found the cake easier to cut with a serrated knife because of the cherries in the filling}
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Note: The cake will taste better if allowed to chill for at least 4 hours to help the flavours to mature.
♥ Thank you for stopping by ♥

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 Also find me on The Rabid Baker, The Times of India

Posted by Deeba @ PAB

About me: I am a freelance food writer, recipe developer and photographer. Food is my passion - baking, cooking, developing recipes, making recipes healthier, using fresh seasonal produce and local products, keeping a check on my carbon footprint and being a responsible foodie! I enjoy food styling, food photography, recipe development and product reviews. I express this through my food photographs which I style and the recipes I blog. My strength lies in 'Doing Food From Scratch'; it must taste as good as it looks, and be healthy too. Baking in India, often my biggest challenge is the non-availability of baking ingredients, and this has now become a platform to get creative on. I enjoy cooking immensely as well.

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106 Comments

  • Happy Cook

    2010/06/14 at 5:23 pm Reply

    I want to go there once for holiday and i am sure i woudn't miss the twitter etc…. well ofcourse i would 🙂
    Beautiful cake, i can never make such beautiful layered cakes.
    And love your dlass cake stand too.

  • Foodessa

    2010/06/14 at 5:32 pm Reply

    Deeba…your cake turned out absolutely devine. How fortunate they have you as a baker in the family. BTW…I appreciate Rose's cakes too…great choice!

    Withdrwal from technology is one great big messgae in disguise;o)
    Keep yourself well.

    Flavourful wishes, Claudia

  • MeetaK

    2010/06/14 at 5:58 pm Reply

    OMG! Deeba first awesome pictures – I've always wanted to go up to the Himalayas. Second – I want some. Why are you soooo far away from me my friend?

  • Kerrin @ MyKugelhopf.ch

    2010/06/14 at 6:07 pm Reply

    belated birthday wishes from the alps heading to your son, how perfect for his *swiss* cake ! seeing swiss black forest cake raised my eyebrows, considering its german origin, but i like berne's spin on it. i'll have to check out that confiserie if i'm there again. not so sure about the black forest cake being the national cake here though. hmph.

    no matter, loved YOUR spin on the cake even more ! truly gorgeous photos here. my favorite is the last one on the right before the recipe, the face off with that slice of cake – stunning !!

  • Rosa's Yummy Yums

    2010/06/14 at 6:50 pm Reply

    That is one of my favorite cakes! Yours looks splendid! Perfect decorations and layers. You are very talented. I love your shots. That place is so peaceful looking…

    Cheers,

    Rosa

  • Asha @ FSK

    2010/06/14 at 7:25 pm Reply

    If I land up at your place for my birthday, will make me this cake???? Pleassseee!!!!! I love Balck forest cake!!

  • Cool Lassi(e)

    2010/06/14 at 7:50 pm Reply

    I am going insane for that cake.They look splendid! I love dark decadent cakes as opposed to lighter ones. This one, i am sure, will be an assault on my taste buds, in a good way of-course!

  • Pavithra

    2010/06/14 at 9:14 pm Reply

    Beautiful cake and one my most favourite cake.. they look gorgeous and Black forest is the first cake I baked few years ago….

  • poonam,,,

    2010/06/14 at 9:15 pm Reply

    the cake looks divine! black forest has always been one of my favourites. gonna try this one. belated birthday wishes to ur son 🙂

  • Latha

    2010/06/14 at 10:26 pm Reply

    cherries… awaiting the season here. i love the indian style black forest despite living in Germany.

    have ordered the cake bible… come soon:) i love the cutlery, Deeba. Delhi?

    last – how did you roll the chocolate shreds on the sides of the gateau so neatly?

  • Patty

    2010/06/15 at 12:54 am Reply

    Delicious! I think Black Forest Cake is surely the perfect Father's Day cake too…

    I thought our 33-36C (and very humid) here in southern Mexico was hot – Deeba, you're the hottest baker I know!

    I sure miss cherries and all temperate fruit. I'm drooling over you photos. 🙂

  • Marcellina

    2010/06/15 at 2:45 am Reply

    I love this recipe. The BFC I make is with a heavy rich cake. I really like your sponge better. Can't wait to make it!! Great work! I can't tell that it was that hot!

  • zurin

    2010/06/15 at 3:44 am Reply

    Hi Deeba. its good to have u back. The black forest looks beautiful . I love Rosie's recipes. theyre very reliable and accurate…just like a chemist. your sons looks very happy with his cake. Happy brthday to you sweet boy 🙂

  • Madhuli

    2010/06/15 at 4:07 am Reply

    Awesome photos..almost grabbed one of them! Thanks for the recipe with Amul cream..much needed!And oh yes..have to mention this just loooove the cake serving plate and the serving spatula

  • suma

    2010/06/15 at 6:17 am Reply

    Utterly gorgeous and sinful cake Deeba!! This moist genoise is on my 'next to try' list. Aaahh.. my resolve to stay away from eating cakes wavers now..:-)))

  • sunita

    2010/06/15 at 7:37 am Reply

    What a gorgeous cake; no wonder the lad looks so pleased 🙂 A very happy birthday to him .

  • Purnima

    2010/06/15 at 9:45 am Reply

    Happy Bday to ur son! THe cake rocks!Want to hv a bite of it..tks for the virtual tour! Can relate to how u felt being disconnected for 6 days! 🙂

  • Su-yin

    2010/06/15 at 11:10 am Reply

    Oh Deeba, if only I was as organised as you – well done on baking the cake before going off on holiday, I'd have never thought of that.

    And as always, your cake looks AMAZING. It reminds me of my childhood, they sell a similar black forest cake in the bakeries back home. And yours used low fat cream too, which means you get to eat more without feeling as guilty, lol.

  • Ken

    2010/06/15 at 11:40 am Reply

    This was and still is one of my favorite cakes of all time. I grew up eating this cake and you just brought back a flood of childhood memories. Thanks for posting it and I am certainly making it as soon as I have the energy to pit the cherries. 😉

  • Lora

    2010/06/15 at 12:14 pm Reply

    stunning photos both of the trip and the treat. that is one gorgeous cake and one happy looking birthday boy. My cousin lives in Delhi and escapes to the Himalayas in the summer as well.

  • veron

    2010/06/15 at 12:29 pm Reply

    My first taste of Black Forest cake was when my aunt took me to this little bakery – it was one of the best cakes I have ever tasted with whipped cream and all. I have the cake bible and I'm sure to try it out now. You have done it so perfectly and your photos are gorgeous!

  • Barbara Bakes

    2010/06/15 at 1:51 pm Reply

    I love the Beranbaum quote. That really sums it up for me. I'm really aiming for perfection. Looks like you've already achieved perfection with this gorgeous cake! Glad you had a wonderful vacation.

  • bellini valli

    2010/06/15 at 2:18 pm Reply

    The cake bible, the bread bible Rose is a mastermind in the kitchen. Glad you had a wonderful vacation with the family.

  • shirley

    2010/06/15 at 3:03 pm Reply

    Beautiful Pictures , Delicious cake !
    Deeba you are amazing .
    I love Black forest .. and your cake looks ' To Die For ' i am dying now looking at the awesome pics . lol

  • A_and_N

    2010/06/15 at 11:33 pm Reply

    I miss this cake after I left India! Thanks for the recipe. Next bday, this is what am making 🙂

  • Barbara

    2010/06/16 at 12:32 am Reply

    That's beautiful, Deeba! Aren't the cherries marvelous right now? I've always adored cherries and chocolate together…your cake is so beautifully presented too.

    I'm always torn between Maida Heatter (my baking guru) and Rose Beranbaum. However, even Maida says Rose is the best!

  • Sonia (Nasi Lemak Lover)

    2010/06/16 at 6:58 am Reply

    This is my favourite cake, your look really beautiful and good. Thanks for sharing your trip photos! Awesome post i must say!

  • Jamie

    2010/06/16 at 11:09 am Reply

    LOVE this cake! I have this book and her cakes are the best and you have made it into some gorgeous confection. Happy Birthday to the boy!! (hehe and forget how to bake in 6 days?)

  • project.protein@colosceum.com

    2010/06/16 at 12:28 pm Reply

    Hi Deeba
    We came across your blog and we think what we are doing would really interest you.
    Your blog is very interesting and a we are making a show named MASTERCHEF INDIA on the same line. Its a FOOD TALENT SHOW which will be on air soon on STAR PLUS.

    PLEASE CONTACT US FOR MORE DETAILS,
    Contact us at :
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    Phone no: +91 – 9820125231
    http://showcasecookingtalent.blogspot.com/
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  • shaz

    2010/06/16 at 2:55 pm Reply

    Happy birthday to the lad and welcome back Deeba. Love that photo of him and the cherries, very clever.

    I love this cake too, and have made it from Rose's book – you are so right, it disappears very quickly 🙂

  • Nicisme

    2010/06/16 at 4:21 pm Reply

    Aww, your son is so photogenic! Happy Birthday to him Deeba, hope he had a great day – and why wouldn't he when there is this great cake to devour, lol!!

    PS. sorry I have not commented as much as I would like to lately. You know, life…

  • Char

    2010/06/16 at 6:51 pm Reply

    Hi Deba!

    Im Char From Bombay….I happened too stumble by your blog…..and o My god!Its beautiful….You know whats better? That youre blogging from India…Im brand new entrant to
    a) cooking
    b) blogging
    and im just beating my hands around . Its wonderful to finally ssee you make the things you do in Delhi cos most of the blogs Ive seen are of people living abroad, so it seems like a task to get the ingredients!!!!

    Can you help me with an egg substitute in your cake?

    Is egg substitute easily available in Delhi? I havent really gone looking for it here.

    Also…can you help with this food art blog that i had stumbled upon yesterday but just cant find today!!!!!!! do u have any food art(dessert art in particular) blog.
    thanks a lot..and keep up the good work!!!

  • Mary

    2010/06/17 at 2:09 am Reply

    That's a beautiful Black Forest Cake, Deeba. I love my Cake Bible–I have a very well used original version and actually made a wedding cake from it last weekend. Stunning photos of your vacation too!

  • Gera @ Sweets Foods Blog

    2010/06/17 at 5:28 am Reply

    I'd be delighted visiting the Himalayan hills and more with several slices of these beautiful cakes!

    Your son looks happy in front of this sweetness 🙂

    Cheers,

    Gera

  • my little expat kitchen

    2010/06/17 at 2:12 pm Reply

    Hello! This is my first visit to your blog and I have to say I'm completely smitten. I love your recipes, they are inspiring and beautiful. I will be coming back for more!
    Magda

  • Françoise @ chocoparis

    2010/06/17 at 7:00 pm Reply

    Deeba, your cake looks exquisite! Such gorgeous photos, as always. I definitely want to try this recipe sometime.

  • Gloria

    2010/06/18 at 1:32 am Reply

    OMG Deeba!! Black Forest IS my favorite Cake, when I was a child (you know many years ago)This is the cake I only wanted for my birthday!!!!! Your look georgeous!!! Hugss and kisses xoxoxoxo

  • crumbsoflove

    2010/06/19 at 12:13 am Reply

    Your cake came out great. The Cake Bible is such an awsome book- I've probably tried half of the recipes in the book!! And… I LOVE your cake knife.

  • Jeanne @ CookSister!

    2010/06/22 at 12:14 pm Reply

    Oooh, cherries! love the black nail polish in that one pic – your daughter? I lived in black nail polish for years – my mom just gritted her teeth an waited for me to outgrow the phase 😉 I remember trying to get low-fat cream to whip up when I first came to the UK, hahahah! Cake looks fantabulous!

  • Avanika [YumsiliciousBakes]

    2010/06/28 at 4:52 pm Reply

    As common as BFC is over here, I've never made it. Bookmarked, I'm going to try it soon!

  • Asha Joseph

    2011/03/11 at 4:22 am Reply

    hey i am going to make this cake today ..1 doubt..what about baking powder..?not required or u missed it ?

  • Prabs

    2011/03/17 at 2:54 pm Reply

    Cake looks gorgeous Deeba!
    Thank you so much for the note of making whipped cream using the Amul cream as well.
    Many of us needed it, am sure.

  • Laura

    2011/03/24 at 8:08 am Reply

    Deeba, that looks simply delicious! I think this is going to me my next baking venture… looking forward to it :).

  • Tina

    2011/03/31 at 10:33 am Reply

    Hi,
    I ve been following ur blog and I love… ur photos.Itching to try to make whipping cream with Amul.It never worked with me.Hoping to get more useful tips like this.
    Tina

  • Sneha

    2011/06/01 at 7:15 pm Reply

    Hi Deeba, why not use non-dairy whipping cream? Its easy to whip and freely available (in Mumbai atleast). Plan to make this for the hub’s birthday on Friday – only thing – am completely egg-o-phobic, hence skeptical of using so many eggs! I need to meditate over this!

  • Fee

    2011/06/13 at 6:46 pm Reply

    Hey, quick question – the recipe calls for two cakes. Does the recipe provided make two cakes, or should I double everything that’s there?
    Going to make this for my boyfriend’s birthday next week and really looking forward to seeing how it turns out!

  • Parveen

    2011/07/04 at 12:20 pm Reply

    Hi
    I would like to know what is exactly dark chocloate. With chocolates available in India whch brand can i buy for making the BFC or is there anyhting specific for baking which i have to get.
    Please clarify on this since this is the only missing item in my list to bake this!
    Your response would be highly apprciated.

    Nazeera

  • Swathy

    2011/08/13 at 11:01 am Reply

    Hello Deeba,

    Have been going through your wonderful recipes since quite a few days now and wanted to do the black forest cake. I baked the cakes in advance, not sure if it has come out right, since the cake looks a bit dense, for some reason the cake did not rise much when baked., not sure where i have gone wrong ? Just hoping that it would taste good when the syrup and cream are added…

    You have a wonderful list of mouthwatering baked goodies lined up here,..

    Warm regards,
    Swathy

  • Matthew Vaughn

    2011/09/11 at 8:05 pm Reply

    Thankyou for posting the genoise recipe. It turned out really great and I’ve gained a lot of confidence with sponge cakes now. I’ve provided a link-back from my blog. Thanks again 🙂

  • Gayatri

    2011/10/17 at 3:18 pm Reply

    hey, i tried making this cake. it was yum! I had a couple of issues though.

    1. the cake was nice and soft when I baked it. I refrigerated it for a day and assembled it the next day. when i removed it from the fridge, it turned out dense and hard. didn’t get better even when i let it thaw. did that happen to you?

    2. when i made the whipped cream, i chilled the bowl, beater and the cream. it seemed to hold soft peaks before i added the melted butter and cream mix. but after i added it, even when i beat the shit out of it, it refused to get into the right consistency.

    TIA

    • Deeba @ PAB

      2011/10/17 at 6:46 pm Reply

      Hi Gayatri,
      Not sure why that happened to your cake. Mine was fine. {Maybe you can paint it with sugar syrup next time to soften/moisten it} Whipped cream is very finicky. Was the melted butter cooled thoroughly? It’s important to keep the cream cool as any rise in temperature will lead it to break down due to low fat content. If the temperature is wrong, then no amount of beating will get it going. 🙁 …

  • Sara

    2011/11/15 at 10:11 am Reply

    Hi,

    Just wanted to know if I can use ordinary granulated sugar instead of the vanilla sugar for the chocolate cake?

    Thanks for an awesome recipe. Always wanted to make a black forest but didn’t have access to whipping cream…

    Thanks again!

  • Sadaf

    2012/03/21 at 10:49 pm Reply

    I love the Cake Bible. However, many of the ingredients called for in the book are hard to source even here in Canada/US (she’s very particular about ingredients/equipments). I too loved the tip about whipping low fat cream. I’ve always found that whipped cream frosting is more popular than buttercream in bakeries back home in India but wonder how do they manage it with the watery cream available. Even stabilizers are not easily available in India……..maybe it’s available on a commercial scale.

  • jigyasa

    2012/08/22 at 2:18 pm Reply

    Hello,
    I love your recipes. I tried making BFC, everything turned out to be perfect other than whipping cream. It held soft peaks but not good enough to decorate the cake.
    Could you suggest any alternative to get stiff peaks.

  • Hanaa

    2012/09/06 at 3:21 am Reply

    Hi,

    I just wanted to point out something – I don’t think it’s 1 cup of vanilla sugar as you’ve stated. That’s quite a bit.

  • Nikitha

    2012/09/13 at 4:32 am Reply

    Awesome cake Deeba!! love your blog. would really love to make my cake look even one percent of the way your’s look. i would like to make a request here-can u please post a tutorial on how to level and frost cakes?? love how your cakes are so evenly leveled and frosted…

  • Niki

    2012/09/14 at 2:36 am Reply

    Awesome cake Deeba!! Love how you have so evenly leveled and frosted your cake-would love to be able to do that!! I have a request-can u please post a tutorial on how to level and frost a cake??

    looking forward for it.. thanks.

      • Rekha

        2012/10/03 at 9:42 am Reply

        Hi Deeba,

        I discovered your wonderful blog a few days back, while searching for some recipes! I have been dying to make the Genoise Cake since I laid my hands on The Cake Bible, but somehow found Rose’s detailed steps a bit too intimidating! (Though I religiously follow all her icing and frosting recipes and they have never failed me!) Plus, she puts a lot of emphasis on being exact with every step, which once again, I find difficult to follow! But your adaptation of the recipe sounded genius from the moment I read it and I took the plunge today and made the Genoise Sponge! Can’t tell you how happy I was to see my first Sponge Cake turn out so well 🙂 I was pretty sure that it will break the moment I get it out of the Oven…but it stayed put, even when I had to use a bit of force to unmould it from my pan onto the cooling rack…a bit of crumbs here and there, but the cake…so delicate and fragile…yet gorgeously kept its shape! Now, I can’t wait to take it a step further and turn it into BFC, following the rest of your recipe for a party on Saturday!
        Though a couple of issues…what is the best way to store the cake? Freeze/Refrigerate it without putting the syrup or after putting the syrup? My cake looks really soft and delicate…and extremely light! Did I really nail your recipe to the T or have I gone wrong somewhere and the cake might break when I put the whipped cream on it? Also, can we do the chocolate and water mixture in the microwave or does it stand the chance of getting scorched? Thanks a ton once again for the amazing take on Chocolate Genoise…I will update you later on my completed BFC!

        Cheers, Rekha

  • Pooja

    2013/01/27 at 8:02 am Reply

    Hi, Deeba. I’d so like to make this cake for my parents’ anniversary. But I only have 1 springform tin! You reckon I could halve the recipe & bake the cake in two batches? Think its doable?

  • Sudha Agarwal

    2013/07/22 at 5:09 pm Reply

    Hi Deeba, your blog PAB with its photographs and recipes is just wonderful.I love to follow it regularly.Also want to share a tip about whipping Amul low fat fresh cream easily.Just add 2-3 tablespoon chilled fresh malai from top of milk while whipping Amul fresh cream.It will be fluffy very quickly and easily and can be used for piping.Thanks.

    Sudha Agarwal

    • Sudha Agarwal

      2013/07/22 at 7:00 pm Reply

      P.S. you should take malai from full cream milk which has been boiled previous day refrigerated overnight.

      Sudha Agarwal

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    hues or brightness and by applying special warp settings.

    Each year, male laser hair removal has become more accepted and fashionable.

    Generally Hair grows in several phases in body anagen, telogen, categen, and a laser can only affect the
    currently growing hair. The revolutionary E-One employs light energy,
    which is released by of the optic cartridge within the
    device which reacts with the melanin within your hair and also your skin, when this happens it is then changed into thermal energy.

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