Desserts

White Forest Cake: Black Forest’s Elegant Blonde Sister

3 min

Cook the cherries with their sugar and lemon juice until they go slack and release their juice, about five minutes, then stir in the cornstarch slurry and watch the liquid turn glossy and thick. That cooled filling is what keeps the whipped cream from sliding around between layers. The cake itself is a plain vanilla butter cake, beaten just two minutes so it stays tender, and the whole thing leans on cold heavy cream whipped to stiff peaks rather than buttercream. Keep everything cold and you'll have a much easier time stacking four thin layers.

By Nora Calloway

A little backstory

This is the pale cousin of German Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte, the Black Forest cake built on dark chocolate sponge, kirsch-soaked cherries, and whipped cream. The white version swaps the chocolate sponge for vanilla cake and trades dark chocolate curls for white, keeping the cherries and cream that define the original. The story usually goes that the Black Forest name nods to Kirschwasser, the clear cherry brandy distilled in that region of southwest Germany, which is why a splash of cherry liqueur still feels at home here.

Love Black Forest cake? Meet its elegant blonde sister.

Vanilla bean cake layers. Creamy white chocolate. Tart cherries. Fluffy whipped cream. No cocoa. All class. Almost too pretty to eat. Almost.

1 1

Make the Cake

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease two 9-inch round cake pans.

Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add butter until crumbly.

Add eggs, milk, and vanilla. Beat 2 minutes until smooth. Pour into pans.

Bake 25-30 minutes. Cool completely.

2 2

Make Cherry Filling

In a saucepan, cook cherries, sugar, and lemon juice over medium heat until juicy (5 minutes).

Add cornstarch slurry. Cook until thickened. Stir in liqueur if using. Cool.

3 3

Make Whipped Cream

Whip heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla until stiff peaks form.

4 4

Assemble Cake

Slice each cake layer in half horizontally (4 layers total).

Place first layer on plate. Spread cherry filling. Add whipped cream.

Repeat. Frost outside with whipped cream.

5 5

Decorate and Serve

Press white chocolate shavings onto sides. Top with fresh cherries.

Chill 1 hour before serving.

Summary

Prep Time: 30 minutes | Cook Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: ~2 hours

Yield: 10-12 servings

Difficulty: Medium

Storage Notes

Fridge: Store in refrigerator for up to 4 days (cream is perishable).

Freezer Friendly: Freeze unfrosted cake layers for 3 months. Thaw and assemble fresh.

Pro Tip:

Use a vegetable peeler on a white chocolate bar to make chocolate curls.

The Ingredients

Everything you need.

Prep

30 minutes

Cook

30 minutes

Total

~2 hours

Yield

10-12 servings

Serves 10-12.

For the Vanilla Cake:

2¼ cups all-purpose flour
1½ cups granulated sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ cup unsalted butter, softened
3 large eggs
1 cup milk
2 tsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract

For the Cherry Filling:

2 cups fresh or frozen cherries (pitted)
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp cornstarch mixed with 2 tbsp water
¼ cup cherry liqueur or white rum (optional)

For the Topping & Frosting:

2 cups heavy cream
¼ cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 oz white chocolate, shaved or curled
Fresh cherries for garnish

Instructions

1
Make the Cake. Make the Cake. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease two 9-inch round cake pans. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add butter until crumbly. Add eggs, milk, and vanilla. Beat 2 minutes until smooth. Pour into pans. Bake 25-30 minutes. Cool completely. 2 2
2
Make Cherry Filling. Make Cherry Filling. In a saucepan, cook cherries, sugar, and lemon juice over medium heat until juicy (5 minutes). Add cornstarch slurry. Cook until thickened. Stir in liqueur if using. Cool. 3 3
3
Make Whipped Cream. Make Whipped Cream. Whip heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla until stiff peaks form. 4 4
4
Assemble Cake. Assemble Cake. Slice each cake layer in half horizontally (4 layers total). Place first layer on plate. Spread cherry filling. Add whipped cream. Repeat. Frost outside with whipped cream. 5 5
5
Decorate and Serve. Decorate and Serve. Press white chocolate shavings onto sides. Top with fresh cherries. Chill 1 hour before serving

Swaps & Substitutions

Cherry liqueur or white rum → leave it out entirely; the filling sets fine without it, or brush the layers with a little of the cherry cooking juice for moisture
Fresh cherries → frozen pitted cherries work straight from the bag, no need to thaw before cooking the filling
Vanilla bean paste → use 2 tsp plain vanilla extract; you lose the flecks but not the flavor
Unsalted butter → salted butter is fine, just cut the added salt to a pinch
Heavy cream → needs at least 30 percent fat to whip to stiff peaks; half-and-half or light cream won't hold, so don't swap them in
All-purpose flour → a 1:1 gluten-free baking blend works, though the crumb will be a touch denser

Questions & Answers

Can I make this ahead?

Yes. Bake the cake layers and cook the cherry filling a day ahead and keep them covered in the fridge. Whip the cream and assemble the same day you serve, since whipped cream loosens over time.

Why did my whipped cream go runny?

Usually the cream wasn't cold enough or got over-beaten past stiff peaks into grainy butter. Chill the bowl and beaters, start with cold cream, and stop the moment the peaks hold their shape.

My cherry filling is too thin to stay between the layers. What happened?

The cornstarch slurry needs to come to a simmer to thicken fully; pull it too early and it stays loose. Return it to medium heat and cook another minute or two, then cool completely before assembling.

How do I cut clean layers from the cakes?

Let the layers cool completely, then slice each one in half horizontally with a long serrated knife for four thin layers total. Chilling the cakes first makes them firmer and easier to split evenly.

How do I get white chocolate curls or shavings?

Drag a vegetable peeler along the flat side of a room-temperature white chocolate bar. If it crumbles instead of curling, the bar is too cold; warm it briefly in your hand and try again.