Black Forest Cake with Creamy Filling

Donna had a birthday a few weeks ago. We had talked about how nice it was living so close to each other now. I would no longer have to make my own birthday cake (not that I really mind that much) and she would no longer have to make her own. Unfortunately, we had a hard time coordinating our schedules to find a time where we were all available to celebrate. Between chorus practice, soccer practice, out-of-town soccer games and early bedtimes for my kids, we couldn't find a time to meet up. It didn't help that I thought her birthday was two days later than it was, so I wasn't prepared when I should have been (shame on me!).

I finally decided on a cake to make. I wanted to do something different, so when I came across the assembly instructions for a black forest cake, I decided that was just the thing. I bought the ingredients, found a recipe for the chocolate cake, baked it, and . . . our schedules conflicted again! So, I froze the two cake layers to save for a day when we would both be available. I decided that the possible time had finally arrived this Sunday. I defrosted the cake and put it together. And although the cake was fairly dry, I still considered it a success.

I wasn't really crazy about the cake recipe. It was rather dense and did not rise very much. As a result, the creamy filling was enough for the cake, and I did not feel the need to frost the sides with whipped cream. I just layered it: cake, creamy filling, cherries (drained and cut in halves), cake, creamy filling, cherries. I did brush the cake with some of the cherry juice, to which I added about a teaspoon of almond extract before I started layering it. I probably should have "poured" the cherry juice over the cake to give it more moisture.

So, I guess what I'm saying is that I won't include the cake recipe. I'll have to keep searching for one that I like. (I'm afraid that my Hershey's Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate Cake might be a little too crumbly to hold up to the juice.) However, I will include the recipe for the creamy filling.

Creamy Filling
Source: Cafe Johnsonia blog

1 bar cream cheese
1 cup heavy cream
powdered sugar

Beat the cream cheese and add a little powdered sugar to taste. Slowly add the heavy cream and beat until thick.

[I really had to do this "to taste" since she didn't include any measurements for the sugar. And, of course, I didn't keep track of how much sugar I put in when it was all done. I do have a sweet tooth and am not opposed to sweet frostings and fillings like some who have more developed taste buds. I would guess that I put in a cup, give or take.]