Viking Cruises

26 | Central Europe Destination Guide Sponge cake base 6 eggs (whisk yolk and white separately) 4 tbsp warm water 200g white sugar 200g all-purpose flour 50g corn starch 50g cocoa powder 2 tsp baking powder 1 pinch of salt Filling 1 jar of canned cherries (350g), set 16 pieces aside for final decoration 2 tbsp corn starch 1 litre whole cream 40g cream stabiliser 1 tbsp sugar Kirschwasser 100g chocolate flakes 1. Prepare a 26cm/10 inch pan and cover the bottom with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350°F / 180°C. 2. Mix together the egg whites with a pinch of salt and ⅓ of the sugar until very stiff. Then, separately beat the egg yolks and the remaining sugar well for about 5- 6 minutes. 3. Mix all dry ingredients and sift into the egg yolk batter. Fold into the batter gently, alternating with egg whites. Do this in batches so you do not overload the batter at once. 4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for approx. 30 minutes (check inner consistency with a wooden toothpick that should come out clean before removing from the oven). Remove from the pan and let it cool completely. 5. Mix the corn starch with a few teaspoons of cherry juice/liquid to dissolve. Heat the cherries with the remaining juice/liquid in a skillet until almost cooking. Remove the skillet from the stove, pour in the dissolved starch and stir until the initially milky mass becomes clear again. Stir the whole cream with stabiliser and sugar until very firm. 6. Cut the sponge cake horizontally into 3 more or less equal slices. Use the top slice for the bottom layer. Add ½ of the well-cooled and thickened cherry mass and spread over the cake. Add ¼ of the whipped cream and also spread over the cherries. Add the next slice of cake and repeat the above procedure. Then add the final slice. Sprinkle with Kirschwasser. 7. Spread the second batch of the whipped cream to the sides, seal well. Spread the remaining whipped cream on the top layer of the cake and carefully seal it, too. 8. Apply the chocolate flakes to the side of the cake, covering the whipped cream. Pipe 16 cream roses on top of the cake and place a cherry, from the cherries set aside earlier, in the centre of each rose. S E R V E S 6 Central European Cuisine BLACK FOREST GÂTEAU

• Cover