Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte

Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte belongs to the Konditorei, the German cake counter, and to birthdays, confirmations, Sunday coffee, and any table where someone had the sense to bake the sponge the day before. It is strongest in Baden and the Black Forest, where the sour cherries and Kirschwasser, cherry brandy, are not decoration. They are the dish.

The argument is never whether the Kirschwasser belongs. It does. The argument is how much, and where it goes. Some pastry shops put it mostly into the cherry filling, some brush it hard into the chocolate Biskuit, sponge cake; I put it in the syrup so every layer gets it evenly. Im Norden anders, im Süden anders, but on this cake the south wins the bottle.

The technique that decides it is cold assembly. The sponge must be fully cool, the cherry filling must be set, and the cream must be whipped only to soft-firm peaks, because warm cake melts cream and overwhipped cream turns grainy before you can cover the sides. Brush the syrup on, don't drown it. A wet cake cuts badly and eats worse.

Use sour cherries from the jar if fresh ones aren't in season. That isn't a sin; that is the larder doing its job. But the Kirschwasser is not optional, and the cream is not from a spray can. Nicht aus dem Glas, and not from the can either.