You’ll need a 23cm / 9″ shallow pie dish for this recipe.įresh sweet cherries, pitted, about 550g / 1 1/4 pounds (about 4 cups pitted cherries)ĭutch-process or natural unsweetened cocoa powder 50g / 2 ounces I couldn’t get it out of my mind and I’m glad that I didn’t, it’s the perfect Schwarzwälder Kirsch Pie (the German name for black forest).

I could have used the same formula for my plump black cherries, but I wanted a chocolate base. It works perfectly with sour rhubarb, a pink spring pie that became a popular recipe on the blog. The wonderfully fluffy, airy meringue topping adds a very fine sweetness, wrapped in fragile crispiness. A pie, however, focuses on the fruit filling, there’s only a thin buttery short crust base holding all that lusciousness together. Although we have similar cakes in Germany, like a sponge cake layered with gooseberries and meringue, it doesn’t have the same qualities as a pie. My friend Jenny was the first baker who introduced me to meringue pie, her formidable lemon meringue pie blew my mind. You can also find this recipe in my 365 book. My Cherry Chocolate Meringue Pie has all the nice features of the famous southern German coffee table classic, including dark chocolate, Kirsch Schnaps, and sweet summer cherries – it’s just lighter. Whip up the remaining ½ cup of cream for the top of the cake, and decorate with cherries and grated chocolate before serving.Think of Black Forest Torte and meringue pie, take out the heaviness of the whipped cream, and you have a rough idea of the taste of this opulent beauty.Move the cheesecake in gentle circular motions to make sure the chocolate covers the cheesecake evenly, then let it set for 10 minutes. Wait for the ganache to cool slightly before pouring it on top of the cooled cheesecake.Then, when it is hot (but not boiling), add the chocolate and keep stirring until it has melted. The best way to do this is to warm the cream in a heatproof bowl in the microwave for 45 seconds to 1 minute.

At the end of the refrigeration time, make a ganache using the remaining ½ cup of dark chocolate and ¼ cup of cream.Refrigerate the cheesecake for 6 to 8 hours, or overnight.

Gently spoon or pipe the rest of the cheesecake mixture on top, making sure to fully cover the cherry filling, then smooth the top off using a palette knife or the back of a spoon.Scoop the cherry pie kirsch mixture into the center of the Oreo base and spread it out until it meets the cheesecake edges.Using a piping bag filled with roughly ¼ of the chocolate cheesecake mixture, pipe a circle all the way around the edge of the cheesecake base, forming a wall.Keeping the stand mixer running, slowly pour in the melted, cooled chocolate and mix it until well combined.In a stand mixer, whisk together the cream cheese, ¾ cup of whipping cream and vanilla extract until the mixture is well combined and stiff.Once the chocolate is fully melted, set it aside to cool. Make sure to regularly check and stir the chocolate every 15 to 20 seconds so that it doesn't burn. Combine 1 cup of dark chocolate and all the milk chocolate together in a heatproof bowl, then melt using a microwave.Put this in the fridge to harden while making the cheesecake mixture. Pour the crumbs into a 7-inch cake pan and, using the back of a spoon, press the crumbs down to form the cheesecake base.In a clean bowl, mix the melted butter with the Oreo crumbs until well combined.In a bowl, combine together the cherry pie filling and the kirsch, allowing the flavor of the kirsch to soak into the cherries as you make the rest of the cheesecake components.

Black forest pie