Dessert / Cake: Rich Black Forest Cake

From Shelly Carey

Ingredients for cake
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup vegetable shortening
1 ½ cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ cups buttermilk
Ingredients for filling
½ cup maraschino cherry juice (from the jar)
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
½ cup butter
3 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar
2-4 teaspoons strong brewed coffee
2 (14 oz) cans pitted Bing cherries, drained
Ingredients for frosting
2 cups heavy whipping cream
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 Tablespoon maraschino cherry juice (from the jar)
1 (1 oz) square semisweet chocolate

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line the bottoms of two 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper circles. Sift together flour, coca, baking soda and 1 teaspoon salt. Set aside. Cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Beat in flour mixture, alternating with buttermilk, until combined. Pour into cake pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes. Cool completely. Remove paper from the cakes. Cut each layer in half, horizontally making 4 layers total. Sprinkle layers with the ½ cup maraschino cherry juice.

In a medium bowl, cream butter. Add confectioners’ sugar, pinch of salt, coffee; beat until smooth. If too thick, add a few teaspoons of cherry juice or milk. Spread first layer with 1/3 of the filling. Top with 1/3 of the cherries. Repeat with remaining layers.

In a separate bowl, whip the cream to stiff peaks. Beat in ½ teaspoon vanilla and 1 Tablespoon cherry juice. Frost top and sides of cake. Sprinkle with chocolate curls made by using a potato peeler on semisweet baking chocolate bar. Add any remaining cherries as garnish.