Black Forest Brownies
When you can't decide between chocolate and fruit, choose both.
Summer's zenith approacheth. My refrigerator bursts with black raspberries, tart cherries, sweet cherries, blueberries, blackberries, and even the elusive red currant. I may have bought too much.
I'm cherry-obsessed. They're the most magical fruits, especially the tart ones. But I love the sweet ones as a midsummer snack. I'll always remember driving from Traverse City, Michigan, towards Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, with my friend Kate in 2004. We bought a big container of dark, sweet cherries from a roadside stand, and as we drove along Lake Michigan, we spit pits out the window. Ahh, youth.
The height of Michigan cherry season ends soon, and I've been developing cherry recipes for my cookbook. One of these recipes, which is slated for the book, is my version of a Black Forest cake. Why don't we see more Black Forest cakes popping up around cherry season? They're my kind of cakes because they incorporate four of the best things: chocolate, fresh cherries, whipped cream, and a splash of booze. A bonus: no buttercream. This retro cake needs a major comeback. It’s practically a trifle, anyway.
I didn't want to leave folks hanging without a Black Forest-themed recipe, so here's a quick one to whip up. Plus, you can use fresh, frozen, or jarred cherries, so it's good for any time of the year.
Black Forest Brownies
Makes one 9-inch square pan, about 16 brownies.
When making brownies, the quality of your cocoa powder makes all the difference. I swear by either Cacao Barry Extra Brute or Valrhona. If you love chocolate and spend money on bars of the good stuff, get yourself some quality cocoa powder.
The fresh cherries (I prefer tart Balaton cherries) in this recipe give you a burst of juicy-jammy sweetness just like in a black forest cake, and the white chocolate stands in for the luscious cream.
