Baking is a part of my identity, but it’s also a part of my genes. My great-grandmother passed down her recipes to my grandmother, who handed them off to my mother, who is now teaching them to me. I've grown up in the kitchen being my mother’s souz-chef and helping her replicate the recipes that have been in my family for generations.
My great-grandmother and grandmother both originated from Germany and brought their recipes, with little else, to America after the Holocaust. One cake recipe that has became a staple at celebrations and Shabbat dinners in my family is the “Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte” or black forrest cake. It is a traditional German chocolate torte, made with dried cherries and tons of whipped cream. It is light, sweet, chocolaty, a bit tart and made the perfect birthday cake for me and my sisters growing up. When my mom re-found the recipe, buried between the various handwritten index cards in her recipe box, it soon replaced our old birthday tradition of Duncan Hines marble cake’s with chocolate frosting.
Recipes are a large part of a my identity. I grew up licking the spoons of my mother’s cake batter and cutting vegetables for my dad’s wild creations. I helped make Thanksgivings, Rosh Hashanahs and Sunday night family dinners happen with my sometime careful knife-skills and more often childish mistakes. These recipes created special meals throughout my life and helped me learn about the history that makes up my identity and the life I lead today.
I still have a lot of learning to do and a lot more recipes to try, but every time I sneak a lick of the whipped cream off of the “Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte,” I stop and think for a second about where it came from and what it means to me. And then I proceed to take another lick before I get caught....
Black Forest Cake
¾ cup margarine
1 ½ cup sugar
4 eggs
3 tablespoons cocoa
¾ cup flour
¾ cup finely chopped almonds
1-teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 can drained sour cherries
A little lemon juice
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 and grease a spring form pan.
Cream margarine and sugar.
Add all other ingredients except cherries and mix well.
Pour into pan then add cherries sprinkling them around. Bake 40 minutes
Invert cake.
Frost with whipped cream.
