The secret to this Black Forest Pie is Kirsch liqueur (also known as kirschwasser), a unique cherry spirit that uses the flavoring from both cherries and their stones, imparting a delicious almond aftertaste. For more recipes on baking with cherry, look to these Cherry Walnut Sourdough Scones, our Cherry, Almond, Pistachio, and Honey Nougat, and our Cherry-Hazelnut Shekerburas.
Black Forest Pie
Makes 1 (9-inch) pie
Ingredients
- 1¼ cups (156 grams) all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons (15 grams) Dutch process cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon (3 grams) kosher salt
- 1½ teaspoons (6 grams) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (113 grams) cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 6 tablespoons (90 grams) ice water
- Bittersweet Cherry Ganache (recipe below)
- Cherry Mousse (recipe below)
- Garnish: fresh cherries
Instructions
- In the work bowl of a food processor, place flour, cocoa, salt, and sugar; pulse until combined. Add cold butter, pulsing until mixture is crumbly. With processor running, add ice water, 1 tablespoon (15 grams) at a time, just until a dough forms. Turn out dough, and shape into a disk. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Let dough stand at room temperature until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a 12-inch circle. Transfer to a 9-inch pie plate, pressing into bottom and up sides. Trim excess dough to ½ inch beyond edge of plate. Fold edges under, and crimp as desired. Prick bottom of dough with a fork. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
- Top dough with a piece of parchment paper, letting ends extend over edges of plate. Add pie weights.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Carefully remove paper and weights. Bake 10 minutes more. Let cool completely on a wire rack.
- Spoon Bittersweet Cherry Ganache into prepared crust, smoothing with an offset spatula. Refrigerate until set, about 15 minutes. Pour Cherry Mousse over ganache, and refrigerate until set, about 45 minutes. Garnish with cherries, if desired.
Bittersweet Cherry Ganache
Makes about ¾ cup
Ingredients
- 7 ounces (200 grams) 60% cacao bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 tablespoon (15 grams) kirschwasser cherry liqueur
- ¼ cup (60 grams) heavy whipping cream
- ¼ cup (60 grams) Cherry Purée (see note)
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine chocolate and cherry liqueur.
- In a small saucepan, bring cream and Cherry Purée to a boil over medium heat. Pour hot cream mixture over chocolate mixture, and whisk until smooth and shiny. Use immediately.
Notes
To make Cherry Purée, place 1 pound (452 grams) fresh pitted cherries in the work bowl of a food processor. Purée until smooth. Strain mixture, discarding solids. This will yield about 1 cup cherry purée.
Cherry Mousse
Makes about 2½ cups
Ingredients
- 1⅓ cups (320 grams) heavy whipping cream, divided
- ⅓ cup (80 grams) plus 3 tablespoons (45 grams) cold whole milk, divided
- 5 large egg yolks (93 grams)
- 3 tablespoons (36 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons (16 grams) cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons (8 grams) unflavored gelatin
- ⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon (95 grams) Cherry Purée (see notes)
- 6 ounces (175 grams) white chocolate morsels
- 2 tablespoons (30 grams) kirschwasser cherry liqueur
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, bring ⅔ cup (160 grams) cream and ⅓ cup (80 grams) milk to a boil over medium heat.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch, gelatin, and remaining 3 tablespoons (45 grams) cold milk. Whisking constantly, slowly pour hot cream mixture into yolk mixture. Return cream mixture to saucepan, and cook, whisking constantly, until mixture has thickened, about 1 minute.
- In another medium bowl, combine Cherry Purée, chocolate morsels, and cherry liqueur. Strain cream mixture over cherry mixture, and whisk until smooth. Place bowl in a larger bowl filled with ice. Let cool to room temperature over ice bath, whisking constantly to ensure even cooling and to prevent mousse from creating lumps. (If mousse cools any further than room temperature, it will become too thick.)
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat remaining ⅔ cup (160 grams) cream at high speed until soft peaks form. Fold whipped cream into mousse until smooth.
Notes
To make Cherry Purée, place 1 pound (452 grams) fresh pitted cherries in the work bowl of a food processor. Purée until smooth. Strain mixture, discarding solids. This will yield about 1 cup cherry purée.
2 teas of salt in the pie shell made it so salty as to be unedible
Hi Dave,
Thank you for pointing this out to us! We are going over the issue with our test kitchen and will get back to you on this!
So the pie is good but the crust is just too salty! This recipe asks for 2 tsp of salt and 1 1/2 tsp of sugar in the crust…I went with it thinking they were going for the whole salty sweet thing….but in my opinion it just doesn’t work – the rest of the pie is yummy thouh
Hi Margie,
Thank you for bringing this to our attention! We’re working with our test kitchen on it and will get back to you as soon as we have a solution!
What is the correct of salt to use in the crust? Other reviewers have stated 2 tsps is too much, but the recipe has not been altered three years later.
Hi VJ,
Thank you for your question! I’ve just updated the recipe with half of the salt originally called for (1 teaspoon [3 grams] kosher salt).
Happy baking!