German cakes tend to be drier than American confections, so I made my cake batter moister but tried to pump up the cherry flavor by using both chopped dark Morello cherries and the juice from the cherry jar (available at Trader Joe's) in both the cake and the frosting. I also made another addition – fruit vinegar. The combination of cherry juice and a dash of sourness from the vinegar in the frosting cuts the sweetness and gives the cupcakes a more complex, rich flavor.

Black Forest Cupcakes Recipe

Servings: Make 24 regular-sized cupcakes

Ingredients

Cupcake batter

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking powder

2 tsps. baking soda

2 tsp. black cocoa powder (opt.)

3/4 cup cocoa powder

2 cups sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

1 cup unsweetened red grape juice, dark cherry juice (like Trader Joe's Dark Morello Cherries), or hot coffee

1 cup milk

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. almond extract

1/2 cup dark morello cherries

1/2 cup dark chocolate chunks or semi-sweet chocolate chips

 
Frosting

1 stick (1/2 cup) real butter, at room temperature

6 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp. salt

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup dark morello cherry juice

1/2 tsp. fruit vinegar (opt. like raspberry)

2 tbsp. finely chopped dark morello cherries

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. almond extract

Directions

Cupcakes

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line your muffin tins with paper muffin wrappers.

Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder, black cocoa (if using), and sugar in a large bowl.

In another bowl, use a blender to combine the vegetable oil, morello dark cherry juice, milk, eggs and extracts. Once combined add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients.

Add the cherries and chocolate to the mixing bowl and blend until fully combined.

Lightly coat the muffin papers with cooking spray before adding 2-3 tablespoons of batter to each one.

Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcake comes out clean.

Cool in the refrigerator.
 

Frosting

In a mixing bowl whip the butter until smooth.

Alternate adding 2 cups powdered sugar and a little bit of milk and the extracts until the frosting starts to become thick.

Then, add the dark cherry juice gradually. Once the frosting is almost to the right consistency add the fruit vinegar to give the frosting a hint of tartness (opt.).

Whip in the finely chopped cherries if you're using them.

Place the frosting in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm and then frost the cupcakes.

I use a french tip attachment to my pastry bag to swirl the frosting on top of each cupcake (using a knife is fine, too). Dust with cocoa powder and a chocolate chunk.

Kristen J. Gough is the Global Cuisines & Kids Editor for Wandering Educators. She originally published this article on her site, My Kids Eat Squid.

All photos courtesy and copyright Kristen J. Gough