White Forest Cake is a fluffy white cake layered with whipped cream and cherries cooked with kirsch for a little kick. It is a non-chocolate version of the classic black forest cake. This timeless cake is decadent while still being fresh and light.
The traditional Black Forest Cake is very popular and certainly delicious, but it might be a bit played out. This cake is a simple twist that still keeps the heart of the original. Plus, it is crazy beautiful, light, and delicious. Love cherries in your desserts? Check out my Cherry Brownies!
If you're looking for a more tasty cake recipes check out this Lemon Poppy Seed Cake, Pumpkin Cake, or S'mores Sheet Cake.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- The white cake layers are light and fluffy. The chocolate cake in this Devil's Food Sheet Cake are just a fluffy!
- It is a delicious and indulgent dessert that is perfect for your sweet tooth. Much like my S'mores Brownie Pie.
- The combination of whipped cream frosting and cherries provides a sweet and tangy flavor profile.
- The layering of the cake, whipped cream, and cherries, creates a beautiful design, while still being simple to do.
- This cake is perfect for a birthday or anniversary! You can make my Dog Cake Recipe so your pup can celebrate too!
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
- Buttermilk will help make the cake fluffy and moist. These Blueberry Goat Cheese Scones also use buttermilk to keep them tender.
- You can use frozen or fresh cherries. I used frozen cherries.
- Kirsch is traditional in black forest cake so we are keeping it in this cake. You can replace it with water if desired.
- Cornstarch will thicken up the compote.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
Substitutions and Variations
- Use the same amount of water instead of kirsch if you cannot find it or do not want to use alcohol.
- A different fruit can be used in place of the cherries, but it would technically no longer be a white forest cake. Strawberry would be a good option.
- Cherry pie filling can be used in place of cherry compote if you are in a rush or don't want to make it.
- You could use a heart or square cake pan to suit your style.
This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you replace or add any ingredients, please let us know how it turned out in the comments below!
Step-By-Step Instructions
STEP 1: In a large bowl mix the sugar, eggs, vanilla, buttermilk, and melted butter until combined.
STEP 2: In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk to remove any lumps.
STEP 3: Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Mix until just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake at 350 degrees (F) for 30-35 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
STEP 4: In a medium bowl combine the heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla. Beat to stiff peaks. Be sure not to over beat.
STEP 5: In a saucepan combine the cherries, cornstarch, kirsch, and sugar. Bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes or until thickened. Stirring occasionally.
STEP 6: Spread half of the whipped cream on the first layer of cake. Add half of the cherry compote. Repeat with remaining cake, whipped cream, and, compote to complete the white forest cake.
Expert Baking Tips
- Use an oven thermometer. Most ovens run either hot or cold. Using an oven thermometer ensures that you are baking your cake at the perfect temperature.
- Don’t use cold ingredients. Ensure that all of your cold ingredients are at room temperature before making your cake batter. The ingredients will combine much easier and you won’t have chunks of cold butter in your batter.
- Weigh your ingredients. One of the most common baking mistakes that I see is measuring incorrectly, especially with flour. The best way to get accurate measurements every time is to weigh them with a kitchen scale.
- Don’t over mix. You need to mix your batter until all of the ingredients are JUST combined, otherwise, you will make too much gluten and your cake will be tough instead of fluffy.
- Fully dissolve the cornstarch. Fully mix and dissolve the cornstarch in the kirsch or water or there will be white chunks in your compote.
Recipe FAQ's
You can! You can bake this in a 6 or 8-inch round pan, this will make the layers thicker and you may need to do more than two layers. You can also make this in a 9x10 or 9x13-inch rectangular pan. Using any of these pans will change the baking time of the cake.
Black forest cake is a chocolate cake with whipped cream and cherry compote. This is a vanilla cake with whipped cream and cherry compote. It is not a huge difference, but it does change the flavor profile. If you want a chocolate cake try out my Chocolate Lava Cakes!
Yes, you can. You can make this into 12 cupcakes. The baking time will be different with cupcakes.
I wouldn't add white chocolate to the actual cake, as it will change the texture, baking time, etc. But you can add white chocolate shavings on top or sprinkle them between the cake layers. A white chocolate lover like me? You will be obsessed with my White Chocolate Cheesecake Recipe!
The cake and cherry compote can be made ahead of time and held in the fridge or freezer in air-tight containers. The whipped cream should be made as close to decorating as possible. The cake can be put together a couple of hours before serving.
Room Temperature: The cake can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 day. Whipped cream does not hold well at room temperature, so it should be refrigerated.
Refrigerator: If stored correctly in an airtight container this White Forest Cake will last up to 3 days in the fridge.
Freezer: I wouldn't recommend storing the finished cake in the freezer, as whipped cream doesn't typically freeze and thaw very well.
More Recipes You'll Love
If you tried this White Forest Cake or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I so appreciate hearing from you!
Recipe
White Forest Cake
Ingredients
For Fluffy White Cake:
- 2 cups (396 grams) granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (226 grams) buttermilk
- 2 sticks (226 grams) unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 3 ½ cups (420 grams) all purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
For Cherry Compote:
- 2 cups (226 grams) cherries fresh or frozen
- 1 tablespoon kirsch or water
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon (12 grams) granulated sugar
For Whipped Cream Frosting:
- 1 ½ cups (340 grams) heavy cream
- ½ cup (56 grams) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
For Fluffy White Cake:
- In a large bowl mix the sugar, eggs, vanilla, buttermilk, and melted butter until combined.
- In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk to remove any lumps.
- Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Mix until just combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 30-35 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
For Cherry Compote:
- In a saucepan combine the cherries, cornstarch, kirsch, and sugar. Place over medium heat.
- Bring the mixture to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to low and allow the compote to simmer for 10 minutes or until thickened. Stirring occasionally.
- Allow the cherry compote to cool completely in the fridge.
For Whipped Cream Frosting:
- In a medium bowl combine the heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla. Beat to stiff peaks. Be sure not to overbeat.
For White Forest Cake Assembly:
- Remove the cakes from the pans. Place the first cake on a flat platter or serving dish.
- Add half of the whipped cream on top of the cake. Spread it all the way to the edges.
- Add half of the cherry compote on top of the whipped cream. Repeat with the remaining cake, whipped cream, and cherry compote. Decorate the edges with fresh cherries, if desired.
Notes
- Don’t use cold ingredients. Ensure that all of your cold ingredients are at room temperature before making your cake batter. The ingredients will combine much easier and you won’t have chunks of cold butter in your batter.
- Don’t over mix. You need to mix your batter until all of the ingredients are JUST combined, otherwise, you will make too much gluten and your cake will be tough instead of fluffy.
- Fully dissolve the cornstarch. Fully mix and dissolve the cornstarch in the kirsch or water or there will be white chunks in your compote.
- The provided nutrition information is an estimate. The calorie accuracy is not guaranteed.
Grace says
How do you recommend storing and serving this cake? We pulled it from the fridge 1 hr before eating and the cake was still cold (and thus hard) but the whipped cream had softened a lot. For best taste, we want the cake room temp but the topping cold. Is the only way to assemble and then eat right away (meaning storing and serving is not an option)?
Ellie Haley says
It is best assembled as close to serving as possible, but you can make a couple of hours in advance and just store at room temp!