Cherry Cake with Nut Cream

Ingredients

• 4 eggs
• 120 g fine raw cane sugar
• 1 pinch salt
• 80 g spelt flour type 1050
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 100 g ground hazelnuts
• 370 g sour cherries (jar; drained weight)
• 1 tbsp Cornstarch
• 3 sheets gelatin
• 300 g whipping cream
• 50 g powdered sugar from raw cane sugar
• 0.5 tsp vanilla powder
• 500 g Greek yogurt
• 8 chocolate pralines

Instructions

1. 1.

   Separate the eggs for the base. Beat egg whites with half of the raw cane sugar and salt until stiff peaks form. Whisk egg yolks with the remaining raw cane sugar until frothy. Sift flour and 1 tsp cocoa into the foam, add cinnamon and nuts, then fold everything together.

2. 2.

   Line a springform pan with parchment paper. Pour the batter into the pan, smooth the surface, and bake in a preheated oven at 180 °C (160 °C fan; gas: level 2–3) for 15–20 minutes (do a toothpick test). Remove, loosen the rim, and cool on a rack. Then cut the nut sponge horizontally once, place the lower layer into a ring mold, and finely crumble the upper layer.

3. 3.

   For the filling, put cherries with their juice in a pot and bring to a boil. Whisk cornstarch with 1–2 tbsp cold water and use it to bind the cherries. Let cool slightly, then spread the warm mixture over the nut sponge base in the ring mold. Set aside to firm up.

4. 4.

   Soak gelatin in cold water for at least 5 minutes. Meanwhile beat cream with powdered sugar and vanilla until stiff. Gently fold a third of the cream into the Greek yogurt; set the rest aside cold. Then melt the gelatin, letting it dissolve completely. Whisk the liquid gelatin with 3 tbsp of the yogurt‑cream mixture, then stir into the remaining yogurt‑cream.

5. 5.

   Split the yogurt‑cream in half. Fold one half with the sponge crumbs (nut cream). Fold the other half with the remaining cocoa powder (chocolate cream). Spread about a third of the nut cream over the cherries. Add chocolate cream on top and spread it toward the edge, leaving roughly 3 cm free. Fill this rim with more nut cream and spread the remaining nut cream over the chocolate cream.

6. 6.

   Cool the cherry cake for about an hour, then remove the ring mold. Spread the cold cream around the entire cake. Garnish with a few dollops of whipped cream on top and place one half‑sized chocolate praline on each dollop.