Vertical Black Forest Swiss Roll Recipe (with Video)

Chocolate Genoise Sponge Cake Instructions
1. Pre-heat oven to 350F (conventional) and line 2 9x13" baking trays with parchment paper.
2. Whisk the eggs and sugar for 8 minutes on medium high speed, until the mixture becomes really light in color, foamy in consistency, and more than triples in volume.
3. Sift in the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt, and use a rubber spatula to very gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet.
4. Gently divide the batter equally between the two baking trays and spread it out.
5. Bake for ~10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out with light crumbs attached.
First Roll Instructions
1. As the cakes are baking, prepare 2 tea towels (slightly larger than the cakes) by dusting them generously with icing sugar.
2. As soon as the cakes are done, carefully flip them over onto the tea towels.
3. Remove the parchment paper, and dust with more icing sugar on top.
4. Working one cake at a time, carefully and tightly roll up the cake with the short side (9") facing you.
5. Transfer the rolled cakes in the tea towels to the fridge and let them cool down fully (1-2 hours).
Fillings Instructions
1. In the meanwhile, prepare the fillings.
2. Ganache: Bring the cream to a boil, then pour over the chocolate in a bowl.
3. Whipped cream: Whisk the heavy cream and sugar until the cream reaches stiff peaks.
4. Cherries: Drain the jar of cherries, reserving the liquid as the "syrup". Roughly chop up the cherries, saving some intact for decoration.
Assembly Instructions
1. Once the cakes are chilled, remove from the fridge and gently unroll them.
2. Divide each cake into 2, so you have four strips (4.5" x 13").
3. Use a pastry brush to generously brush the cherry syrup on each cake strip.
4. Add a thin layer of ganache and spread it out.
5. Add a generous layer of whipped cream and spread it out, then sprinkle over the chopped cherries.
6. Starting with one strip, roll it back up in the same direction as before, along the length.
7. When the first strip is rolled up, gently pick it up and align it with the next strip so the ends meet, and continue rolling so the second strip is rolled on top of the first one.
8. Continue until all 4 strips are rolled into one giant Swiss roll.
9. Carefully lift and place the cake vertically on a cake stand, and chill for 30 minutes.
Decoration Instructions
1. Once the cake is chilled, trim the top so you get a neat swirl look.
2. Frost the edges of the cake with the remaining ganache, keeping the top uncovered.
3. Transfer the remaining whipped cream to a piping bag and pipe dollops around the edge of the cake to decorate it.
4. Finally, add the saved cherries on top of the whipped cream dollops.
5. Serve & enjoy.