We had so much fun with it, that today’s tip is: Deconstruct one of your favorite recipes.

Here’s what we did with Black Forest Cake, but you can also deconstruct many cakes and pies. Think about it!
 
 
DECONSTRUCT A BLACK FOREST CAKE

Instead of a chocolate layer cake with cherry filling, garnished with shaved chocolate and whipped cream, we followed Compère Lapin’s lead with:

 
We like the deconstructed version even better than the traditional layer cake!

 
Serve it with a liqueur glass (or snifter, or jigger) of kirschwasser.
 
 
If this seems like too much work, here’s a super-easy deconstructed Black Forest Cake:

 
> There’s more about Black Forest Cake below.
 
 
WHAT ARE DECONSTRUCTED RECIPES?

Deconstruction is an avant-garde culinary trend of the last 15 years or so, championed by the famed Catalan chef Ferran Adrià, who has referred to his cooking as “deconstructivist.”

Hervé This, the “father of molecular gastronomy,” reintroduced the concept in 2004 as “culinary constructivism.” Essentially, all of the components and flavors of a classic dish are taken apart and presented in a new shape or form.

[2] Black Forest Cake deconstructed into a rich chocolate cake, Kirsch-infused cherry ice cream atop chocolate crumbs, and fresh cherries, at Compère Lapin restaurant | New Orleans.

[3] A bottle of Kirschwasser—a colorless brandy made from double distillation of morello cherries (photo © Luxardo).

The idea is art plus fun, and the deconstruction must taste as good as the original. For example:

 
The deconstruction saves hours of blanching cabbage leaves, filling them with chopped meat and rice, rolling them, and simmering in tomato sauce.

All the flavors are there, and it’s also easier to eat: One often needs a steak knife to saw through those blanched cabbage leaves. We say: Our deconstructed version is better than the original.
 

[5] Deconstructed Buffalo Wings as chicken meatballs topped with blue cheese (photo © Carlos Andres Varela Photography).

[6] Is Fruit Loops ice cream a deconstructed bowl of cereal (photo © Ample Hills Creamery)?

Study these for ideas and create your deconstructed food fun.

 
 
WHAT IS BLACK FOREST CAKE?

The Black Forest region of southern Germany is known for its sour morello cherries and kirsch, or kirschwasser, a clear cherry brandy made from them.

It’s not surprising, then, that desserts made with both cherries and the kirsch are part of the regional repertoire.

Black Forest Cherry Torte—torte is the German word for cake and Schwarzwälderkirschtorte is its name in German—is a chocolate layer cake filled with layers of whipped cream and Kirsch-soaked morello cherries.

The cake is garnished with more whipped cream, morello or maraschino cherries (the latter more readily available in the U.S.), and chocolate curls or shavings.

In the traditional German cake, the chocolate layers are soaked in kirsch syrup, although brandy or rum can substitute. American recipes tend to omit all spirits to make the cake family-friendly (and nowhere near as interesting).

The earliest version of Black Forest possibly dates to the late 16th century, when costly New World cacao beans were first integrated into puddings and drinks.

The first “Black Forest Cake” was probably not a conventional cake but a dessert comprising cooked cherries, cream, kirsch, and a biscuit—similar to the original berry shortcake. Subsequently, the cream could be infused with ground cacao beans.

The ingredients evolved into a layer cake.

One of the quintessential Old World desserts, Black Forest Cake transports us to eras past, when the thought of chocolate cake, cherries, liqueur, and whipped cream was the dessert equivalent of heaven.

If you want to make a traditional Black Forest Cake, here’s a recipe.