Heaven and Hell Cake – How I Love It – Page 2

First, beat the butter, 125 g sugar, 4 egg yolks, and 1 whole egg into a fluffy mixture.
Sift the flour with the baking powder and fold it in.
Divide the batter into 2 cake pans (I use one 26 cm and one 28 cm in diameter), or save half the batter and bake in two rounds.
Beat 4 egg whites until stiff, then add 200 g sugar. Spread half of the meringue mixture onto each cake layer and sprinkle with half the almonds.
Bake both layers in a fan oven at 160°C (320°F) for about 25–30 minutes.
Immediately after baking, cut one of the cakes (I used the smaller one) into 12 pieces (press through with a sharp knife) and set aside.
Place a cake ring around the larger cake base.

Cherry Filling:

Drain the cherry juice and add water to reach about 400–450 ml. Save a little of the juice and mix it with the vanilla pudding powder.
Heat the remaining juice, then stir in the pudding mixture.
Bring to a boil. Once it thickens, remove from the heat and stir in the cherries.
Let cool briefly and spread over the bottom cake layer. Let the cherry filling cool completely.

Cream Layer:

Whip the cream with the cream stabilizer until stiff. Sweeten to taste. Spread over the cooled cherry layer.
Place the 12 cake slices on top.

Don’t worry if the cake layers seem thin when spreading; the meringue and almond topping creates a perfect base!
Since my top pan is smaller, all 12 pieces fit nicely.
It’s important to score the top layer after baking, so the cream doesn’t squish out when slicing later.
You can also spread the cream directly over the cherries – it looks beautiful!