Mini Black Forest Cakes

My mom makes a black forest cake that everyone loves. So for a dinner party we are going to I decided to switch it up a bit and make Mini Black Forest Cakes. The idea is that each couple could share a cake (or if you think you can handle the equivalent of 4 cupcakes, go ahead and eat the whole thing yourself!) 

 Bake in mini cake pans. They are about 4" in diameter. The recipe will make 12, enough for 6 Mini Black Forest Cakes. After baking, cool on a rack and then I like to put them in the freezer for a little bit. It makes it easier to cut the tops off without a lot of crumble.

 Add a layer of Dark Chocolate Frosting and put the two layers together.

 Frost each cake as shown

 I put them back in the freezer for just about 15 minutes so it makes them easier to handle when I transfer them to a small doily. I then piped a border on top and spooned some cherry pie filling in the middle. I made one and piped some home made whip cream on top but didn't like the way it looked. The cakes are small so I think I will serve fresh whip cream on the side.

Chocolate Cake
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 cup cocoa powder (I use about 1/3 dark cocoa and 2/3 regular cocoa)
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups milk
2/3 cups oil
2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Put all ingredients in mixing bowl and beat until well combined.
Spray12  mini cake pans with Baker's Joy (if you have never used this for your baked goods, you need to!)
Bake for 20 minutes. Cool in pan for about 5 minutes and remove to rack to cool completely before frosting.

Dark Chocolate Buttercream
6 TBSP softened butter (I'm a purist and only use butter, not margarine)
3/4 cup cocoa powder (again a mix of dark and regular)
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk (adding a little at a time. If you need more liquid add cold water)
1 tsp vanilla

Beat together until desired consistency.