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slices of zwetschgenkuchen and small plums on a baking tray.
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5 from 4 votes

German Plum Cake

An authentic recipe for the delicious German Plum Cake or Zwetschgenkuchen, this is the perfect coffee cake in fall.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time35 minutes
1 hour
Course: Cakes
Cuisine: German
Diet: Vegetarian
Servings: 20
Calories: 246kcal
Author: Adina

Ingredients

Yeast dough (Note 1):

  • 350 g all-purpose flour 12.3 oz/ 3 cups minus 1 tablespoon
  • 50 g granulated sugar 1.7 oz/ ¼ cup
  • ¼ teaspoon fine salt
  • 150 ml milk 5 oz/ ⅔ cup
  • 1 sachet active dry yeast 7 g/ 0.25 oz (Note 2)
  • 50 g unsalted butter 1.7 oz/ scant ¼ cup
  • 1 egg

Streusel:

  • 250 g all-purpose flour 8.8 oz/ 2 cups + 1 tablespoon
  • 125 g granulated sugar 4.4 oz/ ½ cup + 2 tablespoons
  • 150 g unsalted butter 5.3 oz/ scant ⅔ cup
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Topping:

  • 1 kg Italian plums 2.2 lbs, more or less as needed to cover the cake

Instructions

Yeast dough:

  • Mix the flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl.
  • Heat the milk gently in a small saucepan (36 degrees Celsius/ 96 degrees Fahrenheit, so body temperature).
  • Combine: Add butter and yeast to the milk and stir until the butter has melted. Pour milk mixture and lightly beaten egg into the flour mixture.
  • Knead the dough with the hand-held mixer fitted with dough hooks or a stand mixer with a dough hook. Knead as long as possible to combine everything well together. Then, turn the mixture onto the working surface and knead the dough with your hand for a couple of minutes.
  • Let rise: Form a ball, place it back in the bowl, cover it with a clean cloth and let the dough rise in a warm place. The dough will need about an hour until about doubled in size.

Streusel:

  • Mix flour, sugar, and cinnamon in the food processor. Add the very cold butter, cut into cubes, and process shortly until the streusel form. Refrigerate until needed (Note 3).

Plums:

  • Remove the stones from the plums while the yeast dough is rising. Don't cut the plums all the way through; they should remain attached on one side.

Assemble:

  • Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius/ 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a large baking tray of about 30x40 cm/ 12x16 inches with baking paper.
  • Roll the yeast dough with a rolling pin to match the size of the tray. Carefully place the dough on the tray and stretch and press with your fingers until everything fits.
  • Arrange the stoned plums on top.
  • Sprinkle with the streusel.
  • Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the streusel is golden brown.
  • Let rest for about 20 minutes before slicing it and serve as suggested above.

Notes

  1. Always use a digital kitchen scale in baking; it ensures the best results (Amazon affiliate link).
  2. If using fresh yeast, you will need 21 g/ 0.7 oz of it. The dough will probably rise quicker in this case, so check after 30-40 minutes already and proceed with the recipe if the dough has doubled in size.
  3. Streusel without a food processor: Mix flour, cinnamon, and sugar in a bowl. Add the cold butter cubes and cut the butter into the flour (with a butter knife) until you obtain streusel. If doing this with your hands, only use your fingertips; the butter will get warm too quickly if you use your palms.

Nutrition

Serving: 1piece | Calories: 246kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 38mg | Potassium: 126mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 447IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 20mg | Iron: 2mg