Zwetschgenkuchen Bavarian Plum Cake Recipes

GERMAN PLUM CAKE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream the butter, add the sugar, vanilla, egg, lemon peel, sour cream and salt (if desired).
• Mix the flour and baking powder and add that into the mixture.
• Grease the base of a round baking pan and spread the dough over the pan.
• Liberally spread plums over the dough.
• To make the optional topping, cream the butter, add flour, sugar and cinnamon.
• Sprinkle over the plums and bake for 30-45 minutes in the middle rack at 375 F.
• Be careful not to let the bottom burn!
• Serve with lots of freshly-made whipped cream.
• If you like, you may also sprinkle rum or cinnamon over the fruit before baking.

ZWETSCHGENKUCHEN (GERMAN PLUM CAKE)

Steps:

• 1. This is such a simple recipe and the flavor is huge! Start by mixing the margarine and 1/2 cup of sugar. Add the eggs and mix again. Separately, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and almond extract. 2. Add the flour mixture to the margarine mixture. 3. Prepared a pan with cooking spray and pour the thick batter in. Spread it out to make it even. I think you can really use any size pan, to be honest. The larger the pan, the thinner the cake will be. I prefer a thinner cake so I went with a larger pan. You do what you think will taste the best for you. 4. Slice the plums, removing the pit in the process. 5. This is where you can have a lot of fun and even get the kids involved! Layered the plum wedges on top of the batter in a pretty pattern. You can use whatever pattern you want, or no pattern at all. 6. Mix together the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle it over the plums. 7. Baked the cake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes and it's ready to eat! I actually prefer the kuchen room temperature, but it is delicious however you want to eat it! You can try other fruits as well, although I don't know what you would call them in German.

ZWETSCHGENDATSCHI (GERMAN PLUM SHEET CAKE)

Steps:

• Combine flour and baking powder in a large bowl. Mix in 1 cup sugar, vanilla sugar, and salt. Add 1 1/3 cups butter and eggs. Knead everything into a smooth dough. Shape dough into a ball, press flat, cover, and chill in the refrigerator 1 hour to overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a baking sheet with butter.
• Cut halved plums in half again, without cutting all the way through, so they fan out.
• Roll pastry dough out on a lightly floured work surface. Line the bottom and sides of the prepared baking sheet with dough. Mix 2 tablespoons sugar and cinnamon together in a bowl.
• Arrange plums side by side on the pastry dough; very small plums should overlap. Dot plums with 2 tablespoons butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and almonds.
• Bake in the preheated oven until pastry crust is lightly browned, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven. Allow plum cake to cool, then cut into squares. Serve lukewarm or at room temperature.

ZWETSCHGENKUCHEN (GERMAN PLUM CAKE)

Steps:

• 1. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the butter and 1/2 cup sugar. Add the eggs and continue mixing. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and almond extract. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix well.
• 2. Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray and pour the batter into it. Spread it out evenly.
• 3. Slice the plums, removing the pit as you go. Layer the plum wedges on top of the batter in whatever pattern you choose.
• 4. Mix together 1/2 cup sugar and the cinnamon and sprinkle it over the plums. Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 45 minutes. Serve with whipped cream.

ZWETSCHGENKUCHEN (BAVARIAN PLUM CAKE)

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the yeast and half of the milk. Mix in 2 tablespoons of the flour and 1 teaspoon of the sugar. Allow this mixture to sit in a warm place for 1 hour.
• Combine remaining dough ingredients then add in the yeast mixture. Mix until a smooth dough forms, then knead by hand. Allow dough to sit in a warm place until double in volume.
• Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
• Grease a baking sheet. Roll out dough to fit the size of the baking sheet. Transfer dough to baking sheet.
• Wash plums and remove any stems. Slice each in half and remove stones. Arrange plum halves evenly on the dough - plums should not be lying down, instead they should be standing stem-side up. Sprinkle plums with sugar.
• Crumbs are optional. If you choose to add them, prepare the crumbs by mixing the butter, vanilla sugar, and sugar. Gradually work in flour until mixture becomes dry and crumbly. Sprinkle crumbs over dough, distributing them evenly.
• Allow cake to sit and rise for another 30 minutes.
• Bake cake for around 30-40 minutes or until crumbs and crust become golden brown.
• Remove cake from oven and allow to cool completely.
• Serve at room temperature, with a dollop of whipped cream.

GERMAN PLUM CRUMB BARS

Steps:

• Set aside 1/2 cup of the flour. Combine all other dough ingredients with the dough hook of your mixer until smooth and satiny. Only use remaining flour if needed.
• Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and let the dough rise in a warm, draft free spot for 30 minutes (it should about double in size). You can preheat your oven to 200 F, then turn the oven off and let the dough rise inside the warm oven.
• We are only using half of the yeast dough for this cake. You can wrap the other half and freeze for later use, or double the filling and crumb ingredients to make 2 crumb cakes.
• Roll out half the dough to cover the bottom of a lined or greased 9x13-inch baking pan. Let dough rise for another 10 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 F. Drain plums well if using canned.
• To make the crumb topping, add all ingredients to a bowl and rub them together by hand into the butter until large crumbs form.
• Spread pitted plums over the dough and top with fairly large crumbs. Bake for 30-35 minutes until crumbs are golden brown.

PLUM CAKE RECIPE (AUSTRIAN GERMAN PFLAUMENKUCHEN OR ZWETSCHGENKUCHEN)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a 10 inch springform pan and set aside.
• Wash and halve the plums, remove the pits and cut into wedges.
• Whisk the melted butter, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon until the mixture is creamy.
• Add the eggs one by one while continuing to whisk and whisk until airy.
• Sift the flour, mix with baking soda and salt and gradually fold it into the batter by hand, using a spatula or wooden spoon. Do not over mix.
• Transfer the batter to the springform pan. Smooth it out with the spatula or back of spoon and arrange the plum slices on top in a concentric pattern, beginning at the center and working your way towards the circumference.***
• Bake for 50 minutes. Remove the cake from oven and let cool down a few minutes before taking out of the springform. Dust the plum cake with powdered sugar (optional).

GERMAN PLUM CAKE - PFLAUMENKUCHEN

Steps:

• Add flour to a stand mixer bowl. With a cooking spoon, shape a well in the middle and add 1 tbsp. sugar, yeast, and about half of the lukewarm milk to the well.
• Mix the ingredients in the well while incorporating a small amount of flour from the rim of the well.
• Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and allow to sit for about 15 min. in a warm place.
• Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl and knead for about 10 min. or until the dough is smooth and shiny.
• Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel once more and set aside in a warm place for about 2 hours, or until the volume has doubled.
• In the meantime, wash the plums, remove the stem, and cut the plums into halves, and then cut each half into 3 or 4 pieces. Peel the apples, remove the core, and slice into small slices.
• Cut the butter for the streusel into small cubes and add them with the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla sugar to a medium-sized bowl. Knead the ingredients until crumbles form.
• Preheat the oven to 350 °F.
• Grease a baking sheet and flour lightly. Roll out the yeast dough and arrange the plums and apple slices on top of the dough.
• Sprinkle with cinnamon to taste and spread streusel evenly over the fruit.
• Bake for about 25 - 30 Min.