Cakes with Damson plums have a long tradition in the area I grew up as a kid (Southern Germany). They are extremely popular in late summer and autumn. We even have a special name for them that differed from other areas in Germany. Normally you would say »Zwetschgenkuchen« which translates to »Damson Plum Cake« – in the south, you will often hear »Zwetschgendatschi« instead ;) So this Damson Plum Cake with Streusels is actually called Zwetschgendatschi with Streusels. I know… it makes no sense, but it is how it is ;P
Plum cakes are actually popular all over Germany. Wherever you can grow Damson plums you will get these cakes in many shapes and sizes and sometimes with weird names ;) There is an abundance of cake recipes out there that feature Damson plums and regular plums. You can make a cake like this one here with a shortcrust base, a simple sponge cake base, or like me with a yeast dough. There are a lot of options. Mine here takes a bit longer to be ready on the table because of the time the dough needs to rise, but the yeast dough also adds a lot of flavor… it’s your choice. I got a recipe for pretty much every version here on the blog ;P
When the (Damson) plum season starts I have to bake a cake with those purple fruits. At least once. Most of the time we end up baking several cakes. The season is quite long and that gives us enough time to use the fruits more often… and since everyone loves a good Damson plum cake they are gone pretty quickly each time ;P
The recipe is good for a big baking sheet. I decided to make two smaller round cakes here – one of them you can see on the pictures. I actually prefer preparing two cakes with the recipe. Two cakes are much easier to stack (inside the baking tins) and to transport from A to B. If you ever carried a large baking sheet in public transportation you probably know why I say that ;P
There is much more you can do with Damson plums or regular plums. You don’t have to limit yourself to cakes. These fruits are great in many other recipes. Luckily I got quite a few of those recipes on the blog already – no need to go anywhere else… ;P
Delicious recipes with Damson plums & regular plums
Easy Damson Plum Crumble
Rice Pudding with Damson Plum Compote
6 Spices Damson Plum Pastries
Semolina Cheesecake with Damson Plums
Kaiserschmarrn aka. Shredded Pancakes with Plum Compote
Damson Plum Pie
Mixed Plum Galette
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
(1 baking sheet or 2 round baking pans).
For the dough:
14 oz. (400g) all-purpose flour
1 oz. (30g) fresh baker’s yeast
3/4 cup (150g) sugar
2/3 cup (150ml) lukewarm milk
2.8 oz. (80g) butter, at room temperature
1 medium egg
1 pinch of salt
For the streusels:
3/4 cup (150g) raw cane sugar
5.3 oz. (150g) all-purpose flour
3.5 oz. (100g) cold butter
1 pinch of salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
For the topping:
35-42 oz. (1-1,2kg) damson plums
(1 Backblech oder 2 runde Backformen)
Für den Teig:
400g Mehl (Type 405)
30g frische Hefe
150g Zucker
150ml lauwarme Milch
80g weiche Butter
1 Ei (M)
Prise Salz
Für die Streusel:
150g Rohrzucker
150g Mehl (Type 405)
100g kalte Butter
1 Prise Salz
1/2 TL Zimt
Für den Belag:
etwa 1-1,2kg Zwetschgen
DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
1. Sift the flour for the dough into a large bowl. Make a small depression in the center and crumble the yeast into it. Add a bit of sugar to the yeast and mix with a bit of the lukewarm milk to create a pre-dough. Cover the bowl and let rise in a warm place for about 10-15 minutes.
2. For the streusels, mix flour, sugar, salt, and ground cinnamon in a bowl. Add the cold butter in small pieces. Rub everything between your fingers to get different-sized streusels. Place the streusels in the fridge until needed.
3. Add the remaining milk, sugar, butter, egg, and a pinch of salt to the bowl with the flour and pre-dough and mix everything and knead until you get a smooth dough. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for about 30 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F). While the dough rises, wash, dry, pit, and quarter the plums lengthwise. Line a baking sheet or two round baking tins (Ø10 inches) with baking parchment. Roll out the dough and place it on the baking sheet or in the baking tins, forming a small border along the edges. Place the plums tightly next to each other on the dough and distribute the streusels evenly on top. Bake the cake(s) for about 28-30 minutes until the streusels got some color – the edges should not get too dark though. Remove the cake(s) from the oven and let cool down on a wire rack.
1. Das Mehl für den Teig in eine Schüssel sieben. In die Mitte eine kleine Mulde drücken und die Hefe hineinbröckeln. Ein wenig Zucker zur Hefe dazugeben und mit etwas lauwarmer Milch zu einem Vorteig verrühren. Die Schüssel abdecken und an einem warmen Ort für etwa 10-15 Minuten gehen lassen.
2. Für die Streusel das Mehl, mit Zucker, Salz und Zimt in einer Schüssel vermischen. Die kalte Butter in kleinen Stücken zugeben und alles mit den Fingern zu Streuseln verarbeiten. Bis zur weiteren Verwendung in den Kühlschrank stellen.
3. Den Vorteig in der Schüssel mit der restlichen Milch, dem Zucker, der weichen Butter, dem Ei und einer Prise Salz zu einem glatten Teig verkneten. Die Schüssel abdecken und etwa 30 Minuten gehen lassen.
4. Den Ofen auf 200°C (390°F) Ober-/Unterhitze vorheizen. Während der Teig geht, die Zwetschgen waschen, trocknen, entkernen und längs vierteln. Ein Backblech oder zwei runde Backformen (Ø26cm) mit Backpapier auslegen. Teig ausrollen und auf das Blech oder in die Formen legen und einen kleinen Rand formen. Den Teig dicht an dicht mit Zwetschgen belegen und mit den Streuseln bestreuen. Den bzw. die Kuchen für etwa 28-30 Minuten backen. – die Streusel sollten etwas Farbe bekommen haben, der Rand sollte allerdings nicht zu dunkel sein. Aus dem Ofen holen und auf einem Kuchengitter abkühlen lassen.
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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
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Zwetschgenstreusel aka. Plum Cake with Streusels
- Prep Time: 00:20
- Cook Time: 00:30
- Total Time: 01:45
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Cakes
- Cuisine: Germany
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
A classic bake from the south of Germany: a Damson Plum Cake with Streusels aka. Zwetschgen Streuselkuchen. An absolute crowd-pleaser in our family ;)
Ingredients
For the dough:
14 oz. (400g) all-purpose flour
1 oz. (30g) fresh baker’s yeast
3/4 cup (150g) sugar
2/3 cup (150ml) lukewarm milk
2.8 oz. (80g) butter, at room temperature
1 medium egg
1 pinch of salt
For the streusels:
3/4 cup (150g) raw cane sugar
5.3 oz. (150g) all-purpose flour
3.5 oz. (100g) cold butter
1 pinch of salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
For the topping:
35–42 oz. (1-1,2kg) damson plums
Instructions
1. Sift the flour for the dough into a large bowl. Make a small depression in the center and crumble the yeast into it. Add a bit of sugar to the yeast and mix with a bit of the lukewarm milk to create a pre-dough. Cover the bowl and let rise in a warm place for about 10-15 minutes.
2. For the streusels, mix flour, sugar, salt, and ground cinnamon in a bowl. Add the cold butter in small pieces. Rub everything between your fingers to get different-sized streusels. Place the streusels in the fridge until needed.
3. Add the remaining milk, sugar, butter, egg, and a pinch of salt to the bowl with the flour and pre-dough and mix everything and knead until you get a smooth dough. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for about 30 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F). While the dough rises, wash, dry, pit, and quarter the plums lengthwise. Line a baking sheet or two round baking tins (Ø10 inches) with baking parchment. Roll out the dough and place it on the baking sheet or in the baking tins, forming a small border along the edges. Place the plums tightly next to each other on the dough and distribute the streusels evenly on top. Bake the cake(s) for about 28-30 minutes until the streusels got some color – the edges should not get too dark though. Remove the cake(s) from the oven and let cool down on a wire rack.
Notes
Have fun in the kitchen!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 24
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I love my job, but in between I love to bake and try new things in the kitchen. A lot of my friends and colleagues encourage me to bake - for a very simple reason: they get the leftovers - and it seems they like it most of the time ;) 
