Bienenstich — German bee sting cake

i. Origin & history

Bienenstich is a cake of the German bakery tradition, and it is found in every region of Germany and across Austria and German-speaking Switzerland. Like many old bakery cakes, it has no documented inventor. Its structure — a yeasted Blechkuchen (tray cake) with a rich topping — is typical of the cakes German bakers have produced for centuries, and the version with a cream filling became the norm during the twentieth century, as refrigeration made custard-filled cakes practical in shops.

Why is it called Bienenstich? The best-known story places it in the Rhineland in the fifteenth century. The bakers of Andernach, the legend goes, repelled raiders from the neighbouring town of Linz am Rhein by hurling beehives at them from the town walls, and celebrated their victory with a honey-topped cake named after the stings. The story is a charming local tradition rather than history. A simpler explanation, also widely repeated, is that a baker was stung by a bee drawn to the honey topping. Either way, the name points to the cake's defining feature: honey.

Bienenstich is not tied to a particular holiday. It is an everyday cake for Kaffee und Kuchen, the German ritual of afternoon coffee and cake, especially on Sundays, and it appears at birthdays, christenings, village fêtes and family gatherings. Bakeries sell it by the slice, and it is one of the most common cakes on the counter alongside Black Forest gâteau, Käsekuchen and Donauwelle.

The name translates directly as 'bee sting', and in English-speaking countries it is often sold as 'bee sting cake'. Australia, which has a large German heritage community, adopted it enthusiastically, and it is a familiar cake in Australian bakeries.

ii. How the honey-almond crust forms

The topping is the soul of the cake. It is a simple caramel-like mixture: butter, sugar, honey and a little cream are boiled together briefly, the flaked almonds are stirred in, and the mixture is spread over the risen dough before it is baked. In the oven, the sugar in the topping continues to cook, caramelising and setting into a crunchy, golden, almond-studded crust — essentially a Florentine biscuit baked on top of a bread.

The cream matters as much as the honey. A small amount of dairy changes the topping from hard, brittle toffee into a softer, chewier caramel that can be cut cleanly with a knife. Boiling the mixture for a minute or two before adding the almonds starts the sugar cooking, so that it sets properly in the time the dough takes to bake. If the mixture is not boiled, the topping can stay runny and soak into the dough.

The dough is a lightly enriched yeast dough, similar to a brioche but much less rich. It must rise properly before the topping goes on, because the heavy topping weighs it down; an under-proved dough bakes dense and heavy under the crust. Pricking the dough with a fork before spreading the topping stops large bubbles from lifting it.

The final challenge is the filling. Vanilla pastry cream on its own is too heavy and sets firm; folding in whipped cream or a little butter makes a lighter, smoother Vanillecreme that holds its shape without being stiff. Many German bakers also cut the top layer into portions before putting it on the filling: otherwise the crisp crust forces the soft cream out of the sides when the cake is cut.

iii. Ingredients

Makes 12 servings · scroll the side panel to adjust

• 250 g plain flour (dough)
• 30 g caster sugar (dough)
• 7 g instant dried yeast
• 125 ml lukewarm whole milk (dough)
• 1 egg, room temperature
• 50 g soft unsalted butter (dough)
• 1 pinch salt
• 75 g unsalted butter (topping)
• 75 g caster sugar (topping)
• 2 tbsp runny honey
• 3 tbsp double cream (topping)
• 125 g flaked almonds
• 500 ml whole milk (filling)
• 80 g caster sugar (filling)
• 40 g cornflour
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 tsp vanilla extract, or seeds of ½ vanilla pod
• 200 ml double cream, for whipping (filling)

A mild, runny honey such as acacia or blossom honey gives the classic flavour without overpowering the almonds; strong dark honeys can taste bitter once caramelised. Use flaked almonds, not chopped, so they lie flat and form an even crust. Many German home bakers use a packet of vanilla custard powder (Vanillepuddingpulver) for the filling; the cornflour and yolk custard here is the from-scratch equivalent. For a firmer, more traditional bakery filling, some recipes beat the cooled custard into softened butter to make a German buttercream instead of folding in whipped cream.

iv. Method

1. Mix the flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Add the warm milk, egg and soft butter and knead for 8–10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Cover and leave to rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, until doubled.
2. Make the custard: heat 400 ml of the milk with the sugar. Whisk the remaining 100 ml milk with the cornflour, yolks and vanilla, pour in the hot milk while whisking, return to the pan and cook, whisking, until thick and bubbling for 1 minute. Press cling film onto the surface and cool completely.
3. Line the base of a 24 cm springform tin with baking paper and butter the sides. Roll the dough to a round and press it evenly into the tin. Prick all over with a fork, cover and prove for 20–30 minutes.
4. Heat the oven to 180 °C (350 °F), conventional heat. For the topping, melt the butter, sugar, honey and cream in a small pan, bring to the boil and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring. Stir in the almonds and leave to cool for 5 minutes.
5. Spread the almond topping evenly over the risen dough with the back of a spoon. Bake for 25–30 minutes, until the topping is a deep golden caramel colour and a skewer comes out of the dough clean. Cool completely on a rack.
6. Whip the cream to soft peaks. Beat the cold custard until smooth, then fold in the cream.
7. Slice the cake horizontally with a long bread knife. Cut the top half into 12 wedges. Return the base to the springform ring, spread the filling over it, and lay the wedges back on top.
8. Chill for at least 1 hour, until the filling has set, before releasing the ring and serving.

v. Tips & common mistakes

• Boil the topping before adding the almonds. Two minutes of simmering is enough to start the caramel. Skip it and the topping can soak into the dough instead of forming a crunchy crust.
• Let the topping cool slightly. Spread hot, it deflates the risen dough; after five minutes it is thick enough to spread without sinking.
• Watch the colour in the last ten minutes. Honey caramelises quickly. If the crust is browning before the dough is cooked, cover loosely with foil.
• Cut the top into wedges before assembling. This is the bakery trick. A whole crust cannot be cut through without squashing the filling out of the sides.
• Use completely cold custard. Warm custard melts the whipped cream and the filling turns runny, sliding out between the layers.
• Do not make the dough too rich. It should be a light, bready base that contrasts with the sweet crust and creamy filling. A heavily buttered brioche makes the whole cake cloying.

vi. Variations

The most common variation is in the filling. Many bakeries use a German buttercream made by beating custard into softened butter; others use plain whipped cream set with gelatine, or a vanilla pudding cream made from custard powder. Some home bakers make Bienenstich vom Blech, baked in a rectangular tray and cut into squares for a crowd.

A quick Bienenstich uses a sponge or quark-and-oil dough instead of yeast dough, which is faster but loses the bready texture. There are also cake-shop versions with fruit — apricots or cherries — under the cream. The honey-almond topping itself is closely related to the Florentine biscuit and to the topping on the Danish drømmekage, which uses coconut and brown sugar instead. For a less elaborate German yeast cake, try poppy-seed Mohnkuchen or the Dutch butter cake boterkoek.

vii. Serving & storage

Bienenstich is served cold or cool, cut into wedges or squares, with coffee in the afternoon. It needs no accompaniment; the contrast between the crunchy crust, soft dough and cool cream is the point of the cake.

Because of the cream filling, it must be kept in the refrigerator, covered, and eaten within two days. The crust gradually softens in the fridge as it absorbs moisture. To make it ahead, bake the cake and topping up to a day in advance and store at room temperature, well wrapped, then fill a few hours before serving. The unfilled cake freezes well for up to two months; filled Bienenstich does not freeze well, as the custard weeps on thawing.

ix. More from Austrian & German

• Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte — Black Forest gâteau
• Donauwelle — Danube wave cake
• Käsekuchen — German quark cheesecake
• Mohnkuchen — poppy-seed cake
• Drømmekage — Danish dream cake
• Boterkoek — Dutch butter cake