Bienenstich
Germany's bee-sting cake: a soft yeasted base crowned with a caramelised honey-butter-almond top that hardens to brittle. Split and filled with vanilla cream.
Overview
A milk-and-butter enriched yeast dough proves to soft and pillowy. A honey-almond topping (butter, honey, sugar, cream, flaked almonds) cooks on the stovetop until thickly bubbling, then spreads on the proved dough and bakes together: the dough rises, the topping caramelises golden and chewy. Once cooled, the cake splits horizontally and fills with thick vanilla pastry cream (Konditorcreme) lightened with whipped cream.
Ingredients
Yeast dough
- 350 g strong white flour
- 7 g instant dried yeast (1 sachet)
- 50 g caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 150 ml warm whole milk
- 1 egg (large)
- 60 g unsalted butter (soft)
Honey-almond topping
- 80 g unsalted butter
- 80 g caster sugar
- 3 tablespoons runny honey
- 60 ml double cream
- 120 g flaked almonds
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- A pinch of salt
Vanilla pastry cream filling
- 500 ml whole milk
- 1 vanilla pod (split and scraped), or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 5 egg yolks (large)
- 100 g caster sugar
- 40 g cornflour
- 50 g unsalted butter
- 250 ml double cream (very cold)
Method
Stage 1 - Make the dough
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, yeast, sugar and salt.
- Beat the warm milk and egg together; pour into the flour.
- Mix with a wooden spoon until shaggy, then turn out and knead 8-10 minutes until smooth and elastic.
- Knead in the soft butter, piece by piece, until fully incorporated and the dough is silky.
- Cover; prove in a warm place 1 hour until doubled.
Stage 2 - Pastry cream (make ahead, needs to cool)
- Bring the milk and vanilla pod (and seeds) almost to a boil in a heavy pan.
- Whisk the yolks, sugar and cornflour in a bowl until pale.
- Pour the hot milk slowly onto the yolks, whisking, then return to the pan.
- Cook on medium heat, whisking constantly, until very thick (3-4 minutes). It should mound on the whisk.
- Off heat, whisk in the butter (and vanilla extract if not using a pod).
- Press cling film directly onto the surface; cool completely, then chill at least 1 hour.
Stage 3 - Shape and second prove
- Line a 24 cm round springform tin with parchment.
- Knock back the dough; press evenly into the tin.
- Cover; prove 30 minutes in a warm place until puffy.
Stage 4 - Topping
- Combine the butter, sugar, honey and cream in a small pan.
- Bring to a gentle boil; cook 2-3 minutes, stirring, until thickened slightly and a uniform pale gold.
- Off heat, stir in the flaked almonds, vanilla and salt.
- Cool 5 minutes so it spreads without deflating the dough.
Stage 5 - Bake
- Heat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan).
- Spread the warm (not hot) topping evenly over the proved dough.
- Bake 30-35 minutes until the topping is deep golden and the dough is cooked through (a skewer in the dough comes out clean).
- Cool 15 minutes in the tin; release; cool completely on a rack.
Stage 6 - Cream filling
- Whip the very cold double cream to soft peaks.
- Whisk the chilled pastry cream smooth (it firms up; a beat brings it back).
- Fold the whipped cream into the pastry cream in three additions. The filling should be thick but airy.
Stage 7 - Fill
- Slice the cooled cake horizontally with a long serrated knife: through the middle.
- Tip: cut the almond top into 10 wedges first while the bottom is still whole. Then split horizontally. This lets you fill the soft bottom and replace the pre-cut top neatly.
- Spoon the cream filling onto the bottom; smooth.
- Replace the wedged top; press very lightly so cream just shows at the edges.
- Chill at least 1 hour before serving.
Notes
- Pre-cut the top before filling: The almond topping shatters if you try to slice a finished cake. Cutting the top into wedges first, then assembling, gives clean slices.
- Don't overcook the topping on the stove: Stop while it's still pourable. It will fully caramelise in the oven.
- Filling balance: All-pastry-cream is too dense; all-whipped-cream collapses. The 2:1 ratio gives the right pillow.
Variations
Quick filling: Just sweetened whipped cream or whipped cream folded into ready-made custard. Individual Bienenstich: Bake as buns; split and fill each one. Bakery-counter classic.
Serving
Serve cold from the fridge but let slices sit 10 minutes so the cream softens slightly. With strong coffee.
Storage
- Keeps 2 days refrigerated, covered.
- Doesn't freeze well once filled (cream weeps); unfilled cake freezes 1 month.
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