
Plum Crumb Cream Cheese Cake
Posted on October 08, 2020
Recipe borrowed from Chefkoch and modified.
A traditional german crumb cake with plums and a cream cheese layer addition! A cake full of flavours and textures, with juicy fresh plums! It consists of a moist vanilla cake, a creamy and a little bit sour cream cheese layer covered by juicy and sweet plums and ends up with a sweet and crunchy cinnamon crumble. A must cake to do when the plums are in season (even if this recipe goes really well also with frozen plums and other fresh fruits like apricots and berries).
Crumb cakes (Streuselkuchen) are very popular in Germany. And when it comes to plum season the ultimate cake becomes plum crumb cake! Almost before the plum season to be over, I decided to make this delicious plum crumb cake with a cream cheese layer. I tasted this cake some years ago, while I was doing my Masters in Zurich. It was a lovely late summer afternoon at the lake of Zurich, where a fellow student of mine had just baked this amazing cake! I fell in love with the recipe! The sweet and juicy plums, the creamy cheese layer and the crunchy crumbs made the ultimate experience! I asked for the recipe right away and I adopted it. However, the original recipe at Chefkoch, which is a german recipe, uses the traditional german soft and creamy cheese Quark for the cream cheese layer. Since now I live in Greece and it is difficult to find Quark, I substituted it with cream cheese.
This recipe consists of 3 parts: the vanilla cake, the cream cheese layer along with the plums and the crumb. The ingredients are basic ingredients that you have in your kitchen (butter, flour, sugar, eggs, cream cheese, vanilla, salt, baking powder, corn starch, lemon and ground cinnamon) and of course fresh plums! The plums should be halved and pitted. Frozen plums can also be used in this recipe.

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Start by melting the butter for the cake and the crumb and let it come to room temperature. Meanwhile preheat the oven at 170°C (340°F) fan forced and place a rack in the middle of the oven. Use a pinch of the melted butter and a pastry brush to butter a round 22cm (9 inch) pan (or tart pan) with loose bottom.
For the cake, mix well in a bowl the flour along with the baking powder and the salt and set it aside. In the bowl of you electric stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment beat the melted butter and the sugar in low-medium speed for 1 minute. Add the eggs one at time and beat well after each addition. Add the flour mixture and beat in low speed just until incorporated. Do not over beat, else you will end up with a stiff cake. Scrape down the sides of the bowl using a rubber spatula and incorporate gently any remaining flour with circular motions. Pour the cake batter into the buttered pan and spread it evenly using a spatula. You can tap and shake the pan to remove any air and help spreading and flattening the batter in the pan and set aside.
For the cream cheese, layer beat in the bowl of your electric stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment the cream cheese in low-medium speed until fluffy (about 30''). Add the sugar and beat in low-medium speed for more 30''. Do not over beat, else the cream cheese will become runny. Add the egg and beat well. Add the vanilla extract and the salt and beat just until incorporated. Add the lemon juice, the lemon zest, the corn starch and the salt (you can also mix the corn starch with the lemon juice and then add it into the cream cheese mixture) and beat in low speed until incorporated. The cream cheese mixture should become thicker while beating, however do not over beat it. Pour the cream cheese mixture on top of the cake batter and flatten it using a spatula.
Now it is time for the plums! Place the halved and pitted plums facing down evenly on top of the cream cheese mixture. I like to place them in concentric circles, but feel free to place them however you like, as soon as they are evenly placed. Set aside.
For the crumb, add in a big mixing bowl the flour along with the granulated sugar and the ground cinnamon. Whisk well to combine. Slowly pour the melted butter and use a fork to mix it gently with the dry ingredients. The mixture should have sandy texture and be crumby. With your hands sprinkle the crumb evenly over the plums.
Bake in the preheated oven on the middle rack for 35' - 40'. Do not over bake else your cake will become dry. Once ready let cool on a wire rack before removing the sides of the pan. Serve at room temperature and store the cake in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Enjoy!
Plum Crumb Cream Cheese Cake
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30'
Preparation Time
40'
Cooking Time
10 portions
Servings
Ingredients
Cake
90 gr butter, unsalted and melted
80 gr white granulated sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
175 gr all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Cream Cheese Layer
380 gr cream cheese, at room temperature
75 gr granulated white sugar
1 egg, at room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
juice and zest of half lemon
40 gr corn starch
14 ( 400 gr ) ripe plums, halved and pitted
Crumb
125 gr all purpose flour
70 gr white granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
60 gr butter, unsalted and melted
Instructions
Cake
Preheat the oven at 170°C (340°F) fan forced and place a rack in the middle of the oven.
Butter a 22cm round pan or tart pan with loose bottom. To butter the pan you can use a pastry brush and a pinch of the melted butter used for the cake batter.
In a bowl mix well the flour along with the baking powder and the salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of you electric stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment beat the melted butter and the sugar in low-medium speed for 1 minute.
Add the eggs one at time and beat well after each addition.
Add the flour mixture and beat in low speed just until incorporated. Do not over beat, else you will end up with a stiff cake. Scrape down the sides of the bowl using a rubber spatula and incorporate gently any remaining flour with circular motions.
Pour the cake batter into the buttered pan and spread it evenly using a spatula. You can tap and shake the pan to remove any air and help spreading and flattening the batter in the pan. Set aside.
Cream Cheese Layer
In the bowl of your electric stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment beat in low-medium the cream cheese for 30''.
Add the sugar and beat for 30'' in medium-low speed. Do not over beat, else the cream cheese will get a runny texture.
Add the egg and beat well.
Add the vanilla extract and the salt and beat just until incorporated.
Add the lemon juice, the lemon zest, the corn starch and the salt (you can also mix the corn starch with the lemon juice and then add it into the cream cheese mixture) and beat in low speed until incorporated and get a little bit thicker.
Pour the cream cheese mixture on top of the cake batter and flatten it using a spatula.
Place evenly on top of the cream cheese mixture the halved plums facing down. Set aside.
Crumb
In a big mixing bowl add the flour along with the granulated sugar and the ground cinnamon. Whisk well to combine.
Slowly pour the melted butter and use a fork to mix it with the dry ingredients. The mixture should have sandy texture and be crumby.
With your hands sprinkle the crumb evenly over the plums.
Bake in preheated oven on the middle rack for 35' - 40'.
Once ready let cool on a wire rack before removing from the pan. Serve at room temperature.
Store the cake in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Feel free to use other fruits than plums, like apricots or fresh berries!
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