Cakes and Cupcakes

Bienenstich – German Bee Sting Cake

Bienenstich Kuchen a.k.a Bee Sting Cake is a traditional German yeasted bake with a crunchy almond topping and sweet custard filling. An absolutely delicious dessert that’s well worth the effort

Serves 12 – 16 servings
Prep 20 minutes
Cook 40 minutes
Total 2 hours

Jump to the recipe

Check out my Lebkuchen – Traditional German Cookies 🙂

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I am SUCH A HUGE FAN of the Great British Bake Off – in many ways I credit this show for pushing me to start this blog.

The show inspired me to try unusual and complicated bakes that wouldn’t normally be on my radar, like this amazing Bee Sting Cake! Intrigued? Read on!

What Is Bee Sting Cake?

Bienenstich Kuchen is German for Bee Sting Cake. It is a traditional German yeasted cake filled with creamy custard and topped with the most addictive crunchy honeyed almond topping.

The cake itself is not particularly sweet, but the creamy filling and almond brittle topping make it beautifully balanced – it is basically heaven on a plate 🙂

Large Bienenstich cake on a plate with big slice cut out to show the filling

Bee Sting Cake Ingredients

Bienenstich comprises of three distinct elements: the cake, the almond topping and the custard filling. It may sound complicated but I promise it is easy to make, if a bit time consuming. Here’s what you will need:

For the cake: plain /all purpose flour, instant yeast, salt, milk, butter, eggs and honey (putting the bee in bienenstich!). I also added little almond extract and vanilla bean paste.

Crunchy almond topping: butter, sugar, honey, flaked almonds, cream and salt.

For the filling: the filling is either homemade egg custard or a custard made using custard powder.

bee sting cake with crunchy almond topping

How to Make German Bee Sting Cake

↓ For the full ingredients and detailed method, jump to the recipe card.

Make the Dough

Put the flour, instant yeast and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix with the dough hook until just combined. Alternatively add the ingredients to a large mixing bowl and use electric hand mixer as in my video.

Combine the milk, melted or softened butter, eggs, honey and almond extract in a measuring jug. With the mixer running on low speed, add the egg mixture to the flour and mix until just combined.

Increase the speed and beat the dough until it becomes smooth and elastic. Mist the bowl with a little oil, cover with a towel and let the dough rise until almost doubled – this can take up to 2 hours.

Mist an 8 inch spring form cake tin with cake release and line the bottom with baking paper. Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured work top and knock it back gently. Shape it into a ball and transfer into the prepared tin.

Brush the top with a little melted butter, cover, and let it rise for 45 minutes.

Prepare the Almond Topping

Put all the ingredients except the almonds into a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Let it bubble away for five minutes, stirring frequently, until it turns a little darker. Take off the heat and mix in the flaked almonds. Cool slightly before using.

Bake the Bee Sting Cake

Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F. Spread the almond topping over the cake – don’t worry if it looks a bit messy as it will melt in the oven.

German bienenstich kuchen ready to be baked

Place the cake pan on a heavy baking tray lined with a silicone mat to catch any spills. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean and the top feels firm and springy. Cool completely before filling.

Prepare the Filling

Place the custard powder, sugar, vanilla paste and a little milk in a saucepan and stir to make a paste. Gradually add the remaining milk while stirring over low heat, until the custard thickens.

Stir in the butter until it melts and the filling is smooth. Cover with cling film directly on the custard to prevent a skin forming and chill in the fridge until firm.

collage showing how to make custard filling

Assemble the Cake

Slice the cake in half (or in three layers). Pipe the custard over the cake, level and sandwich with the top layer.

Sprinkle with a little icing sugar, slice and enjoy with a cup of coffee or tea as a treat.

Recipe Tips

We are using instant (rapid rise) yeast in this recipe – this type of dried yeast doesn’t require activation, you simply mix it in with the flour.
The cake is best eaten as soon as you fill it. It will keep for a couple of days in the refrigerator but the cold air may turn the cake a bit dry.
Prepare the filling up to a day in advance to allow it to cool down and become firm.
Allow yourself plenty of time to make the cake as it requires about two hours to rise overall.
Check the recipe card notes if you want to make custard filling from scratch. You will need to prep this a day in advance to plan accordingly!

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HAVE YOU MADE MY BIENENSTICH RECIPE? Post a photo on my Facebook page, share it on Instagram, or save it to Pinterest with the tag #Nusde. I can’t wait to see your take on it!

Recipe

Bienenstich Kuchen – German Bee Sting Cake

Bienenstich Kuchen a.k.a Bee Sting Cake is a traditional German yeasted bake with a crunchy almond topping and sweet custard filling. An absolutely delicious dessert that's well worth the effort.

Serves 12 – 16 servings
Prep 20 minutes
Cook 40 minutes
Total 2 hours

Ingredients

For the cake

3 ⅔ cups (460g) all-purpose flour (plus more for dusting)
2 tsp instant yeast (the type suitable for bread makers)
1 tsp salt
3 eggs
½ cup (120ml) whole milk
¼ cup (60ml) honey
1 tsp almond extract
6 tbsp unsalted butter (softened or melted)
2 tbsp unsalted butter (melted, to brush over cake)

For the topping

6 tbsp unsalted butter
⅓ cup + 1 tbsp (75g) granulated sugar
3 tbsp honey
2 tbsp heavy cream ((= double cream))
100 g (1 ¼) flaked almonds
pinch sea salt

For the custard cream

⅔ cup (80g) custard powder ((vanilla pudding mix))
3 cups + 2 tbsp (750ml) whole milk
½ cup (100g) sugar
2 tsp vanilla bean paste
8 tbsp unsalted butter

Method

MAKE THE DOUGH

1
Put the flour, instant yeast and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix with the dough hook until just combined. Alternatively add the ingredients to a large mixing bowl and use electric hand mixer as in my video.
2
Combine the milk, melted or softened butter, eggs, honey and almond extract in a measuring jug. With the mixer running on low speed, add the egg mixture to the flour and mix until just combined.
3
Increase the speed and beat the dough until it becomes smooth and elastic. Mist the bowl with a little oil or brush the dough with melted butter, cover with a towel and let the dough rise until almost doubled – this can take up to 2 hours.
4
Mist an 8 inch spring form cake tin with cake release and line the bottom with baking paper. Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured work top and knock it back gently.
5
Shape it into a ball and transfer into the prepared tin. Brush the top with a little melted butter, cover, and let it rise for 45 minutes.

PREPARE THE ALMOND TOPPING

6
Put all the ingredients except the almonds into a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Let it bubble away for five minutes, stirring frequently, until it turns a little darker. Take off the heat and mix in the flaked almonds. Cool slightly before using.

BAKE THE BEE STING CAKE

7
Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Spread the almond topping over the cake – don’t worry if it looks a bit messy as it will melt in the oven.
8
Place the cake pan on a heavy baking tray lined with a silicone mat to catch any spills. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean and the top feels firm and springy. Cool completely before filling.

PREPARE THE FILLING

9
Place the custard powder, sugar, vanilla paste and a little milk in a saucepan and stir to make a paste. Gradually add the remaining milk while stirring over low heat, until the custard thickens.
10
Stir in the butter until it melts and the filling is smooth. Cover with cling film directly on the custard to prevent a skin forming and chill in the fridge until firm.

ASSEMBLE THE CAKE

11
Slice the cake in half (or in three layers). Pipe the custard over the cake, level and sandwich with he top layer. Sprinkle with a little icing sugar, slice and enjoy!

Notes

We are using instant (rapid rise) yeast in this recipe – this type of dried yeast doesn’t require activation, you simply mix it in with the flour. The cake is best eaten as soon as you fill it. It will keep for a couple of days in the refrigerator but the cold air may turn the cake a bit dry. Prepare the filling up to a day in advance to allow it to cool down and become firm. Allow yourself plenty of time to make the cake as it requires about two hours to rise overall. CUSTARD FROM SCRATCH This is the filling used in the original recipe before the update. You will need to prepare this ideally a day in advance as it needs several hours to cool. Filling Ingredients 1 ½ cups (375ml) whole milk 1 tsp vanilla paste 4 large egg yolks ½ cup (100g) light brown sugar 2 tbsp cornflour (= cornstarch) 2 tbsp unsalted butter ¾ cup (180ml) cold double cream (= heavy cream) 1 cup (120g) icing sugar powdered sugar Method Whisk the sugar, corn flour and egg yolks together – either by hand or a mixer – until smooth. In a saucepan over medium heat, warm the milk and vanilla until small bubbles appear along the edge of the pan. Slowly pour the hot milk into the egg mixture while whisking. Pour back into the saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, for about 4 minutes until cream comes to a boil and thickens. Pour cream through a fine sieve into a bowl and stir in the butter. Cover with cling film, pressing it directly on the cream. Make a small hole to allow steam to escape and put in the fridge overnight or for at least 6 hours. The following day (or once custard is thoroughly chilled) whip the cold double cream with the icing sugar until you have firm peaks. Fold the whipped cream into the custard – only using enough to lighten the cream but be careful not to make too soft or it will ooze out of the cake. Keep chilled until needed.