German Crumb Cake Recipe – Oma's Streuselkuchen With Apple

by: Gerhild Fulson  / Oma Gerhild shares easy, authentic German recipes you can trust, rooted in family tradition and featured in her cookbooks.

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Oma's Crumb Cake Recipe ~ German Streuselkuchen With Apple

German crumb cake recipes, aka Streuselkuchen, are quick and delicious treats to make for your family and friends. These traditional cakes, which are so easy to make, look so pretty, too.

Traditionally, the German Streusel cake you find in a German bakery is made with a yeast dough. This one isn't. That means it's quicker to make and easier for those who struggle with yeast dough. And, it's SO good!

The fruit and flavorings can be changed to provide variation. What doesn't change though for making crumb cakes, is the standard streusel warning below!

For variety, you can use different fruit and flavorings; apple slices nestled under the crumbly topping taste so good, but peach slices, pear slices, halved plums, or pitted cherries are also delicious.

Even just jam works in a pinch. You'll be able to create various crumb cakes this way.

What is needed though, is a cup of coffee and that dollop of whipped cream served on the side. In Germany, everything is better with whipped cream! Or, be a rebel and add a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Yum!

Want streusel cake Made With Yeast?

If you like working with yeast, then you'll want to go to this recipe for my German Peach Cake with Streusel shown below.

Go to recipe made with yeast >

The above recipe uses a bread machine to make quick work of the dough, but it has a link to use a stand mixer if you prefer. Check it out.

Some quick tips ...

• Crumb cakes are great when you need easy dessert ideas. 
• Most mix up quickly using a mixer. Others use a yeast base, but these can usually be made using a bread machine to speed things up.
• By the time the oven preheats, you'll have finished making the cake.
• The only real time is preparing the fruit, unless you use canned fruit. Then you just need to make sure you drain it well.

Standard streusel Warning :) 

• A warning though - the crumb topping is so delicious, if you have kids (or a husband) around, they will try to sneak some of the small pieces of streusel crumbs off the cake while it is cooling (and even before it is baked)!
• I admit that I always sneak some, both before and after!

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How to make a Streusel Crumb Mixture:

Generally speaking, streusel is an easy recipe made using all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, and cold butter in a ratio of 2:1:1. That means, 2 cups flour to every 1 cup sugar and 1 cup butter. That's really the easiest way to remember this.

There are, of course, variations.

• One can substitute some brown sugar for the granulated.
• Using melted butter is also an option. It works easier, but the resulting crumbs are a bit more 'crispy'. Actually, my hubby likes this way best. Why not try it this way next time you make streusel and see if you like it? Just melt the butter in a microwave and stir into the flour/sugar mixture.

Types of Apples to use for baking...

If I'm making an apple crumb cake recipe, or actually most apple recipes, I'll use whatever type of apple I have on hand, although Mackintosh, Golden Delicious, and Mutsu are especially tasty.

I also like using Granny Smith - my all-time favorite apple for both eating and baking apple cake!

How Easy is it to Make Streuselkuchen?
This easy:

This recipe has NONE of this: “yeast mixture” or “let the dough rise at a warm room temperature in a draft-free place” or make sure you're using “active dry yeast or should that be instant yeast”!

Instead, it's as simple as:

1. Gather all your ingredients. 

Ingredients for Apple Streuselkuchen

These are just simple pantry ingredients along with a couple of apples from your crisper. Use any variety you have. Easy Peasy.

2. Grab your kitchen machine, a hand mixer, or just your big wooden spoon and get mixing.

Mix batter for Streusel Cake

Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl, and then beat in the eggs. Mix the dry ingredients together and add alternately to the bowl along with the milk.

3. And, after a few minutes, your dough is done. You'll notice it's quite a thick dough, and that's how it should be. Spoon it into a prepared baking pan. Use an offset spatula to help spread it into all the corners.

Spread batter in pan for streusel cake

Once it's all nice and even, prepare your apples.

4, Peel and slice them and layer them over the top of the dough. Don't be too concerned about how they look. You can shingle them in rows. However, once they are covered by the streusel, you won't see your handiwork.

Cover cake batter with apples

Just make sure the apple slices are in an even layer. If you wanted to, you can use pear or peach slices, or even a combination of these. Halved and pitted plums as well as pitted cherries make wonderful substitutions, as well.

5. Then make your streusel. Either use the cold butter and hands method, or melt the butter and mix into the flour and sugar mixture with a fork.

Make the streusel

Above, you'll see I used the melted butter method. It goes so much quicker, and we actually like the results better.

However, to be totally traditional, use the cold butter and hands method. 

6. Use your hands to break up the streusel pieces and crumble it over the fruit.

Cover cake with streusel

Once you have evenly covered the entire cake with the streusel, the cake is ready to be put into the oven. Oh, you can also sprinkle with some sliced almonds, if you wish.

7. Bake until it has a lovely golden, browned top. 

Streusekuchen right out of the oven

Remove from the oven and let cool for at least 10 minutes before you cut into it.

It really does taste best warm from the oven, but it's also a treat served at room temperature. 

Yummy with freshly whipped cream or ice cream.

Ready to make Oma's Streuselkuchen Recipe?

Print Recipe

German Crumb Cake Recipe – Oma's Streuselkuchen With Apple

German crumb cake recipes, aka Streuselkuchen, are quick and delicious treats to make for your family and friends. These traditional cakes, which are so easy to make, look so pretty, too.

Traditionally, the German Streusel cake you find in a German bakery is made with a yeast dough. This one isn't. That means it's quicker to make and easier for those who struggle with yeast dough

Prep Time 15 minutes

Bake Time 45 minutes

Total Time 60 minutes

Servings:

Makes 16 servings

Ingredients:

Cake Ingredients:

• ½ cup (114 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups (260 grams) all-purpose flour 
• ¼ teaspoon (1.5 grams) salt
• 1½ teaspoon (6 grams) baking powder
• 1 tablespoon (6 grams) grated lemon zest
• ½ cup (120 milliliter) milk
• 1 pound (454 grams) apples or other fruit, sliced

Streusel Topping Ingredients:

• 1¼ cups (163 grams) all-purpose flour 
• ¾ cup (150 grams) granulated sugar
• ¾ cup (171 grams) cold unsalted butter 

Instructions:

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease a rimmed 9x13-inch baking sheet or two 9-inch springform pans and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and beat. In another bowl, blend flour, salt, baking powder, and lemon zest together. Add flour mixture a little at a time to the butter mixture, alternating with the milk. Mix well after each addition until the flour mixture and milk are all used up.
3. Spread cake batter in greased pan. Arrange apples on top of batter in slightly overlapping rows.

To make Streusel Topping:

1. In a small bowl, combine flour and sugar. 
2. Using 2 knives or a pastry blender cut in butter until mixture resembles large crumbs.
3. Sprinkle over apples.
4. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until golden brown on top and a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.
5. Cool cake in pan on a wire rack. Delicious when served warm.
6. Tastes great served with whipped cream!

Notes/Hints:

• Instead of lemon zest, add 1 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract.
• Instead of using knives or pastry blender, I just use my hands to quickly rub the butter into the flour/sugar mixture.
• Usually I put apple slices under the streusel. However, peach slices, pear slices, halved plums, or pitted fresh cherries would be delicious. Even jam works! You can even just sprinkle dough with streusel and omit the fruit completely.
• Line the baking tray with parchment paper, if desired.
• If you're using canned fruit, drain it well before using.

*  *  *  *  *

Unless otherwise noted recipe, images and content © Just like Oma | www.quick-german-recipes.com

07.28.2024 revision update

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Hi, I'm Oma Gerhild! As a food writer and cookbook author, I'm always looking to find ways to pass on my German heritage using local ingredients. Quick and easy. That's my goal. Wunderbar food. That's the result.