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The fermented (or yeast-based) dough is probably my favorite base to lay delicious toppings on. There is nothing that can beat a freshly baked, deliciously smelling cake with hot, still bubbling fruits on top. The characteristic of the fermented dough is a very flavorful crumb and fluffy texture, that you can enhance even more if you substitute a part of white flour with a variety of flours like spelt, buckwheat or oat flour

The great thing about this recipe is that the dough is very universal and goes well with a wide variety of toppings – be it fruits (fresh or canned), cheese (ricotta, quark…), fillings like poppy seeds or rich fruit jams or marmalades. Version with plums, sweet cheese and streusel was my Grandma’s classic and I like to use plums in particular anytime they’re available. If plums are not available or in season, you can easily substitute plums with whatever ripe & juicy fruit you have (like apricots, peaches, cherries, etc.) or use some quality jam on top instead of fruits

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INGREDIENTS

(makes 8×8 inch-size cake)

Dough

150g Whole Wheat or Spelt Flour

50g AP Flour

100g – 120g Whole Milk

40g Butter, unsalted & softened

12g Fresh/ 5g Active Dry Yeasts

40g Sugar, white

1 Egg Yolk, bigger

A Pinch of Cinnamon & Salt

Sweet Cheese Filling

200g Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese or Quark Cheese

30 – 50g Sugar

1/2 Teaspoon of Cinnamon

Lemon Zest from 1/2 Lemon

1 Tablespoon of Rum-soaked Raisins (optional)

1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Streusel

20g Butter, unsalted

1 Tablespoon of Sugar

2 Tablespoons of Flour

1 Tablespoon of Walnuts, ground

A Pinch of Cinnamon

Other

~ 400g of Plums, ripe & sweet

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METHOD

1. Dough: In a small bowl combine together 50g of Milk with 10g of Sugar. Microwave this mixture for ~ 30 seconds until warm (not boiling). Add 12g Fresh or 5g Active Dry Yeasts and stir with a teaspoon. Cover with a plate/ plastic wrap and let your yeasts activate for ~ 15 minutes. In the meantime, combine the rest of the ingredients for the dough in a mixing bowl (50g AP Flour, 150g Whole Wheat/ Spelt Flour, 30g Sugar, a Pinch of Salt & Cinnamon, 70g Milk, 1 Egg Yolk and 40g softened Butter). Add (now frothy) Yeast Mixture and start kneading either with your hand or with a hook attachment on your standing mixer for ~ 8-10 minutes. Cover the dough with a clean towel and let it prove and rise at room temperature for approximately 1 hour or until almost double in size. Covering the bowl with a blanket will keep it warm & speed up the proving process

2. Ricotta Filling: For the filling mix all ingredients together in a small bowl – 200g Ricotta Cheese or Quark, 30g Sugar, 1/2 Teaspoon of Cinnamon, Zest from 1/2 Lemon and 1 Tablespoon of Rum-soaked Raisins. If your ricotta is rather more liquid, add a teaspoon of flour to absorb excess moisture

3. Streusel: Melt 30g of Butter in a small bowl. Once melted (still warm but not hot!), add 2 Tablespoons of Flour, 1 Tablespoon of ground Walnuts and a 1 Tablespoon of Sugar. Combine roughly with your fingertips to get a crumbly texture. Option – you can add 1/2 Teaspoon of Cinnamon to your streusel as well

4. Cut the fruits: Simply chop your fruit into smaller cubs (no stone in). Option – if fruits are less ripe and rather sour, coat them in a tablespoon of sugar and a teaspoon of cinnamon to release the juice and sugar in the fruit

5. Bake your cake: Grease your baking pan with butter and line it with parchment paper. Spread your proved dough evenly into a whole pan with your fingers. Spread sweet cheese filling evenly on top of the dough, layer chopped fruits on top of the cheese filling and sprinkle streusel topping on top of it all. Bake at 350°F for ~ 30 minutes, then take out from the oven and let it cool at room temperature for another ~ 30 minutes. If desired, sprinkle some powdered sugar on top and enjoy

Dobrú chuť,
Lenka