Bavarian Zwetschgendatschi – German Plum Sheet Cake (Tart) Recipe (2024)

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That’s a mouthful of a recipe name, isn’t it? “TCH-VECH-GEN-DATCHI” is as close as I can get to teaching non-Bavarians how to say that word. German Plum tart is probably a lot easier to remember.
My Bavarian Mutti made this dessert for as long as I can remember. This dessert is as traditional to Bavarians as apple pie is to Americans. The crust is tender and buttery. Italian prunes (sometimes called Empress Plums) are seasonal autumn fruits. The fruit is seasoned with cinnamon-sugar and then baked. The yellow flesh turns into a beautiful purple color and are both sweet and tart. I look forward to making this Bavarian dessert every year!

That’s a mouthful of a recipe name, isn’t it? “TCH-VENCHKEN-DATCHI” is as close as I can get to teaching non-Bavarians how to say that word. German Plum tart is probably a lot easier to remember.

My Bavarian Mutti made this dessert for as long as I can remember. This dessert is as traditional to Bavarians as apple pie is to Americans. To keep things authentic, I wait until August– when I call my local produce store and ask “do you have Italian prunes in stock”? I hold my breath– and I feel a sense of joy when the answer is “yes”.

Italian plum/prunes have a very short season– pretty much between August and September. Last year, I waited too long, and there were none to be found.

This year, I got really lucky! Craig and I drove 90 minutes to Los Altos Hills to visit my Bavarian cousin. Her Italian plum tree was full of ripe fruit– ready for the picking! (The pink ribbons is an effort to keep her neighborhood squirrels from stealing her fruit.)

She generously filled a big bag full of those precious fall fruits, so I could go home and make my own Zwetschgendatschi.

These two “cousins” (left and right of me) are 100% authentic Bavarians and haven’t lost their spunk being 95 and 80, respectively! They are very active ladies, with a hilarious zest for life.

I understand the Bavarian dialect, quiet fluently– though I admit that not being able to speak the language as I once did, with my Mutti, has left me a bit rusty. Listening to two of my cousins, chatting away in Bavarian, kept me laughing and loving the dialect– the language is music to my ears, having grown up with it until my mother passed away in 2002. Craig and I are headed to Bavaria and Austria in October, and we plan to
stay in my mother’s hometown of Bad Reichenhall, Bavaria. I’m getting super excited about revisiting the city where I lived, as a very young child, for a few years.

After several fun-filled hours of enjoying a “Brotzeit” of Bavarian sausages, potato salad and beer, and a heaping plate of her delicious version of Zwetschgendatschi– we headed home with my precious plums. I could hardly wait to get started, the next morning!

One thing that the three of us agreed on, is that they much prefer a
buttery tart-like dough, versus the more traditional yeast based dough.
I used my cousin’s recipe for the tart dough, from her German Apricot Rahm Kuchenrecipe that I posted a few years ago. It’s a little fussy to work
with, since it has egg yolks in it– but it’s so worth making. It’s
tender and buttery… I’m drooling, just thinking about it.

I used a quarter-sheet pan to bake this dessert. I had a few jars of homemade Kadota fig jam, and I like to spread a little just to help prevent a soggy crust. (You could use apricot jam, too.)
NOTE: I like to put parchment paper underneath, to help remove the slices more easily.

I kept the crust in the refrigerator and preheated the oven to 400F, while I prepared the fruit.

Equipment

1/4 sheet pan
1 sheet parchment paper

Ingredients

Crust:

7 ounces flour about 1-1/2 cups
5 1/2 ounces unsalted butter
3 ounces sugar scant 1/2 cup
2 egg yolks
1 package vanilla sugar or 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla
Zest small lemon or to taste

For the plum topping:

12 Italian prunes up to 14; in season only in Aug-Sep
4 tablespoons butter melted
1/4 cup fig jam or apricot jam (optional)

Cinnamon-Sugar

1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon

Instructions

Crust

Whisk together all of the dry ingredients and the lemon zest (the zest is optional, but I love the flavor it adds).
Create a well in the middle and add the eggs (and vanilla, if not using vanilla sugar), lemon zest and the butter. Knead with fingers to combine. Using the heels of your hand, knead until all the ingredients are combined.
Optional: I use my food processor, and use short pulses to combine– careful not to over mix.
Generously flour the surface of the counter and the rolling pin, so the dough won’t stick.
Roll into a rectangle shape, to fit the quarter pan sheet. Place the parchment paper on top of the dough, set the pan on top and flip.
(Some of the dough will break apart, but just piece it back together with your fingers. Chill in the refrigerator while you prepare the plums.
With a paring knife, cut along the “seam” of each plum, then pull the fruit apart, removing the seed. I prefer to cut each half into quarters, not quite all the way through– so that the plums fan into four pieces (it’s the way my mother taught me, and it’s how I continue to do it).
Remove the crust from the fridge, and spread an even layer of jam. This step is optional, but I find that it helps to prevent a soggy crust.
Begin layering the plums in even rows, overlapping them a bit, as they do shrink while baking.
Brush melted butter over the plums and then generously sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
Bake at 400°F for about 30 to 40 minutes or until the edges of the crust are a golden brown, and the plums are golden and bubbly.
Sprinkle an additional 2 to 3 tablespoons of cinnamon sugar.
Allow to cool, ideally, until to room temperature. Serve with a dollop of freshly whipped cream (or vanilla ice cream).

Notes

NOTE: I especially love a slice with my morning coffee!

This recipe has never been made with traditional plums. Italian prunes have a firmer texture and are the traditional fruit for this recipe. You can make this as a “pie” or even as a “crostata” (free form pie).