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Smoking Chimney

Recipes from a working kitchen · Cape Town

Bienenstich

By Marna Ross Updated 12 August 2026 4.41 from 70 ratings German
Bienenstich is a German cake traditionally made with yeast. Bienenstich is also known as Bee sting Cake. And what a wonderful, beautiful description! My version is a bit of a non-traditional version as there are no yeast involved but rather the normal cake flour, baking powder combination. Personally, for me a cake is not a cake if it is made with yeast. Yeast makes me think too much of bread instead! But it is once again just my own opinion! This is a delicious cake, if you have German friends, why not try this version to impress them? This cake recipe is a bit more of a time-consuming cake, as you have to make the cake batter, the nut topping as well as the custard filling. But you can be clever and make the custard filling while the cake is baking in the oven! Because I have had my best kitchen days working for German owners, I do like German people a lot and often miss my guests! If I can have the chance now to make their normal arrival cake which we made on the day when they arrived their flight, I would have made them this one and I would have included the lovely cups of Jacobs Coffee. If you like custard, try the Custard Pancake too.
A traditional German Bienenstich Bee Sting cake with a crunchy honey-almond topping.
Prep 1 h
Cook 30 min
Total 1 h 30 m
Serves 12

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Ingredients

Cake

  • 75 ml butter
  • 125 ml sugar
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 470 ml cake flour
  • 10 ml baking powder
  • juice and rind of 1 lemon
  • pinch of salt
  • 190 ml milk

Nut Layer

  • 50 ml butter
  • 125 ml sugar
  • 100g almonds, chopped
  • 45 ml milk
  • pinch of salt

Custard Layer

  • 375 ml milk
  • 25 ml corn flour
  • 25 ml custard powder
  • 75 ml sugar
  • 110 g butter
  • 7 ml vanilla essence

Method

Cake

  1. Cream together the butter and the sugar until creamy

  2. Add the eggs, Stir in the flour, baking powder, rind and juice of the lemon with the sugar and butter mixture

  3. Pour into a loose bottom cake tin (25 cm)

  4. Cover with the nut mixture and bake for 25-30 minutes at 180° Celsius

  5. Leave overnight in the pan or in the fridge to cool

  6. Half the cake

Nut Layer

  1. Mix all the ingredients and melt over low heat

Custard Layer

  1. Heat the milk

  2. Mix the salt, custard powder, corn flour and sugar with a little cold milk

  3. Stir in with the heated milk

  4. Let it thicken over low heat

  5. Beat in the butter and vanilla

Assembling

  1. Use the bottom cake and fill it’s top with the custard filling

  2. Place the top halve with the almond part on top

  3. Serve with a freshly brewed cup of Jacobs coffee

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