Frankfurter Kranz, a German Buttercream Cake with caramelized Hazelnuts
by meike peters
The Frankfurt Crown Cake, also known as Frankfurter Kranz is the queen of German buttercream cakes and my grandmother was a master at baking it. There was no special occasion, no family Sunday lunch without this opulent cake on the table. If you’re on a diet you should avoid it because as all buttercream cakes, it needs lots of eggs, sugar and butter to transform into a delicious layered sponge cake filled and covered with German vanilla buttercream and sprinkled with caramelised hazelnuts. My Granny’s lunches used to start with a green salad with a sugared cream dressing followed by the best beef rouladen (beef olive) filled with prosciutto, gherkin and mustard. While everyone else was worried about how one would manage to eat her traditional Frankfurt Crown Cake so soon at tea time, I was already excited and looking forward to eating my beloved buttercream cake.
The outside of the spongy cake, made with lots of vanilla and eggs soaks a bit of the cream which is made of vanilla pudding mixed with butter, that’s why the cake is best after 2 days. The aromas have to spread, the vanilla and also the buttery caramelized hazelnuts infuse the cake. It’s best to keep it in the fridge but it should always be eaten at room temperature. I didn’t manage to wait for a couple days, the cake looked so good, I had to eat it as soon as I sprinkled the last hazelnuts on top. It was great but when I ate a piece on the 3rd day, I was reminded why it’s good to be patient. The cake was amazing, it had developed its full deep taste and I understood why this cake was my Granny’s famous signature cake.
Sometimes life is just about enjoying a piece of cake, no matter how much butter or eggs were needed to make it. Mother’s and grandmother’s know that!
Happy Mother’s Day!
Frankfurt Crown Cake, Frankfurter Kranz
For a 23cm / 9″ bundt pan you need
For the sponge cake
butter, at room temperature, 200g / 7 ounces
sugar 225g / 8 ounces
a pinch of fresh vanilla
organic eggs 6
plain flour, sieved, 200g / 7 ounces
cornstarch, 100g / 3.5 ounces
baking powder 3 teaspoons
a pinch of salt
bread crumbs to sprinkle the bundt pan
Set the oven to 180°C / 355°F top/ bottom heat. Butter a bundt pan and sprinkle with bread crumbs.
Beat the butter, sugar and vanilla till fluffy, add the eggs, one at a time and continue beating for a few minutes till thick, creamy and light yellow. Combine the dry ingredients and fold gently into the butter egg mixture with a wooden spoon (in batches, combine well in between). Scrape the dough into the bundt pan and bake for 45 minutes or until golden. Check with a skewer, it should come out clean. Let the cake cool for 2-3 minutes before you turn it over onto a wire rack to cool completely. When the cake has cooled off completely, slice it 3 times into 4 layers.
For the buttercream
All ingredients for the buttercream must be at the same temperature (room temperature) to combine well!
butter 250g / 9 ounces
organic egg yolks 4
cornstarch 60g / 2 ounces
sugar 120g / 4.5 ounces
milk 500ml / 17 ounces
a pinch of salt
vanilla bean, slit slightly, 1
Beat the butter for 10 minutes till white and fluffy.
Whisk the egg yolks with the cornstarch, sugar, salt and 50ml / 2 ounces of the milk till well combined.
In a sauce pan, bring the remaining milk together with the vanilla bean to a boil. Take the vanilla bean out, scrape the seeds out of the bean into the milk. Add the egg mixture to the hot milk, whisking well. Take the sauce pan off the heat after 1 minute and continue whisking for 2 minutes till stiff. Fill into a bowl and cover the pudding’s surface with cling film.
When the vanilla pudding has cooled off completely, press it through a sieve and mix in batches with the beaten butter, first with a spoon and then with your mixer for a few seconds till nice and creamy.
For the caramelized hazelnuts
hazelnuts, finely chopped, 200g / 7 ounces
sugar 100g / 3.5 ounces
butter 35g / 1.5 ounces
In a large heavy pan, heat up the hazelnuts, sugar and butter on high-medium temperature and roast for around 5 minutes till golden brown and caramelized, stirring constantly. Take off the heat and spread on parchment paper.
Assembling the Frankfurter Kranz
Leave around 1/3 of the buttercream to cover the Frankfurter Kranz and spread the remaining cream on the 3 layers of cake. Start with the bottom one, spread with cream, cover with the next layer of cake and continue with the other layers. When the cake is assembled, spread the remaining cream gently all over the cake and sprinkle with the caramelized nuts on all sides, inside and out.
You can eat the cake right away or be patient and keep it in the fridge for 1-2 days before you serve it.
Brilliant. I’ve just made this for my wife on her 60th. Her mom would make them for her on her bday.
Thank you, great recipe!
Hi! I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂 Happy belated birthday to your wife! Meike
My Prussian grandmother used to make this as a 6 layer torte with strawberry or raspberry jam between the layers. The buttercream was cooked vanilla pudding with a pound of butter, then carmalized almonds.
Good morning Lisa! My paternal grandmother who was born in western Germany and who introduced me to this cake, always made it without jam. My other grandmother who was also Prussian was the queen of another German baking classic: the famous Donauwelle cake. Have a nice Sunday!
[…] afternoon treats, she used to welcome her guests dressed up, with lipstick and jewellery. Her Frankfurt Crown Cake – the German Frankfurter Kranz – was her legendary masterpiece, delicious and opulent, […]
I had prepared some german buttercream out of curiosity, and my search for a cake to pair with it led me here! And what luck–this is truly a delicious and beautiful cake that indeed improved over 2-3 days. I love how specific your notes on serving are! I did scale your recipe down by 1/3rd to fit into a 9-inch loaf pan as I do not have a bundt pan (baked about 40 minutes). This seemed to work nicely although the presentation is clearly more dramatic as written. Thank you for sharing.
Hello Lisa, I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe! Some cakes really need a few days to develop their full flavour -although it’s hard to be patient! Have a nice week!
I love Frankfurter Kranz! But where is the jam in your recipe? I thought a traditional Frankfurter Kranz has jam on every layer? (And candied cherries on top)
Hi Anne! Some recipes are with jam and candied cherries and some are without, like my Granny’s recipe. I tried many Frankfurter Kranz cakes in my life and I was never too fond of the fruity addition (which is sometimes on one layer and sometimes on each layer). If you prefer you can add some red jam. Happy Easter! Meike
I am going to make my Frankfurter Kranz tomorrow and I have always use apricot preserves in-between the layers.
My granny used to make her Frankfurter Kranz without jam, preserves or candied cherries. I follow her recipe but there are many ways and recipes 🙂
[…] potatoes and traditionally followed by another German classic, her unbelievably good (and rich) Frankfurt Crown Cake (Frankfurter Kranz in German). This was her ritual, she dressed up, put on her lipstick and set […]
Wow Meike,
Well this was a great big hit with my family and friends. But, I am afraid I was not able to make a true Frankfurter Kranz. I do not have the Hazel nuts. So I substituted the crunch with Toffee bits. So I guess that I have to name this the Madison Kranz since I live in Madison.
Another great recipe. thanks
Hi Dave, congrats on your Madison Kranz, that sound delicious! You could also use almonds if you make it again. I’m glad you enjoyed it! All the best, Meike
[…] Frankfurter Kranz, a German Buttercream Cake with caramelized … […]
[…] flavours, but this one hits my weak spot. It’s a bit like an ice cream version of my Frankfurter Kranz. This equally decadent German buttercream cake is also sprinkled with golden caramel nuts and […]
Yes indeed, you should put this cake and the nice pictures in Food52. Too bad you did not put it before and entered it under the “Walnut” contest. You could then have replaced the hazelnuts with the walnuts, and you might probably have won the contest. LOL
Too late 🙂 I will still put it on, especially after your successful test!
Wow. Ultra delicious. Wow. Wow. Eating some now. Spectacular. This is not the last time I am making this. And the combination of the caramelized nuts and cream is so good. As the Caribbean that I am, I may next time brush a bit of rum on each layer. Recipe is good as is but is also versatile in that you can experiment with other nuts and even with various Iiqueurs to brush on the cake (Grand Marnier etc.). This is also a wonderful birthday cake. Thanks for sharing. Now looking forward to your next cake recipe.
Oh I’m so happy that you enjoyed it!! I was really excited to hear from you again! I can imagine that some rum or Grand Marnier would be great with it, that’s a good idea! This is just the basic, traditional Frankfurter Kranz recipe how I know it from my grandmother but now it can evolve, everyone can change and add ingredients, that’s what recipes are for! Please let me know if you try out another recipe!
I will put this cake on Food52!
I successfully made cake last night (Friday). Your instructions are perfect. I am now letting it rest in fridge and will serve Sunday after dinner. Can’t wait to taste it. Easy to make but it takes some time. I found myself almost running out of cream to cover cake. But the nuts hid any “hole.” Maybe next time I ll leave a bit more of 1/3 of the cream to cover cake. Or maybe my eyeballing of what was 1/3 was a bit off. The caramelized hazelnuts are delicious. I may next time experiment too with other nuts like almonds and pecans. I could see them on top of ice cream as well or in/on other cake recipes. Check out some of my cake recipes in Food52.com under my first name. How do you manage your diet with all these delicious recipes you post daily? LOL
That’s great Regine, I’m happy it worked out!! I’m sorry you ran low on the cream, it was enough for my cake. Maybe my bundt pan is a bit smaller and I had less surface? I love these nuts, there are delicious on vanilla ice cream together with whipped cream and some eggnog on top! You could use almonds as well but my boyfriend doesn’t like them so I always use hazelnuts. I will check out your recipes on Food52 this weekend, can’t wait to see them. We have lots of friends over all the time who love to “visit” me in my kitchen and I’m quite tall, I can eat a lot (I’m lucky 🙂 )! I hope you and your guests will enjoy the cake as much as we did! Let me know!
Meike I am making it tonight for Sunday dinner so it will ” marinate ” for 2 days in fridge. I will make sure to let it get to room temperature before serving; and also make sure all ingredients for the buttercream are at room temperature. Can’t wait to eat it. LOL. I will let you know how it turns out. Thanks so much.
🙂 Have a lovely dinner and a great weekend!
Making this this weekend. I will let you know how it comes out. Can’t wait.
Thanks!
Regine
Hello Regine!
Oh please, I would love to hear what you think about my Frankfurter Kranz!
The cake was best on the 2nd and 3rd day, I kept it in the fridge but took it out about 30 minutes before we ate it. When you make the buttercream it’s very important that all the ingredients are at room temperature to combine well.
Enjoy it!
Meike xx
Amazing photos!! So artistic !! Great job!
Thank you Nancee! Meike xx
This sounds decadent, Meike!
It is decadent Marigene, and very yummy! Happy Sunday! Meike xx