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1
Make the yeast dough and let it rise
10 Mins + 60 Mins rise
Warm milk, about 37°C (98°F)
Warm 125 ml of the milk until lukewarm, about 37°C (98°F), and stir in the yeast with a spoonful of the sugar. Rest for 10 minutes until foamy. Tip the flour, the salt and 30 g of the sugar into a large bowl, add the yeasted milk, 40 g melted butter and 1 beaten egg, and mix into a soft dough. Knead on a floured surface for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic, then put it in an oiled bowl, cover, and leave in a warm place for 1 hour until doubled in size.
If the yeast milk never foams, the yeast is dead — start again with a fresh sachet rather than baking a flat base.
Done when: The dough is smooth, springy, and twice its original size.
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2
Line the tin with the dough base
10 Mins
Oven preheats to 175°C (350°F)
Heat the oven to 175°C (350°F) and grease a 26 cm springform tin with 5 g of the butter. Knock the risen dough back gently, roll it into a round about 28 cm across, and press it into the tin, pushing it about 2 cm up the sides to hold the fillings. Prick the base all over with a fork so it cannot puff up under the quark layer.
A thin, even base bakes through properly — if the dough is thick in the middle, the centre stays doughy under the quark.
Done when: The tin is lined edge to edge with a thin, even layer of dough.
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3
Mix the quark middle layer
10 Mins
Room temperature, about 20°C (68°F)
Whisk the quark until completely smooth, then whisk in 80 g sugar, the 2 eggs, 15 g cornflour, the lemon zest and juice and 1 tsp vanilla. Keep whisking until the mixture is silky with no lumps of quark left. Spoon it over the dough base and spread it level with the back of a spoon — this is the middle layer, the 'belt' of the cake, so keep it even and do not let it run up the sides.
Watery quark makes a soggy middle — drain it in a sieve for 30 minutes first if it looks at all loose.
Done when: A smooth, level white layer covers the base from edge to edge.
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4
Whisk the vanilla egg-custard top
10 Mins
Room temperature, about 20°C (68°F)
Whisk the 4 egg yolks with 60 g sugar until pale and thick, then whisk in 200 ml milk, 25 g cornflour, 1 tsp vanilla and 20 g melted butter until completely smooth. In a separate clean bowl, beat 2 of the egg whites to soft peaks — the whisk should leave a gentle curl, not a stiff spike — and fold them gently into the yolk mixture with a spatula, keeping as much air in as you can. This beaten white is what makes the top layer bake light instead of flat.
Any trace of yolk or grease in the whites bowl stops them whipping — wipe the bowl with a little lemon juice first.
Done when: A pale yellow, airy custard that falls from the spatula in a slow ribbon.
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5
Layer, sugar and bake
5 Mins + 55 Mins bake
175°C (350°F)
Pour the custard gently over the quark layer, starting at the edges and working inward so the two layers do not mix, and smooth the surface. Sprinkle the remaining 15 g sugar evenly over the top — it melts into the crisp, sugared crust you can see in the photo. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes until the top is pale gold and the centre barely wobbles when you nudge the tin. If the top browns too fast after 35 minutes, lay a loose sheet of foil over it.
Pour slowly and do not stir once the custard is on — stirring mixes the layers and the three-layer look is lost.
Done when: The top is pale gold with a sugared crust, and the centre moves only slightly when nudged.
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6
Cool, chill and slice
30 Mins cooling
Cool to room temperature, about 20°C (68°F)
Leave the cake in the tin for 30 minutes until it is cool enough to handle, then run a thin knife around the edge and release the springform. Chill the cake for at least 1 hour before slicing — this hands-off chilling is not counted in the total time, but it is what lets the three layers set firmly so each slice shows them cleanly. Cut into 12 neat rectangles with a long, sharp knife, wiping the blade between cuts.
Cutting the cake while it is still warm makes the custard slide off the quark — patience is part of the recipe.
Done when: Each slice stands up on its own and shows all three layers: pale base, white quark middle, golden custard top.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Dust the chilled cake very lightly with icing sugar just before serving if you like, though the baked-on sugar crust is already there. Serve the slices cool, at room temperature, with black coffee — the sugared custard top should be pale gold and just crisp, the quark middle creamy, and the yeast base soft underneath.
Germany
3h 30m
