German Red Currant Meringue Torte

This is a sweet treat that I just had to make sure I shared, before the fleeting season of currants is gone for another year.

In German currants are called Johannisbeerin.  But in the Swabian part of Germany this torte is called Träubleskuchen.  Träuble is the diminutive form of Traube or grape.  Because currants look like little grape clusters, they call it ‘little grape cake’.  But outside of that province, no German would know what you are asking for if you used this name at a bakery.  Okay, enough of the German lesson.  I’m keeping it easy and just calling Currant Meringue Torte.  It showcases another thing that Germans live for: meringue!  Eggs in their most glorious state!

Pavlova but Better

But this recipe is way easier than making a pavlova.  Because the meringue is contained in a lovely short crust pastry, and has the berries and ground almonds folded in, it has a lovely texture that stays nice and moist.  There is a top layer of the beaten egg whites to form a lid, and it bakes through perfectly.  No cracks or caving in to worry about.

I’ve made this with red currants, as is the classic way to do it.  But I’ve also made it with a combo of red, white and black currants with equally amazing results.  The tartness of the berries, the slight sweetness of the meringue, the texture of the ground almonds, and the lightness of the pastry create a final slice of deliciousness!  It isn’t too tart, it isn’t too cloyingly sweet.  And the frothy texture remains intact, even if you have leftover slices in the fridge two days later (I speak from experience!)

Method

It is really just a matter of creating the buttery rich pastry, rolling it out and lining a springform pan with it.  A layer of ground almonds covers the bottom.  Let this cool in the fridge while you work on the eggs. 

You’ll beat up the eggs with some sugar and corn starch.  Once they are all fluffed up and quite firm, two thirds of the meringue will get folded up with the berries and more ground almonds.  This gets spooned into the prepared pastry shell.  Then you will dollop the remaining meringue over the filling.  When dolloping it on, use a silicone spatula to lift and create little peaks randomly.  This makes for such a charming top!

Into an oven, and just let it bake away.  You may find that the top layer of egg whites may start to brown more than you wish, towards the end of the baking time. What I do is take a rack and place it on the rung closest to the cake without touching it, and place a piece of tin foil on it, protecting the top from the heat source.  It always seems to work.  I don’t like to lay the tin foil directly on the meringue just in case some of it isn’t perfect set yet- the foil can adhere and then tear away that section of meringue when you go to remove it.

Seriously, once out of the oven and cooled, all you need with this torte is a cup of good coffee or espresso!  The tart berries are balanced with the sweet meringue, but the tartness that remains is quite pleasant.

Alternates to Currants

Right now you are saying, “We don’t have currants around here.” They are getting more and more popular in North America, but true, they are more of a European berry.  So what to do? 

Wild blueberries or huckleberries would be a great alternative.  Gooseberries cut in half would also work great.  Even raspberries would be amazing showcased this way.  Try one of these and let me know what you think!!  In the end, this recipe really is a way to use meringue in a more user friendly way.

As I am writing this out, I’m even thinking that this would make a great winter cake, using nuts instead of berries.  Can you imagine chopped hazelnuts or walnuts folded into the whipped eggs? Oh my!!  With chopped chocolate?!!  Okay- I think I have a new cold weather recipe to go work on 😉

For other German desserts check out Bienenstich, aka Bee Sting Cake, Plum Strudel

Love Jen 

ps: if you find that the pastry tends to fall apart as you try to roll it out to transfer to the springform pan, don’t sweat it.  It is such a buttery pastry, that this isn’t at all uncommon.  Just patch it in the pan.  The important part is that you get the sides even as you are patting it all into place.  Try not to over-handle it, as your warm hands will only make the butter softer.

3.67 from 3 votes

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Currant Meringue Torte

A German confection that showcases red currants in frothy meringue.  If you don't have currants available, raspberries or even wild blueberries would be amazing.

Course Dessert

Cuisine German

Prep Time 45 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 45 minutes

Servings 8

Ingredients

Pastry

• 1 2/3 cup (200 g) AP flour
• 1/3 cup (75 g) granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 9 tbsp (4.4 oz or 125g) chilled butter
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla paste
• 4 tbsp ground almonds or bread crumbs

Meringue Filling

• 4 cups or a bit more (500 g; 1 lb) red currants (washed and de-stalked) in a large bowl
• 5 large egg whites, chilled
• 4 tbsp cornstarch or corn flour
• 2/3 cup (150 g) sugar
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• 1 1/4 cups (125 g) ground almonds, can also use finely chopped almonds if you want.

Instructions

Pastry

1. In a food processor (or you can do this by hand in a bowl) combine the flour, sugar and baking powder. Give it one whiz.
2. Cut the chilled butter into cubes and add it to the processor bowl. Give it a couple of pulses to create large chickpea sized bits of the mixture.

3. Blend the egg and almond extract together and add to the mixture.

4. Give some more pulses until the mixture starts to come together. It doesn't need to form a ball. If you pinch a good section and it stays together, you're done. If you find it dry, just not coming together, add 1 tbsp of milk. The lack of humidity in the kitchen or even the flour can affect the moisture content of the dough.

5. Dump it onto the counter and form a ball. Press it down into a disk shape and cover with plastic wrap. Chill for at least an hour (I have even made this the day before)
6. When ready, bring it back out to warm up on the counter.
7. Roll it out on a well floured surface. It should not be less than 1/4 inch (7mm)thick.
8. Take a 9 inch (23cm) springform pan and spray all the surfaces with non-stick spray. You can also use butter to coat the sides instead.

9. Take the pastry and transfer it to the springform pan. You can do this by rolling it around the rolling pin and unrolling it over the pan. Or else just fold it in half and then in half again and transfer it so that the point of the 'wedge' is sitting in the centre of the pan. Unroll and press to the bottom and sides. The pastry will warm up through use, and the butter makes it very soft. But don't despair. You can easily patch it together. Just make sure the sides are all the same height all around.  The sides should be roughly 1 1/12- 2 inches (5 cm) high

10. Pierce the bottom with a fork all over, and cover with a thin layer of ground almonds or bread crumbs. Place the pan into the fridge till needed.

Meringue Filling

1. Preheat the oven to 375F

2. Place the chilled egg whites into the bowl of your mixer. Beat on medium high speed for the first 30-45 seconds. Increase speed. Beat until quite foamy.
3. Add the cornstarch slowly and evenly.
4. Slowly pour in the sugar. Beat until the eggs are firm and glossy. When you pull out the whisk, the egg whites should keep their shape and not melt back into the bowl. Don't rush this step.

5. Scatter the ground or chopped almonds and lemon zest over the currants in the large bowl

6. Take 2 thirds of the egg whites and add them to the bowl with the red currants, ground almonds and lemon zest. Fold gently till combined.

Assemble and Bake

1. Spoon the berry meringue filling into the chilled pastry shell. It should come close to the top of the sides of the pastry.

2. Using a silicone spatula, spread the remaining egg whites over the filling in a fun, haphazard way. Try and create some height (but not too much!) It should cover the filling, but if it doesn't, that's fine- the red berry filling peaking out from the sides is lovely.

3. Place the pan onto a baking sheet and bake in the lower third of the oven until firm. This should take approximately 1 hour or a bit more. If towards the end you find the top is browning more than you would like, place some tin foil loosely over it. If you are worried that the foil may adhere to the meringue, adjust one of the other racks so that it is sitting right above the cake without touching it. Place the foil on this to protect the meringue from the heat element.

4. Test by using a wooden skewer. It doesn't have to come out totally dry, but it shouldn't be wet with uncooked egg whites either.
5. Serve with good coffee!

Recipe Notes

You can switch out the currants with raspberries, wild blueberries, huckleberries or gooseberries.

This recipe is a riff on the recipe found here