Mohnkuchen (German Poppy Seed Cake)

Here’s A Classic Mohnkuchen Recipe For A Delicious Coffee Cake!

Looking for a German cake that is sure to please? German poppy seed cake – known as Mohnkuchen in German – is a classic sweet treat.

With a simple, buttery crust, a sweet and smooth poppy seed filling, and a top covered in delicious crumbs – known as streusel – it’s a coffee cake enjoyed all over.

And best of all, it’s actually quite easy to make!

slice of poppy seed cake on grey plates with piece cut off the end. — Mohnkuchen – loaded with poppy seeds and topped with buttery crumbs!

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients that you’ll need to make this poppy seed cake recipe. It’s not too many different ingredients overall, but you’ll be using the same ingredients for different layers of the cake!

Butter – At room temperature; to make the dough, filling and streusel.
Granulated sugar – To make the dough, filling and streusel.
Vanilla extract – Preferably pure vanilla extract, but premium artificial vanilla extract is also an option; for the dough and the streusel topping.
Egg – One medium or large egg for the dough and two for the filling.
All-purpose flour – For the dough and for the streusel.
Baking powder – Make sure to use baking powder that hasn’t expired; for the dough.
Salt – A pinch of salt for the dough.
Milk – To make the poppy seed filling.
Poppy seeds – Ground poppy seeds for the filling.
Farina – For example, cream of wheat or similar; to thicken the filling.

Recipe Tips and Substitutions

Before you make this poppy seed cake, read through these recipe tips so that you know what to expect when you bake at home:

Don’t use whole poppy seeds for this recipe, they must be ground. You can either buy pre-ground poppy seeds or grind them yourself in a food processor or blender (which is what we usually do).
In Germany, some people make this cake with a pre-made poppy seed filling called Mohnfix or Mohnback. We don’t typically use it, but if you want to try it, you might be able to find it in some (specialty) food stores outside of Germany. It’s basically a mix of ground poppy seeds, sugar and various additives.
If you want the cake to be slightly less heavy, reduce or skip the butter in the filling.
Don’t overmix the dough – mix until the ingredients are just combined.
Instead of farina (one option is Cream of Wheat), you can also use instant pudding powder or custard powder to thicken the filling. In this case, reduce the extra amount of sugar you add if the pudding/custard powder contains sugar.
Towards the end of the baking, the crumbles may get quite brown (depending on your oven). In this case, you can cover the springform pan with some aluminum foil for the last few minutes.
Make sure the cake is completely cooled before slicing so it doesn’t fall apart.

How to Make Mohnkuchen – Step by Step Instructions

In this section, you can follow along with all the recipe process photos to see exactly how to make this German poppy seed cake.

We’ll show and explain each step so that you can compare your progress as you bake at home.

The recipe card at the bottom of this post also has many details about making this recipe, but no visuals.

milk in silver pot on black stove top. — Heat the milk and sugar in a pot.

We’ll start with making the filling so it has time to cool a bit. Place the milk and sugar for the filling in a saucepan.

Heat the mixture over medium heat until it begins to boil. Remember to stir regularly.

bowl of ground poppy seeds pouring into silver pot of heated milk. — Add the ground poppy seeds.

Once it starts boiling, stir in the ground poppy seeds and cook for 2 minutes.

(Don’t remove the saucepan from the heat – I only did this so I could take the photos for you).

bowl of farina pouring into silver pot with milk and poppy seeds in it. — Add the farina.

Next, add in the farina (e.g. cream of wheat or similar), then stir everything again and cook for another 3 minutes until the mixture thickens noticeably.

large chunk of butter in silver pot of poppy seed mixture with wooden spoon sticking out. — Stir in the butter.

Now stir in the butter. This is optional – it’s tasty but makes the cake richer. You can reduce or skip the butter if you prefer.

When it’s completely melted, remove the pot from the heat and let it cool for 5-10 minutes.

raw egg being mixed into silver pot of poppy seed mixture with wooden spoon. — Add the eggs.

Once cooled down a bit, crack the eggs and stir them into the poppy seed mixture. Mix well.

thickened poppy seed mixture in silver pot with wooden spoon sticking out. — Make sure the ingredients are well mixed.

Set this aside to cool further.

round springform pan lined with parchment paper in the bottom. — Grease the springform pan.

Now let’s move on to the dough, but first grease a 10-inch cake springform pan. You can also line the bottom with parchment paper.

large white mixing bowl with butter sugar and vanilla extract in the bottom. — Place the ingredients in a bowl.

In a large mixing bowl, add the butter, sugar, and vanilla extract. Beat using the regular beaters of your electric hand or stand mixer until well combined.

raw egg cracked into bowl of buttery mixture with electric beaters above. — Mix well.

Add the egg and continue beating until you reach a creamy consistency.

creamy butter mixture in bottom of large mixing bowl. — The mixture should be slightly creamy.

See in the photo above how the dough should look at this stage – it should be slightly creamy.

dry ingredients like flour in large mixing bowl on grey counter. — Combine the dry ingredients.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and a pinch of salt.

pouring white dry ingredients into bowl of wet buttery batter with electric mixer beside. — Add the flour mixture in small increments.

Now, slowly add the flour mixture to the bowl with the wet ingredients in small increments while continuing to mix.

dry buttery crust mixture in white mixing bowl on counter. — The dough may look quite crumbly.

Stop mixing once the ingredients are combined and you can’t see any flour patches anymore. The mixture may be quite crumbly – that’s completely normal! Don’t overmix.

ball of dough sitting in bottom of white mixing bowl. — Form a ball of dough.

Use your hands to press the dough together and form a ball.

It might take a couple of minutes, but if it doesn’t work, don’t worry – just take the crumbly pieces of dough and press them into the springform pan (see below for this alternative method).

dough for crust rolled out on counter top with wooden rolling pin. — Roll out the dough.

Sprinkle the work surface with a bit of flour. Gently roll out the dough with a rolling pin until it is slightly larger than the springform pan (this “extra” amount is for the crust).

raw dough formed into bottom of round springform pan. — Place the rolled-out dough in the springform pan.

Take the dough and place it in the springform pan. Press down lightly and smooth out any unevenness using your hands.

Alternatively, instead of rolling out the dough, place the dough directly in the springform pan and use your hands to spread it out on the bottom and sides of the pan to form the crust.

Make sure the dough is evenly thick and the crust is the same height all around, about 1.5 inches. When done, set the springform pan aside.

At this time, also preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

butter sugar and flour in white mixing bowl on counter. — Add the ingredients to a bowl.

Finally, we’ll make the streusel topping. In a mixing bowl, combine the butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and flour with your hands until crumbly.

Make sure the flour is fully mixed in with the other ingredients. You shouldn’t see any white flour patches. This may take a couple of minutes.

If the dough feels too soft/sticky, add a little more flour. Press some smaller pieces of dough together with your fingers to make larger streusel.

white spatula spreading poppy seed mixture into pan with raw crust on the bottom. — Spread out the poppy seed filling.

Now let’s assemble the cake. Using a spatula, spread the poppy seed filling evenly over the dough in the springform pan.

poppy seed filling spread out into raw cake crust in round pan. — Smooth out the top.

The filling should not be higher than the crust.

raw butter crumbs on top of round cake sitting on counter top. — Add the streusel.

Then add the streusel on top of the filling.

baked poppy seed cake with golden brown crumbs on top in round pan. — Look at those crumbles.

Bake the cake on the middle rack of your oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 40-45 minutes until fully cooked. The streusel on top should be lightly browned.

If you find that they get too dark, cover the top with foil for the last few minutes of baking. Every oven bakes slightly differently, so your baking time may vary.

When the cake is done, remove it from the oven and let it cool in the springform pan. Remove the ring when the cake has cooled sufficiently.

triangle slice of poppy seed cake on plates sitting in front of larger cake behind.

Enjoy this delicious poppy seed cake!

Storage Tips

Once you’ve made this Mohnkuchen, let it cool, then store it wrapped in aluminum foil or in a cake carrier at room temperature for 1-2 days or in the fridge for a few more days.

FAQ

Here’s an answer to a common question about this recipe:

What is Mohnkuchen?

Mohnkuchen is the German name for poppy seed cake. “Mohn” means poppy seeds and kuchen is the word for “cake”. It is a classic coffee cake with a buttery crust and a sweet poppy seed filling, often topped with streusel.

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2 thoughts on “Mohnkuchen (German Poppy Seed Cake)”

Carol

October 24, 2023 at 7:27 am

This is something I really look forward to making soon. I LOVE poppy seed and have a small problem. My husband does not share my love for poppy seed so if I make this I must eat it all myself. Will I be able to freeze half of it?
- Recipes From Europe
  
  October 24, 2023 at 9:38 am
  
  Hi Carol, I would not recommend eating a whole poppy seed cake by yourself since this cake is very heavy – luckily it freezes quite well! Allow the cake to cool completely, then cut it into slices and freeze them. That way you can easily take a slice out and let it thaw when you feel like having some. /Lisa