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a slice of German Rhubarb Meringue Cake on a white cake plate

German Rhubarb Meringue Cake

Granny's Rhubarb Meringue Cake is simple, quick, and easy to make but looks very impressive! A traditional German cake recipe that features a lemon-scented sponge with juicy pockets of rhubarb topped with a cloud of crispy meringue topping!

Course Dessert
Cuisine German
Keyword german rhubarb cake, german rhubarb meringue cake
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings 12
Calories 230 kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 kg rhubarb - 8 cups
  • 1 tablespoon of sugar
  • 1 stick + 1 tbsp softened butter
  • 200 g / 1 cup sugar - or use 150 g 3/4 cups for a less sweet but still delish cake
  • 2 teaspoons lemon zest
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 4 eggs
  • 200 g cake flour / 1 1/4 cups
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 2 teaspoons of baking powder
  • 3 tablespoons milk
  • some butter for the mold

FOR THE MERINGUE

  • 4 egg whites size M
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 200 grams of sugar - 1 cup
  • 1/2 tsp cream of tartar a pinch of salt or lemon juice

Instructions

  1. Tipp: Egg whites should stand at room temperature 30 minutes before beating to achieve the best volume. Separate them while cool, then let the whites stand a bit.
  2. Wash, trim and peel the rhubarb. Then cut into pieces about 1 cm wide. Place in a bowl and sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sugar on top. Mix briefly and set aside.

  3. Grease the springform pan (Ø 26 cm - 10 inch or 9 1/2) well. Preheat the oven to 180 C / 360 F/.

  4. Grate lemon zest directly into the sugar, then rub into the sugar with your fingertips to flavor.
  5. Beat softened butter with lemon sugar, vanilla and lemon juice. Gradually stir in the eggs. Mix flour with salt and baking powder and add to the batter. Add milk and mix everything together well. Don't overmix.
  6. Fold the rhubarb pieces into the batter. Alternatively, pour the dough into the springform pan and smooth it out, then push the rhubarb into the dough. Bake the cake in the preheated oven for approx. 45-50 minutes. About 10 minutes before the end of the baking time for the meringue, make the meringue.
  7. Add egg whites to clean bowl. Add 1 tsp. of vanilla and ½ tsp. cream of tartar before you begin beating the egg whites. You can make the meringue without cream of tartar, by adding some salt or lemon juice but adding cream of tartar helps stabilize the meringue and prevent it from weeping.
  8. Add sugar gradually. Add the sugar bit by bit, while beating on high speed. The sugar must be added gradually while you beat the egg whites to stiff peaks. Adding the sugar too quickly will knock the air out of the egg whites and make them difficult to mix thoroughly.
  9. When is my meringue done? When you lift the beaters, the tips will stand straight up. The mixture should be smooth when you rub it between your fingers with no undissolved sugar grains!
  10. When the cake is done take the cake out of the oven and let it cool for about 5 minutes. Meanwhile turn the oven down to 150 C / 300 F. Then run a knife between the cake and the edge of the baking pan.
  11. Remove the edge of the springform pan. Using a spatula, spread the meringue mixture onto the cake and spread decoratively in wavy movements.
  12. Bake the cake with the meringue in the preheated oven for a further 20-25 minutes until the tops of the meringue are browned. Watch it because it quickly gets too dark.