Kirschstreuselkuchen

I received the cookbook Classic German Baking for Christmas last year but hadn't tried out any recipes. I decided to make one of the recipes for this year's family Christmas gathering and chose this one because it looked good and easy to make.  I wanted to stay as true to the recipe as possible, so I splurged on the Kerrygold European-style butter, but I honestly think regular butter would be just fine.  I bought my unsweetened pitted tart cherries at Sendiks and then added a little sugar to the juices in the container.    The kuchen turned out good.  I enjoyed eating it.


Sour Cherry Streusel Cake
from Classic German Baking by Luisa Weiss

Ingredients:
Streusel:
7 TBSP (100g) unsalted high-fat butter, softened (I used Kerrygold)
1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
1 cup + 1 TBSP (135g) flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
pinch ground cinnamon (I used more than a pinch)

Cherry Topping:
24 ounce jar pitted sour cherries in sugar water
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Batter:
15&1/2 TBSP (220g) unsalted high-fat butter, softened
3/4 cup + 2 TBSP (175g) granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2&1/3 cups + 1 TBSP (300g) flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 TBSP whole milk  (I used 1% milk)

Directions:
To make the Streusel, cut the butter into cubes and place in a large bowl.  Add the remaining streusel ingredients and work with your fingers until the mixture is well combined and crumbly, with various-sized clumps (pea-sized to lima bean-sized).  Place in fridge until ready to use.

To make the Cherry Topping, drain all of the liquid from the cherries into a medium saucepan, reserving 3 tablespoons of liquid in a small bowl.  Bring the liquid in the saucepan to a boil over medium-high heat.  Meanwhile, whisk the cornstarch into the small bowl of reserved liquid until smooth.  When the cherry juice starts boiling in the pan, whisk in the cornstarch slurry.  The juice should start immediately thickening up.  Remove from the heat and continue to stir.  Add the cherries, stir, and set aside to cool.

To make the Batter, cream together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then beat in the vanilla.  Mix together the dry ingredients and then beat into the butter mixture.  Finally, beat in the milk. 

Scrape the batter into a 9x13" baking pan, then evenly pour the thickened cherry mixture and juices over the batter.  Sprinkle the streusel over the top.    Bake at 350º for 45 to 50 minutes, until the streusel is golden.