Buckwheat – ideal for Lüneburg Heath

What did the inhabitants of the Heath actually eat before the potato found its way to Germany? The sandy, low-nutrient soil of Lüneburg Heath is not particularly suitable for agricultural use. The answer: buckwheat.

Buckwheat is an annual of the knotweed family which produces a beech-like seed once a year. This seed was an important food source until the 18th century. Buckwheat was prepared as a pancake or cake or eaten as a porridge. However, it is unsuitable for bread making due to the absence of gluten. Today it has been rediscovered as a healthy ingredient by many bakeries. And not just for the delicious buckwheat cake. Why not let one of the local bakeries or cafes surprise you?

Buchweizentorte aus der Lüneburger Heide

Lüneburg Heath buckwheat cake

  • 6 egg yolks
  • 6 eggs whites
  • 150 g sugar, pref. cane sugar
  • 1 pkt vanilla sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • 150 g buckwheat flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 500 g jam (cranberry)
  • 600 ml sweet cream
  • 30 g dark chocolate, grated
  • ½ tsp grated lemon zest

Preheat oven to 180 °C. Cover a 26 cm baking tray with baking paper. Mix the egg yolks with about 2/3 of the sugar, the vanilla sugar and the lemon zest over a water bath until frothy. Whip the egg whites with the remaining sugar and the salt and then add to the egg yolk mixture.

Mix the buckwheat flour with the baking powder, add to the egg mixture and carefully fold it in. Pour the dough into the baking tray, smooth and bake for about 30 minutes on the middle shelf. After baking, leave the buckwheat biscuit in the tray for about 5 minutes, then carefully remove it, take off the baking paper and allow it to cool on a grid overnight.

To fill the buckwheat biscuit it is first necessary to slice it into two using kitchen twine. To do this, score around the biscuit with a knife, then pull a sufficient length of twine though it.

The bottom slice of the biscuit is covered with quarter of the cranberry jam. Whip the cream until stiff and carefully mix in the remaining jam. Spread this cranberry cream onto the bottom slice over the jam, saving a small amount for decoration. Add the second biscuit slice. Coat the top and sides of the cake with the remaining cream and sprinkle with chocolate flakes. Use the remaining cranberry cream to decorate with 16 dots around the edge. Cool for at least an hour.