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    Home » Desserts

    Best Streusel Topping Recipe

    Published: Mar 13, 2020 · Modified: Jul 3, 2022 by Petra Kupská

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    Delicious sheet cakes with crunchy streusel topping are so popular in the Czech Republic, Germany, and Poland; in fact in the whole of Central Europe! On sweet pastries, the sprinkles form the final layer that takes the dish to the next level. In this simple recipe, I will show you how we make the perfect topping in the Czech Republic.

    Buttery streusel topping in a grey bowl.
    Table of Contents hide
    ➜ Ingredients
    ➜ Instructions
    ➜ How to twist the streusel topping?
    ➜ Leftover streusel
    ➜ Useful tips
    ➜ FAQs
    Best Streusel Topping

    First things first. What is actually streusel topping?

    The streusel topping is a crumbly mixture made of flour, sugar, and butter. Prepared by simply mixing all the ingredients, the buttery crumb topping is sprinkled on the surface of fruit coffee cakes, traditional Czech kolaches, on top of your favorite muffins, quick bread, or any kind of sheet cake.

    FUN FACT: The Czech name for streusel topping is "drobenka", whereas the Czech word "drobky" means crumbs. Other Czech words are "posypka" (sprinkles) and "žmolenka".

    MY TIP: Use your crumb for this fantastic plum cake with poppy seeds (it tastes so good!)

    ➜ Ingredients

    Streusel topping ingredients with captions.

    An easy recipe for streusel calls for a few basic ingredients:

    • All-purpose flour; or plain flour in the UK.
    • Unsalted butter; take the cold butter out of the fridge and leave it on the kitchen counter for about an hour to warm up to room temperature
    • Granulated sugar; instead of white sugar, use brown sugar for deeper flavor

    The best ratio for the right streusel is close to 1 part sugar, 1 part butter, and 1.5-2 parts flour. A well-made streusel topping forms uneven pea-sized crumbs. It is not too powdery or sand-like, but not with large crumbs of greasy chunks either.

    ✅ You’ll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.

    Slices of fruit cake with streusel served on a white plate.

    ➜ Instructions

    1. Put the flour and sugar in a large bowl.
    2. Using a knife, carefully cut the butter into small cubes and add them to the dry ingredients.
    3. Work all the ingredients together using your fingers until you have a sand-like mixture with firm, irregular lumps.

    If you prepare the streusel in advance, put it in a bowl in the fridge to stay chilled. Sprinkle streusel on the cake just before baking.

    Do you want a crunchy topping that stays that way the next day? Add an egg yolk to it when preparing. Then you'll need to add a little more flour and sugar to make the crumbs less dense.

    My extra tip: Immediately after you take the streusel cake out of the oven, drizzle its surface with melted butter into which you have stirred two tablespoons of spiced rum.

    Czech kolace with drobenka streusel topping.

    ➜ How to twist the streusel topping?

    Here are some tips and tricks to help you perfect your streusel:

    • Add ground oats that you have briefly toasted in a pan (chill them before using).
    • Add a teaspoon of ground cinnamon to the flour mixture. A cinnamon streusel topping is especially good for fruit pies, for example, those made with plums or apples.
    • Stir in the ground or finely chopped nuts; almonds, walnuts, or hazelnuts.
    • Add crushed biscuits to the streusel: coconut biscuits, hazelnut biscuits, or any non-filled biscuits with your desired flavor. Crush the cookies with a rolling pin in a sturdy plastic bag or between two sheets of parchment paper.
    Streusel topping.

    ➜ Leftover streusel

    If you have any leftover topping, store it in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep for about a week.

    Streusel topping freezes perfectly. Spread it in a large bag in a thin layer and leave it in the freezer for about 20 minutes. Afterward, shake the crumbly topping in a bag or a freezer-safe container together and let it freeze completely.

    Prepared this way, the crumbs won't stick each other into a compact mass, instead, the individual pieces will remain separate and the frozen streusel mixture can be used without any problems.

    ➜ Useful tips

    • Use a pastry blender or pastry cutter to process the streusel topping; it can make your job easier and keep your hands clean.
    • A food processor is not suitable for making European-style streusel. We want beautiful uneven crumbs, not a uniform sandy mass.
    • Cakes with overripe fruit on top require more streusel topping because this fruit is juicy, and streusel absorbs the juice.
    Czech yeasted cake with drobenka streusel topping.

    ➜ FAQs

    What is streusel topping made of?

    The classic streusel topping is made from flour, coarse sugar, and butter in a ratio of 2:1:1.

    How much streusel do I need?

    In Europe, coffee cakes are most often baked on large baking sheets. The usual size of such a pan is about 16x12 inches (40x30 cm). For a cake baked in this size, you will need a topping made of about 1 cup of flour, ½ cup of granulated sugar, and ½ cup of unsalted butter. Use two-thirds of that amount for a 9x13-inch (23x33 cm) pan.

    How do you keep streusel topping crisp and crunchy?

    Add one yolk while making it to keep the streusel crunchy even the next day. Add proportionally more flour and sugar to achieve the right texture.

    Why does my streusel melt while baking?

    The problem is in adding too much butter. Try adding a tablespoon of flour and sugar to break up large chunks of crumbs.

    More sweet recipes:

    • Cream cheese coffee cake
    • Bublanina cake
    • Fruit bread with chocolate glaze
    Streusel topping.

    Best Streusel Topping

    Delicious sheet cakes with crunchy streusel topping are so popular in the Czech Republic, Germany, and Poland; in fact in the whole of Central Europe! On sweet pastries, the sprinkles form the final layer that takes the dish to the next level. In this simple recipe, I will show you how we make the perfect topping in the Czech Republic.
    5 from 2 votes
    Print Pin
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Total Time: 10 minutes
    Servings: 1
    Calories: 1245kcal
    Author: Petra Kupská
    Prevent your screen from going dark
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: Czech
    Keyword: sweet pastry

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup all-purpose flour (130 g)
    • ⅔ stick butter (75 g) cut into small pieces
    • ⅓ cup granulated sugar (70 g)

    Instructions

    • Put the flour and sugar in a large bowl.
    • Using a knife, carefully cut the butter into small cubes and add them to the dry ingredients.
    • Work all the ingredients together using your fingers until you have a sand-like mixture with firm, irregular lumps.

    Notes

    • Makes a batch of streusel for a large coffee cake baked in a pan of size 16x12 inches (40x30 cm). Use two-thirds of that amount for a 9x13-inch (23x33 cm) pan.
    • If you prepare the streusel in advance, put it in a bowl in the fridge to stay chilled. Sprinkle streusel on the cake just before baking.
    • Do you want a crunchy topping that stays that way the next day? Add an egg yolk to it when preparing. Then you'll need to add more flour and sugar to make the crumbs less dense.
    • If you have a leftover topping, store it in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep for about a week.
    • Streusel topping freezes perfectly. Spread it in a large bag in a thin layer and leave it in the freezer for about 20 minutes. Afterward, shake the crumbly topping in a bag or a freezer-safe container together and let it freeze completely.

    DISCLAIMER: Because I come from Central Europe, my recipes are based on metric units such as grams or milliliters. Check out how I convert metric units to the U.S. system:

    Conversion chart

    Nutritional Estimate pro portion

    Calories: 1245kcal | Carbohydrates: 169g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 58g | Saturated Fat: 36g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 151mg | Sodium: 453mg | Potassium: 157mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 70g | Vitamin A: 1749IU | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 6mg
    Do you like the recipe?I would be happy for your feedback! Please, rate the recipe and share your opinion or questions in comments bellow. Thank you very much.
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Tara Mckeithen

      April 16, 2021 at 7:31 am

      I need the recipe to the blueberry coffee/breakfast cake. My grandmother would make a cake sprinkled with this streusel topping on it .. the recipe here with blueberries is too thin .. my grandmother passed in 1983 and i haven’t had it since .. PLEASE HELP ME!

      Reply
      • Petra Kupská

        April 18, 2021 at 1:50 pm

        Ahoj Tara, thank you for your comment; I'd be happy to suggest recipes for streusel coffee cakes that might work well with blueberries. Please try these: Plum streusel coffee cake or Apricot streusel sheet cake, both are tried and tested recipes using streusel topping that I can highly recommend. Best wishes, Petra

        Reply
    2. Sarah

      August 10, 2021 at 11:19 am

      5 stars
      This is a really easy way to spice up your fruit pies! They have always been a bit bland for me, but after I discovered drobenka and tried it my pies have been much better received.

      Reply
      • Petra Kupská

        August 10, 2021 at 4:57 pm

        This Czech drobenka / posypka topping is most often used on fruit pies, and you're right. When you sprinkle streusel on a pie, you elevate it a level higher! 🙂

        Reply
    3. Melanie Goad

      January 31, 2022 at 2:46 pm

      I have tons leftover after making kolaches is there a way to save the leftovers?

      Reply
      • Petra Kupská

        February 01, 2022 at 7:36 am

        Stored in the fridge, the streusel topping will definitely keep for at least a week. I'm not sure if the drobenka topping can be frozen effectively. Apparently so, but I don't have any own experience with it.
        I would try adding some flour to the crumbles to make the topping more "dusty", and then I would make a small cake in the sense of this recipe: Crumble sheet cake
        Something like:
        1. layer of streusel topping
        2. layer sweetened cottage/tvaroh/farmers cheese diluted with a little milk poured over streusel topping
        3. layer of fruit (small pieces of any fruit)
        4. a final layer of little streusel topping (if any left)
        Then bake the cake in the oven until done. The baking time depends on the cake size.
        I hope this helps!

        Reply
        • Melanie

          February 02, 2022 at 8:44 am

          5 stars
          Thank you so much for your reply! My great-grandparents came to the states from Beharovice in Moravia and I am really enjoying discovering the food from their country through your blog. Thank you for doing this in English!

          Reply

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    Hi there, I’m Petra, a self-taught home cook and a Czech mom of two teen boys with more than 20 years of cooking experience. I am here to share traditional recipes from the Czech Republic, a small country in the very heart of Europe.

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