First let me say that I’ve never been to Vienna for the traditional Viennese Plum Cake, but we hope to go sometime next year as we have friends in Slovakia (Hi Becky!) that we would like to visit soon!
They are only 45 minutes or so from Vienna, so when we do finally make it over there, I will be heading to a Viennese Coffeehouse posthaste to get my hands on a piece of the real deal Viennese Plum Cake!
Meanwhile, I’ve tried recipes for Vienna Plum Cake in the past, and this low carb and gluten free version that I’ve created is pretty close to what I’ve had.
And it’s amazing.
This Vienna Plum Cake is rich and dense, but has a light, sweet flavor that keeps it from being overly heavy.
The plums themselves add a refreshing tang that balances out the sweetness – and their smooth, juicy center is a lovely counterpart to the rustic texture of the cake itself.
There are versions of the Vienna Plum Cake using cinnamon and lemon zest for flavor, but I went with a lot of vanilla and a hint of almond extract, which I think complemented the unique flavor of the plums perfectly.
Also I’m saving the cinnamon flavors for the low carb apple recipes I’ll be working with next week!
I used prune plums because they are small and easy to work with (also they were on sale so there is that) but you can really use any smallish plum in this recipe.
If you go with a larger plum and they are too big to place on the cake in halves, you can slice them and arrange them in a nice circular pattern or just throw them on there haphazardly as it will complement the rustic nature of this cake.
Traditionally Viennese Plum Cake can be sprinkled with confectioners sugar after baking. I didn’t do it this time because I wanted the plums to show up well in the photos, but you can use Swerve confectioners if you want to dress up the top a little for company.
Either way it’s delicious and perfect with a cup of coffee in the morning – or let’s be honest, anytime!
Earlier this week I gave new meaning to the phrase “3 squares a day” when I ate a piece for breakfast, then lunch, then dinner because I was too busy running around to cook myself “real” food.
Not only was #cakeallday super fun, I was down 1.2 pounds in the morning. I might make the #ibihcakediet a thing now ha ha!
LET’S DO IT.
NOTES: To make this Vienna Plum Cake recipe Dairy Free, simply replace the butter with coconut oil or the butter replacement of your choice.
To make it fully Paleo, you can replace the sweetener with coconut palm sugar or the sweetener of your choice. If you use a liquid sweetener like honey or maple syrup, reduce it to 1/3 cup and add another Tablespoon of coconut flour to compensate for the extra moisture.
For the best results I recommend using a high quality blanched almond flour, preferably a super fine grind – if you use a course almond meal, it will still taste good but it will have a much heavier texture. I have used both Wellbee’s and Honeyville with excellent results – I buy in 3-5 lb bags to get the best price and store it in the fridge or freezer.
Vienna Plum Cake – Low Carb and Gluten Free
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Description
A low carb and gluten free Vienna Plum Cake recipe – sweet and dense vanilla almond cake with tangy, juicy plums baked into the top. Keto, Atkins and Paleo friendly!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar substitute (I used Swerve)
- 3 eggs
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- 1 1/2 cups almond flour
- 1/2 cup coconut flour
- pinch of salt
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
- 3/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
- 4 small plums, pitted and halved (skin on)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees (F)
- Cream the butter and sweetener together until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Add the vanilla and almond extract and beat until combined.
- Combine the almond flour, coconut flour, salt, baking powder, and xanthan gum in a small bowl and mix well. Add the flour mixture to the butter/egg mixture and beat until fully incorporated.
- Add the almond milk and blend well.
- Spoon the batter into a well greased 8 x 12 pan (or equivalent) and spread evenly.
- Place the plum halves (or slices) evenly over the top.
- Bake on an upper rack of the oven at 375 degrees (F) for 35 – 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cut the cake into 8 pieces. Serve warm or cold.
Notes
To see a list of my favorite low carb products and brands that I recommend for sweeteners, flours, etc. you can check out the IBIH Pantry Ingredients Page!
- Category: Low Carb Dessert Recipe
- Cuisine: Austrian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/8th cake
- Calories: 296
- Fat: 25
- Carbohydrates: 6.5g net
- Protein: 9
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Dianne says
This is absolutely the best Keto cake recipe I’ve ever tried. Bakes beautifully and is so similar to a light conventional wheat flour cake you’ll ever try. Kind of like a light polenta cake. Top marks from me! Thanks for sharing ❤️
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks so much Dianne!
Louisa says
Phenomenal outcome. I made it in a round springform pan and added more plums- the cake is delicious. I’m sure the base would even do great on its’ own or with other toppings.
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks so much Louisa!
Hanna says
First of all – this recipe looks great. Being low-carb is a plus for many of us.
But -for the record – Slovakia is a little farther from Vienna than 45 minutes (unless you mean via airplane).
Mellissa Sevigny says
We have friends that lived in the city of Bratislava (Slovakia) for over 10 years – it’s a 47 minute ride to the Vienna airport from them, which you can confirm using Google Maps.
Zee says
Love love love this recipe! I’ve made it a few times with different fruits I needed to use. This last time I added zest of a lemon to the mix (with plums) and it’s amazing!
I’ve also subbed the almond milk with a little cream mixed with water because that’s all I had on hand and subbed almond essence with vanilla. I haven’t found swerve in Australia but have used both monkfruit and stevia sweeteners (with erythritol base) and both work. Some sweeteners need quantity reduction but it says on the pack.
Thanks so much for the wonderful recipe! 😁
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
So happy you’re able to make this work for you with so many different variations! It’s on my list to make as soon as I get back to the states and can get ahold of some plums!
Erika says
Finally a low carb and no sugar added recipe i love! the cake is buttery and tender! i also baked this in an 8 inch round tin and worked out well. can’t wait to try your other recipes!!
★★★★★
Mae says
Went to a Farmers Market and picked up some small plums and needed to find a recipe to use them. This was a simple and easy recipe. The presentation is great and I did add powdered sugar on top as she said she would have but did not due to looks better in the photo. I can totally see how she said you could eat it for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It’s that good, it’s that light, it’s that easy! Thank you for sharing your recipes, I look forward to trying more.
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
So happy you liked this one Mae! I wish I could get plums here in Honduras so I could make it again!
Deborah says
Terrific recipe! I followed it exactly except for the almond flavoring which I didn’t have on hand. Thank you! One question for you – can I cut the sweetener in half without affecting the results? I prefer less sweet cakes . I think most people would find it just right but my tastebuds like only a hint of sweetness.
★★★★★
jean says
My friend is keto and I am gluten/dairy and egg free. (And, had a lot of plums to use up!) I made some subs, but this worked very well. I used flax eggs instead of real eggs (which are keto, I believe), I added desiccated coconut, I doubled the recipe and made two cakes (because, why wouldn’t you?), I halved the sugar, but used coconut sugar, used coconut milk and used a few extra plums. It was so delicious. Thank you for the recipe!
★★★★★
Nanci says
Hi…we are new to this way of eating /baking and Imam eager to try this recipe for my hubby. I have a couple dozen plums that need used, so I’m wondering if using a few more than specified would interfere with the consistency of the cake. Thank you for any help.
Mellissa Sevigny says
It will increase the carb count quite a bit which is the major concern if you’re trying to stay in ketosis. Otherwise a few more plums won’t hurt the cake.
Katie says
Love this cake! I made it with blueberries and some sliced almonds on top. Delicious! Cut it up and froze pieces for later. It’s just such a great year round recipe for whatever fruit you have in season. Thanks so much!
★★★★★
Lynn says
This is my first recipe rating – and I bake a lot. I baked this as written and used a dark glass cake pan. This cake turned out moist and delicate and totally fantastic! Brava!!
★★★★★
Sandra says
Tastes amazing! Can this be frozen? I have a lot of plums from my tree!
Sherry says
Just wanted to say this cake was amazing. I was tempted to have a regular cake for my birthday but with this cake, I am fully satisfied and don’t feel like I am missing out. I would make this even if I wasn’t keto. I used a little more than 3/4 c. coconut milk to use up a can in my fridge, some lemon zest,less vanilla more almond extract, blackberries instead of plums, added a little sukrin gold brown sugar and buttered the pan with ghee. Thank you for the recipe! It is a keeper!!
Jade says
Could I use regular milk instead of almond milk?
Mellissa Sevigny says
You could but the carbs would be much higher
Laura T says
You low-carb bloggers are amazing. Just when I think you can’t find any more recipes that I need to replace something that I used to eat in high carb land, you find another one to amaze me with. Growing up, I had a German neighbor who used to make what she called plum kuchen. It was the same type cake, and was deliciouos. I will be making this, especially if I can find some prune plums.
Mellissa Sevigny says
Awesome Laura, I hope that it will be even half as good as your neighbor’s authentic version! Let me know how it turns out!
Ruth says
i have a 50 year old recipie which has 1 egg 2cups flour 1c can i switch flour for almond flour 1 cup sugar for 1 cup swerve and still use 3 eggs or would the consistency change when i change flour and swwerve? thanks for any insight
Olivia says
I do not use xantham gum. Could anyone advise the best substitute please? Chia? Flax? Gelatine? And amounts if possible please!
Miriam says
Can I skip the coconut flour? What should I replace it with? Also, I chia seed gel. How much should I use to replace the xantham gum?
Thanks for the recipe: I have a basket of plums which need using up!
Liz says
I can’t wait to make this. My mother in law is from Vienna and has made this cake many times. Her cake is a sponge cake and she used those little blue italian plums. Cut down the crease, remove pitt (she called them stones :) ….replace with a sugar cube, close and immerse in the batter. I won’t be making her recipe anytime soon but will make this one…thanks! I’m not rating until I make it but wanted to share that with you :)
Louisa says
Fresh out the oven tastes amazing!
I used gluten free flour instead of above and amaretto liqueur instead of almond extract!
But I’m doing it again that’s for sure thsnku x
Adriana says
Hi Melissa!
I cannot find xanthan gum anywhere…. :(
Can I use chia seeds, flax seeds or agar??
and how much?
This cake looks amazing!
Thank you
Jane McCoy Reding says
Amazon has xanthan gum
Jasmina says
I just made this cake, but with blueberries instead of plums. Delicious! I just have one question, what is the best way to store this cake?
Karen Gaines says
You are really just amazing with your creativity!
Mellissa Sevigny says
Awwwww thank you Karen!! :)
martinus says
I’m from Austria, and in my opinion by far the best version of this cake is when you replace the plums with apricots. Yumm.
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
I love apricots, I can only imagine it would be a delicious substitution!!
Vicky says
I love when low carb recipes include fruit. It’s a treat!
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
I agree Vicky! It’s worth a little splurge sometimes!!!
Pam Campbell says
I’m liking the #cakeallday diet! Probably much better than the #probablywonteateggsforayear diet that I’m seriously considering/thinking about doing. Love your site-always look forward to reading it.
Mellissa Sevigny says
Lol Pam, thanks! And while the egg fast works well it’s definitely no picnic – though some of the recipes on my plan are pretty popular! I could pretty much eat the snickerdoodle crepes the entire five days and be totally fine with it! Let me know if you decide to try it and how you do!
Lisa says
Melissa,
I LOVE all of your recipes and follow your blog daily…just wondering if there is a modification you can suggest on your latest post “Vienna Plum Cake” recipe. I do not like almond extract or anything that has a strong almond flavor. Is there something I can substitute or can I just leave this out without a major problem?
Thanks!
Mellissa Sevigny says
Hi Lisa! You can definitely leave out the almond extract and the vanilla flavor will carry the cake just fine! Enjoy! :)
emily says
Do you think this would work as a pineapple upside down cake? I have a pinepple and no plums!
Mellissa Sevigny says
I think it would be great Emily, let me know if you try it and how it comes out!!!