“Bee-Sting” Cake

At the Allwood Bakery in Clifton, New Jersey, this cake used to be baked in huge sheets. The yeast dough was filled with custard and topped with a burnished nut glaze bienenstich (“bee-sting” glaze, in German). Now, the bakers there make it smaller and only on Saturdays. When I was 9, this was my idea of heaven.

This version has no custard filling; if you’d like to fill it, carefully split the cooled cake with a large serrated knife, and fill with