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Nordic Dessert

Nordic Dessert

Danish Dream Cake (Drømmekage)

Published: Nov 8, 2014 · Modified: Apr 11, 2020 · About 3 minutes to read this article. · By Kim Nielsen

Old-fashioned recipe for Danish Dream Cake (Droemmekage). This cake has been made for generations and is very delicious. If you only have to make one traditional Danish cake - this dream cake should be it!
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Traditional recipe for Danish Dream Cake (Droemmekage)

Recipe for Homemade Danish Dream Cake (Drømmekage)

The recipe for Drømmekage is one of the most traditional and famous Danish cakes. Translated, Drømmekage simply means Dream cake probably because some people think it taste like a dream :-)

Read also: Recipe for traditional Danish Butter Cake (Dagmar tart)

The history for this cake originates from the small Danish town Hjallerup, Jutland which is located in the western part of Denmark. Back in 1960, a woman named Jytte Andersen participated in a cake baking contest held by a large food company in Denmark. In the contest she made the Drømmekage which turned out to be so good that it won. This was the beginning of a cake which later became probably the most famous cake in Denmark.

Also see: How to make a Danish Hotdog

We both remember having made, and eaten, countless amounts of this cake when we were kids. The cake is a simple cake based on flour, sugar, butter, eggs and milk. However, it's the coconut topping that gives the cake its characteristic taste. If you like the topping you can easily make a double portion of it and give the cake a thicker layer. We both love this cake and we have never heard of anybody who don't like it.

Traditional recipe for Danish Dream Cake (Droemmekage)

Danish Dream Cake (Drømmekage)

Old-fashioned recipe for Danish Dream Cake (Droemmekage). This cake has been made for generations and is very delicious. If you only have to make one traditional Danish cake - this dream cake should be it!
Print Recipe Rate Recipe
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Course: Cake
Cuisine: Danish
Keyword: Nordic cake, Nordic dessert
Servings: 8 people
Author: NordicFoodLiving.com

Ingredients

Metric - US Customary

Cake

  • 250 g all-purpose flour
  • 250 g sugar
  • 50 g butter
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 dl milk
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp vanilla sugar (or vanilla essence)

Topping

  • 125 g butter
  • 1/2 dl milk
  • 200 g brown sugar
  • 100 g coconut flakes

Instructions

  • Whisk eggs and sugar until light and fluffy in a bowl.
  • Melt the butter using a saucepan or microwave oven. Add the milk to the saucepan and stir. Add it to the bowl with eggs and sugar.
  • In a separate bowl; mix together all-purpose flour, vanilla sugar (essence) and baking powder. Add to the other bowl, and mix it all together into a smooth batter.
  • Line a baking pan (about 25x35 cm - 10x14 inch) with baking paper and pour the batter in it.
  • Bake the cake at 200 C (400 F) for about 20-25 minutes. When the cake is in the oven, prepare the coconut topping.
  • Coconut topping; melt the butter in a saucepan.
  • Add the milk and the brown sugar and let it simmer for about a minute.
  • Add the coconut flakes and mix it well.
  • When the cake has been in the oven for about 20-25 minutes. Take it out and pour the coconut mixture over the it. Use a knife to spread the topping evenly.
  • Bake the cake for another 10 minutes and it should be done. Let it cool off before serving it.


Recipe for Homemade Danish Dream Cake (Drømmekage)

Recipe for Homemade Danish Dream Cake (Drømmekage)

Recipe for Homemade Danish Dream Cake (Drømmekage)

Recipe for Homemade Danish Dream Cake (Drømmekage)

Recipe for Homemade Danish Dream Cake (Drømmekage)

Recipe for Homemade Danish Dream Cake (Drømmekage)

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. emm

    June 29, 2015 at 4:33 am

    I first had this cake with my Danish exchange friend, loved it so much I knew I had to bake it. Thanks for posting this, I baked it today for my family and they LOVED it! Thanks a bunch from Canada.

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      July 11, 2015 at 8:35 am

      Hi. We are happy that you liked it :-) Cheers from Denmark

      Reply
      • Theo Alexander Jakobsen

        December 13, 2019 at 8:00 pm

        I am a true Danish born and lived in kobehaven right om Theo midde og kobehaven. Jeg elsker din drømme kae

        Reply
        • Kim Nielsen

          December 14, 2019 at 9:59 am

          Drømmekage is also one of my favorite cakes :-) Regards Kim (NordciFoodLiving.com)

          Reply
    • Laura M Chapman

      May 03, 2021 at 11:00 pm

      Cake...I'm curious about the measurement.. 4/5 .. of milk, is that 4 to 5 cups of milk?? Topping...same as the other part.. 1/5 cup of milk ??? 1 to 5 cups ??? Please explain this to me ..

      Reply
      • laura chapman

        May 03, 2021 at 11:03 pm

        is that 4 cup and a 1/4 cup ??? and the other is that 1 cup and a 1/4 cup

        Reply
      • Kim Nielsen

        May 04, 2021 at 5:26 am

        Sorry about the confusion regarding the measurements. If you go to the recipe there is a button called "US Customary" if you click that one it will convert into US unit. For the topping you would need 4.5 oz (4 oz + 1/2 oz) of butter, 1/5 cup of milk (one cup divided by five). I hope it makes sense? Regards Kim (NordicFoodLiving.com)

        Reply
  2. Nikolas M

    December 22, 2015 at 3:32 pm

    I'm pretty sure this is the cake my mother used to make for my birthday every year. Still probably my favorite cake. She did use a chopped nut topping of almonds, hazelnuts, and maybe walnuts in place of coconut. Seems like that is something that you can play with to suit your mood.

    Reply
    • Louise Dam

      December 23, 2015 at 8:47 am

      Hi Nikolas,
      Oh, it sounds divine with the nut topping - I really must try that some time.

      Reply
      • Rheanna

        June 06, 2020 at 1:37 pm

        Just made this cake and it came out perfectly.... so tasty and delicious!

        Reply
        • Kim Nielsen

          June 08, 2020 at 5:09 am

          You are welcome - I am happy that you liek the recipe for Danish Dream Cake :-)

          Reply
  3. Amy

    January 21, 2016 at 1:29 am

    The directions omit when to add the whisked egg and sugar mixture. Regardless, my daughter was successful at figuring it out and the cake was delicious! (side note, we made this Dream cake in celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr., birthday. "I have a dream..." speech very moving!).A

    Reply
    • Louise Dam

      January 25, 2016 at 8:09 pm

      Hi Amy
      Actually it did say, but I have now changed a little in the directions.

      Reply
  4. Jennie

    March 19, 2016 at 2:30 pm

    Do you use sweetened or unsweetened coconut? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Louise Dam

      May 23, 2016 at 1:14 pm

      Unsweetened :-)

      Reply
  5. Holly

    May 02, 2016 at 12:50 am

    Just wondering - my cake went down on the sides, pooling the topping more to the edges. Do you have any advise on how to prevent this?

    Reply
    • Louise Dam

      May 23, 2016 at 1:19 pm

      Well it does that a bit, but there should still be topping on the top?

      Reply
  6. Rosemary Bluhm

    June 18, 2016 at 12:02 am

    What is vanilla sugar ??

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      August 03, 2016 at 5:13 pm

      Vanilla sugar might me a European thing - I did not know. However, it is similar to vanilla essence. Vanilla sugar is just vanilla seeds mixed with a little normal sugar. I have a small guide how to make your own vanilla sugar. Please see this link: https://nordicfoodliving.com/homemade-vanilla-cream/

      Reply
  7. Phillip

    July 13, 2016 at 1:57 pm

    At a recent meeting of the Portland, OR, Danish Lodges there were 3 x 5" recipe cards for the taking. I chose Tusik Kage. Do you know anything about this cake and what the name means? Hilsen,

    Reply
    • Phillip

      July 14, 2016 at 9:24 pm

      In the 1950s my Mother, now 96, was making this cake in Portland, OR, USA. It is nice to know that the popularity of this cake has gone to other countries as well.

      Reply
      • Louise Dam

        July 20, 2016 at 6:12 am

        Oh, that sounds interesting. I was sure the cake originated from Denmark and the city Brovst.

        Reply
        • J Nielsen

          September 29, 2019 at 8:29 am

          It is named "Drømmekage fra Brovst" (Dream cake from Brovst), so where does Hjallerup comes into the picture???

          It is a recipie which goes all the way back to Danish Colonial times in the 1600 century.

          Reply
          • Kim Nielsen

            September 30, 2019 at 7:09 am

            I understand the confusion. I haven't been good enough explaining this part. They cake was originally made by a lady called Jytte Andersen and for a moment named after her grandmother from Hjallerup. The cake became popular after it won a competition in Brovst where it also got the name Drømmekage (Dream cake)

            I hope this answers your question. And again, sorry that I haven't explain myself good enough.

    • Louise

      July 20, 2016 at 6:19 am

      Hi Philip,
      I'm not familiar with a 'Tusik Cake'. Do you have a Picture of it you can e-mail me

      Reply
  8. Rubén

    December 05, 2016 at 4:59 pm

    Thanks a lot for the recipe.. I tried the TIGER premix and went a little bit dissapointed. I will try this one

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      December 05, 2016 at 5:04 pm

      Hi Robén. You are welcome I hope you have better success with this recipe :-)

      Reply
  9. Susanne

    January 07, 2017 at 4:46 pm

    This cake tastes great using finely chopped almonds in place of the coconut as well. I made this cake as a kid.....I'm Danish and am now living in America. Thought the cake was called Tosca taerte.

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      January 10, 2017 at 11:59 am

      Hi Susanne. I happy that you like the recipe - this is absolutely one of my favorite Danish cakes :-)

      Reply
    • Jackie Hart

      May 02, 2020 at 11:38 am

      Susanne, when made with almonds it is called Tosca kaka in Sweden.

      Reply
  10. Allison

    January 31, 2017 at 3:11 pm

    Hi! This looks great and I can't wait to try it! Question - when you add the coconut, do you keep the saucepan on the stove with the heat on or do you remove it from the heat while waiting for the cake to finish baking? Thank you!

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      January 31, 2017 at 3:23 pm

      Hi Allison. Thanks :) I normally make it just before I'm going to pour it on the cake. However, I would just take off the heat if it is done before you need it for the cake. I hope that answered your question. Regards Kim

      Reply
      • Allison

        February 01, 2017 at 2:18 pm

        Hi Kim! Thank you, yes this answers my question! Allison

        Reply
  11. A'ndrea Rogers

    April 12, 2017 at 3:37 pm

    So happy to have found this recipe. I'm searching for Danish recipes. My great grandparents came to america from Denmark. Just wanting to have a little taste of Denmark in my home.

    Reply
  12. Drew Dencker

    May 24, 2017 at 4:38 pm

    Hi there I made this last night and it turned out amazing :) thanks for sharing the recipe. One question. Would it be ok to not use the baking paper and instead lightly grease the bottom of the baking dish? It was a bit difficult for me to get an even distribution of the batter in the pan because my baking paper was being stubborn. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      May 25, 2017 at 8:36 pm

      Hi. Yes you can just use a greased baking pan. I actually do that from time to time. Regards Kim

      Reply
  13. ann

    May 28, 2017 at 4:35 am

    The first time I tasted this cake is when I lived in Denmark a few years back and since then it became my favorite. I definitely try this recipe.

    Reply
  14. Golden Pravina

    September 13, 2017 at 11:20 am

    Can we used cream instead of milk for the topping

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      September 16, 2017 at 10:04 am

      HI. That's a good question. I actually think you can use cream. However, I would always recommend milk.

      Reply
  15. Hollie

    May 20, 2018 at 4:12 pm

    The cup/tbsp conversions seem off when I looked at up. Can anyone help please?

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      May 22, 2018 at 7:16 am

      Hi. I've chekced the conversions and I can't find the mistake. Which conversion do you think is wrong? I would be happy to update my mistakes.

      Reply
  16. Per Asmussen

    July 05, 2018 at 1:54 pm

    Great to see a recipe for the tradional Danish cake in English :-)
    Really, really great pictures btw.
    Keep up the good work.

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      July 06, 2018 at 9:00 am

      Thanks for your comment. I'm happy that you like the recipe. It's absolutely one of the most traditional Danish cakes that you can make :-)

      Reply
  17. Roisin Ratican

    October 16, 2018 at 4:23 pm

    Hi :)

    I’ve just used a light brown sugar instead of dark brown sugar will is still be ok? I just noticed the colour of the sugar in the pics!

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      October 20, 2018 at 6:09 am

      Hi Roisin. That should not be a problem. Then you just have a light colored topping :-)

      Reply
  18. Joost W. Kers

    October 31, 2018 at 4:37 pm

    For the second time I baked denne kage.
    Again a lovely taste.

    Reply
  19. Brenda (Sorensen) Hernandez

    March 21, 2019 at 6:45 pm

    Wow. My dad was half Danish and my mom German. She baked a cake just like this a lot when I was a kid and we all loved it. I never knew it was a recipe from my dad's side of the family.

    Reply
  20. Chris

    April 05, 2019 at 3:35 pm

    Hello. We are having a tray bake competition. Do you think this can be categorised as a tray bake?

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      April 06, 2019 at 8:35 am

      Hi. Yes I would say this is a tray cake :-) This is was I call it in Danish.

      Reply
  21. Mae

    May 06, 2019 at 7:23 am

    Can you use vanilla extract instead of vanilla sugar?

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      May 06, 2019 at 2:33 pm

      Yes you can do that.

      Reply
  22. Restauranter Fredericia

    June 21, 2019 at 8:30 am

    5 stars
    Tak for en herlig opskrift!

    Reply
  23. Sahar

    August 14, 2019 at 2:36 pm

    It's sahar form Iran. I felt in love with this super awesome cake yesterday when i tried it for the first time in the canteen. As its name, "dream cake", it tastes so dreamy :)

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      August 15, 2019 at 1:35 pm

      Hi Sahar. Thanks for your comment. I'm glad that you like the recipe and the cake. :-)

      Reply
  24. Pook

    September 27, 2019 at 1:48 pm

    Greeting from Thailand. I just wanted to say "thank you" to you for posting the recipe. I was in Denmark for a month this year and I fell in love with pretty much everything there. I made this cake today :) https://drive.google.com/open?id=1I4e2X8CClE2TOAXOpKWNZgo7rsCXv0py

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      September 28, 2019 at 8:57 am

      You are very welcome. I'm just happy that you like Denmark and the recipe. I looked at your picture - it looks fantastic :-) I was in Thailand last year and I fell in love with the Thai kitchen - it's fantastic.

      Reply
      • Pook

        September 28, 2019 at 12:28 pm

        Thank you :) What's your favorite Thai food?

        Reply
        • Kim Nielsen

          September 28, 2019 at 2:02 pm

          My favorite dish is something I call Chaing Mai Curry Noodles. You can see the recipe on my Danish Food Blog site: https://madrejsen.dk/chiang-mai-curry-noodles-kao-soi/

          Reply
          • Pook

            September 29, 2019 at 12:51 pm

            That looks good. It's interesting that you made it before you visited Thailand for the first time, right? Did you have a chance to eat that here too? Was it different than the one served there? I love that they usually put deep-fried egg noodle on top of it. It adds some texture to the dish :)

          • Kim Nielsen

            September 30, 2019 at 11:22 am

            Yes I actually made it before I came to Thailand. I was one of the reason I picked Thailand. One of my personal favorite parts of the trip was all the delicious fruit that you can get. It is just soo much better compared to the fruits that you can buy in Denmark.
            I've never tried deep-fried noodles. I'll add that to my list :-)

          • Pook

            September 30, 2019 at 3:01 pm

            That's quite a passion. I think we usually like what we don't have. I love berries. I ate a lot of strawberries when I was in Denmark. They're so expensive here.
            http://www.foodtravel.tv/datastore/recfood/4576/Picture14576_normal.jpg Fried noodles are on the left side. I like the crunchiness. It's like crispy fried onions on smørrebrød :)

  25. Tarun

    November 06, 2019 at 5:56 am

    Hi kim,
    Your recipe looks delectable ...i have a question, if i want to make it without egg, what change do i have to make in the recipe.

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      November 07, 2019 at 11:07 am

      I'm not sure if this recipe can be made without eggs. I'm not aware of any good substitutes for regular eggs. If you find a good substitute then I would like to hear from you.

      Reply
  26. Maria Axelrad

    April 05, 2020 at 4:01 pm

    Hi! Salted or unsalted butted? I have both, but I am planning on making it today, so I wanted to make sure. Thanks in advance, from Houston, Texas!

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      April 06, 2020 at 6:12 pm

      Hi - I always use salted butter (it's most common in Denmark). However, it doesn't matter in this recipe. You can use both. Regards Kim (NordicFoodLiving.com)

      Reply
  27. Chris

    April 11, 2020 at 9:34 am

    5 stars
    Great recipe - That's for sharing, it came out perfect!

    Reply
  28. Tobias Walbom

    February 27, 2021 at 6:45 pm

    elsker droemmekage som de fleste andre , dog efter at vaere blevet introduceret til bannoffee pie her i london ,har jeg siden kun brugt condensed milk istedet for soedmaelk..saa faar man en mere ensformig bloed karamel istedet den lidt harde sometider kant breandte karamel... men det er jo en smagssag...
    tak for opskriften...ekstra tip..bag en banan kage og udskift chackolade overtraekket med droemmekage fyldet.. fantastisk....og hvis man saa vil gaa helt dansk westindisk pisk flodeskum med en smugle moerk rom.og koer en klat paa toppen.... ved det er i overkanten og smagsregisteret kommer paa seightseing og det er saa laekkert det naesten blir ullaekkert..men de tre forste bider er himmelske...lol

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      February 28, 2021 at 9:14 am

      Det var da faktisk en rigtig god idé med kondenseret mælk i opskriften. Det tip giver meget mening, det vil jeg porøve næste gang jeg laver Drømmekage :-) Jeg kan også sagtens forstille mig at banankage med drømmekage topping kunne være super lækkert - det tip har jeg helt sikkert også skrevet ned :-) Tak for det! vh Kim (NordicFoodLiving.com)

      Reply
  29. Mary

    April 13, 2021 at 10:52 pm

    5 stars
    This is a delicious cake- spongy, eggy and the coconut caramel topping is wonderful. It's very easy to make. Thank you for the North American measurements as well.

    Reply
    • Kim Nielsen

      April 14, 2021 at 7:29 am

      I'm happy that you can use the recipe and that you like it. Regards Kim (NordicFoodLiving.com)

      Reply

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