A buttery, golden cake studded with plums. Fall season prune plums add beautiful deep purple colour to this simple cake. They’re a bit tarter than regular plums, and less juicy, but they’re better suited for baking.
Yield: 8 to 12 slices
Ingredients
10-12 prune plums, pitted and quartered (or 6 regular plums, pitted & quartered)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
pinch of salt
1 stick of butter (1/2 cup), softened to room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar, plus 2 tbsp. for sprinkling
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Powdered sugar for dusting cake
Directions
1. Wash the plums, pat dry, and slice into quarters. Remove and discard the stones. Set to one side.
2. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a pie, tart or quiche pan with butter.
3. In a bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking powder.
4. In a large bowl, cream together beat the sugar with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix for another minute. Slowly add the flour mixture and mix until well combined, about 2 minutes.
5. Pour the batter into greased pan and use a spatula to spread evenly. Gently press the quartered plums, cut side up, into the batter. (Don’t push too far into batter – the batter will rise around plums during baking.) Sprinkle the top with 2 tablespoons sugar.
6. Place pie pan on the middle oven rack and bake until golden brown, approx. 20 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center of the cake.
7. Leave to cool and dust with powdered sugar before slicing and serving.
