Plum Cake
Plum Cake
This plum cake recipe — made with sugar, plums and butter — draws inspiration from the scenes of Sicily. This recipe by Leah Eskin originally appeared in The Chicago Tribune.
Prep Time
30
minutes
Cook Time
40
minutes
Servings
12
Total time: 1 hour, 10 minutes
Ingredients
- 6 to 8 plums, choose tart, firm, almost-ripe beauties
- 2 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 1/2 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 10 tablespoon cold unsalted butter, cut into 3 or 4 chunks
- 3 large eggs
Directions
- Halve plums along their cleft lines. Pull out stones. Set a rack in the middle of the oven, and heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Measure 1 1/4 cups sugar into a heavy 9- or 10-inch skillet, preferably cast-iron.
- Stir in salt and water (no more stirring).
- Set skillet over medium-high heat.
- In about 9 minutes, sugar will begin to color.
- Tilt pan, swirling sugar to an even medium-brown.
- Pull off heat.
- Set plum halves, cut-sides down, into the caramel.
- Measure remaining 1 cup sugar, the flour and baking powder into the food processor.
- Buzz to combine.
- Drop in butter.
- Process until crumbly, about 20 seconds.
- Slide in eggs, and process until batter comes together, about 10 seconds.
- Drop mounds of batter onto the plums.
- Using an offset spatula, spread evenly.
- Set skillet on a rimmed baking sheet.
- Bake until golden and springy, 40–42 minutes.
- Let cool, 10 minutes.
- Run the spatula around the edge of the pan.
- Set a serving platter upside down over skillet.
- Using mitts, hold platter and skillet together and invert, landing cake on platter.
- Lift away skillet. Enjoy warm or room temperature.