Plum Cake

Hi friends!

I keep doing that thing where I don't post for months and then get a random burst of energy and blogginess, and then don't post again for months.  The food I have been cooking lately has lacked any inspiration, and thus I haven't had much of anything to post besides the 50 or so draft blog posts in my drafts folder but who's counting.  But then, this plum cake happened.  In my mouth.  In all it's plummy deliciousness.  And so here we are again!  Also, my friend Katie told me this week that her friend from work recommended my blog to her, which is the first time that's happened that I know of, and that is just so cool to know that people who I don't know are out there reading this blog of mine...hello unknown readers (of which I now know there are at least one)!!!  Welcome!



The Hubby and I were asked to bring a dessert to our friends April and Brad's house the night they had to cook us dinner as their punishment for a three-peat loss in our Big Brother pool.  Embarrassing performance, April and Brad!  Well, my mom had recently visited her friend Denise at her apple (and plum!) orchard in Okanagan Falls, BC, and had come home with bushels of apples (and plums!), and split them with my brother and me.

Some of her bounty

I knew that the dessert I made would use one of those two fruits.  I chose to make an apple dessert, hoping that The Hubby would have forgotten his contempt towards any warm-apple-based-food, but NOPE, not forgotten.  Back to the drawing board (and plums!) I went, and I immediately became excited when I stumbled across this amazing plum cake recipe.



This recipe is adapted from an oldie but a goodie from the New York Times, where it was first published in 1982 and has made many repeat appearances after that.  The Times version has cinnamon, which I have omitted, and instead I have added both vanilla and almond extract.  I like my version a lot (don't mean to toot my own horn, but TOOT TOOT!), and so did the people who ate it with me (and had seconds I might add!).

The cake is so pretty and interesting to look at.  I love that plum halves are simply placed onto the batter, and that the cake just sort of moulds itself around them.



The juices from the plums tunnel their way jam-like through as everything is baking, and you are left with a moist, delicious cake.  Make sure that you use a springform pan to bake this cake, so that the cake can be removed from the pan easily and without changing the appearance before serving.  And then definitely top it with vanilla ice cream.

As summer is changing into fall, this is a great way to still cling onto the last tastes of summer fruit.  Plums are still in season until the end of October, so this plum cake would be a nice way to change up    your (Canadian) Thanksgiving dessert from the typical pumpkin pie (shock! horrification! dismay!).

Speaking of which, The Hubby and I wish you all a very happy Canadian Thanksgiving this weekend to all of my fellow Canadians (and my favourite expatriates...you know who you are)!  To celebrate, we have a ham dinner going on tonight at my parents' house, and a turkey dinner to follow tomorrow night at The Hubby's aunt and uncles's house.  So much deliciousness coming our way...I'm ready!

I hope that you enjoy this delicious plum cake as much as we did!

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One Year Ago:  Slower Cooker Phillippine Pork Stew
Two Years Ago:  Flourless Spicy Dark Chocolate Cake
Three Years Ago:  Thanksgiving 2012!

Plum Cake

Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 1 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup + 1 teaspoon sugar, divided
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 2 eggs
• 12 plums, pitted, and sliced in half

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.  In a medium bowl, add the flour, baking powder and salt, stirring well.  In a separate medium bowl, use an electric mixer to cream the butter and 1 cup sugar together.  While still mixing, add the vanilla and almond extracts, the eggs, then the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined.

Spoon batter into an un-greased 8, 9, or 10-inch spring-form pan.  Arrange the plum halves skin side up on top of the batter.  Sprinkle lightly with remaining 1 teaspoon sugar.  Bake for 50 - 60 minutes, or until the top of the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the centre of the cake (not a plum!) comes out clean.  Remove from oven and cool on a rack in the pan.  Remove outer ring of spring-form pan.  Slice cake and serve with vanilla ice cream of whipped cream, if desired.

Recipe Adapted From:  New York Times