Of late peaches have been the fruit to talk about. We have exceptional peaches which are grown on the Western Slope of the Rocky Mountains and at this time of year they are a hot topic, rightly so. However a more subtle fruit that shines right now are plums. I had no idea there were so many varieties until I became a locavore a few years ago. Through our local Farmer’s Market I’ve enjoyed learning about many new varieties, each available only for a few weeks time.
Different plum varieties: Elephant Heart (front left), Red Amber (front right), Black Beauty (back)
As our weather has cooled significantly (bringing 48 hours of pounding rain this week) I wanted to bake something with plums. While pondering ideas I came upon a group of recipes I had cut out of magazines five years ago and completely forgot about. I thumbed through them to see if anything was still of interest and found this beautiful upside-down cake, the first I’ve made. It is easy and a bit rustic which I love. When making it I noted the cup of sugar (in addition to the brown sugar) and was worried it would be overly sweet; not so. It has a great light flavor allowing the plums to take center stage.
A note about plums. Like peaches there are freestone varieties (those varieties in which the pit comes away from the fruit with ease) and not. I chose to use a mixture of plums I had on hand. I found using plums that were slightly under ripe (more firm) worked well. I sliced the wedges, inserted a knife in between the wedges, and rotated the handle to the right and left, allowing the wedge to twist off the pit which it did with ease. With very ripe plums (non freestone) I was unsuccessful removing them from the pit without completely mashing the fruit).
Recipe
PLUM UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE
This easy cake features delicious plums in a classic upside down cake recipe. It's a perfect dessert during plum season.
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Servings: 12
Calories: 237kcal
Ingredients
- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons water
- 3 cups pitted plums cut into wedges (same type or mixed)
- 1 ¾ cups all purpose flour regular or gluten free measure-for-measure flour blend
- ½ cup almond meal or flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 2 teaspoons grated orange peel
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Place 3 tablespoons butter in a 9 x 9 inch baking pan. Place the baking pan in the heated oven for 5 minutes or until butter is melted.
- Remove the pan from the oven and stir in the brown sugar and water, stirring until combined. Spread so the mixture is an even layer in the pan.
- Arrange the plum wedges on the brown sugar mixture and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a mixer combine flour, almond meal/flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt.
- To the dry mixture add the milk, remaining 5 tablespoons butter, eggs and vanilla. Beat with hand held or standing mixer on low until fully combined. Beat an additional 1 minute on medium speed.
- Stir in the orange peel. Pour or spoon into the baking pan on top of the plums.
- Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. My cake seemed moist, almost liquid at 45 minutes but firmed up once removed from the oven.
- Allow it to cool for 5 minutes on a cooling rack (note: do not allow it to sit longer or it may be difficult to remove from the pan). Run a dinner knife along the sides of the pan to ensure it is freed up and turn onto a serving plate. Be careful as the cake and pan will still be quite warm. Cool about 45 minutes.
Notes
Adapted from Country Home magazine (2006)
Nutrition
Calories: 237kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 29mg | Sodium: 72mg | Potassium: 234mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 31g | Vitamin A: 215IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 93mg | Iron: 1mg
Did you make this recipe?Mention @boulderlocavore or tag #boulderlocavore!
createwithmom says
this looks beautiful lovely way to enjoy plums a favourite 🙂
regards
Akheela
torviewtoronto and createwithmom
Manu says
I love upside down cakes! I have never made one with plums and I can see it is a great idea as this one looks delicious!!!
Brooks at Cakewalker says
I love the pleasant surprise of remembering recipe clippings long tucked away. And what delicious looking justice you've done with these plums. Great to know the western slope of the Rockies is a good producing region too!
kita says
I have never had a plum (well, I am sure it's been in things but never a whole plum – or baked good with plums). I love that you talk a bit about the different types of plums because I would have never known how to handle the pits, treating it cruelly. This cake looks beautiful! Now I'm off to explore a new fruit!
Lizzy says
Oh, this looks so wonderful and homey! Great photos as always, Toni…wish I could smell the fabulous aroma I know this has~~~
Eliotseats says
Great pics. I wish I had your source for plums.
Peggy says
I think the plum is an under-rated fruit – more recipes need to be made like this! It sounds like the best end-of-dinner treat right now =)
thehungryhomebody says
looks fantastic, love the peach and plum combo 😀
Julianna
Karen | Divine Dinner Party says
I have never tried making a plum upside down cake before. With this recipe, I'm off to a good start! Thanks for sharing 😉
Kristin says
I love your idea of mixing and matching the different varieties of plums!