The Baker Chick

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Spiced Plum Custard Cake

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Spiced Plum Custard Cake

September is a weird produce month don’t you think?

While we all are yearning for apples and squash, sometimes the warm summer days are still lingering in the farm stands.

I learned this to be true when I received 3 pounds of beautiful plums in a fruit CSA box last week. I was a bit thrown as I kinda had moved on from summer stone fruits, but they were so lovely and just begging to be baked with so I had to make them into something. (Luckily for me Hugo also loves plums! He’s been eating 1 a day!)

This cake is just lovely. It has a buttery base that is just a teeny bit sweet, which is topped with lots of fresh juicy plums, and finally a sweet & creamy custard topping.

The finished product is super delicious and the perfect not-t00-sweet option for breakfast or snacking. It’s great out of the fridge, warm and gooey out of the oven, or room temperature. If you have some late season plums you’re dying to use- this cake is just the thing.

I wanted to keep things semi-fall appropriate, so I tossed the plums in cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. The final result would be just perfect with a warm cup of tea and a good book. (Which reminds me, I’d really like to read one sometime soon!)

So what do you think- are plums still season appropriate? Or has that ship sailed?

Spiced Plum Custard Cake

Spiced Plum Custard Cake

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 cup butter- cold and cut into cubes
  • 2 tablespoons heavy cream
  • 1 egg
  • 2 1/2 cups pitted and sliced plums
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

For the custard:

  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly spray an 8 inch springform pan* and set aside.
  2. Toss the sliced plums with the spices and set aside. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, 1 tablespoon sugar and baking powder. Add the cubes of butter and use a pastry blender, knife or your hands to cut the butter in until coarse crumbs form. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla, 2 tablespoons cream and an egg. Continue to stir for a few seconds of until well combined. (But not necessarily perfectly smooth.)
  3. Turn the dough into the bottom of the pain and press in with your fingers. Arrange the spiced plums over the dough. Bake for 20-25 minutes.
  4. While cake is baking prep the custard by whisking together the 1/2 cup of cream, 1/2 cup of sugar, vanilla and egg.
  5. When the cake is done baking, pour the custard over the plums, and return to the oven, baking for another 20-25 minutes or until the custard has set.
  6. Cool before eating, enjoy warm or cold, store in the fridge.

Notes

* I used an 8 inch pan, but 9 inch is fine too, the cake will just be a little thinner!

Recipe adapted from: All Recipes

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Comments

    • Just made this! Its been an all plum day. Made plum brandy, plum sauce, dried plums and this beautiful cake! Can’t wait to dive in, smells divine!!!! Thank you so much.

      Reply

      • Question to anyone who made this recipe . I made it is delicious . My custard after cooking still liquid and running . I used cooking cream ! Did I have to use something else instead ? Or liquidity is fine ? Other wise is delicious

        Reply

  5. Would sliced peaches work in place of the plums and if so, should I peel them. Have the best sweet peaches this summer, but no plums. The recipe sounds and looks delicious

    Reply

    • I’ve used pears as well and it’s delicious! I would hesitate to use peaches. I think they might be too juicy. Think about how to deal with extra liquid, then try. Who knows! Maybe toss peaches with spices that enhance flavor, then add Amaretto to it. Add almond flour to thicken a little?? Yum. I may try it!

      Reply

  13. Served this cake to my neighbors today. They raved about the taste. The plums came from a neighbor and needed to be used. We are fond of plums and are always looking for ways to use them before they spoil. This was simple recipe and was delicious.

    Reply

  15. I just made the cake for the second time this week! It is delicious. Our tree has been supplying us with so many plums and this cake is an excellent way to use them. Thank you for the yummy recipe!

    Reply

  17. I am trying to make this cake at the moment but I’m a bit confused about the dough/batter: it’s too moist/sticky for dough to be pushed into pan but it’s not liquid enough to pour it into the pan. Also, will it be sweet enough with only 1 tbsp of sugar? Just put it in the oven so exited (and a bit anxious) about the result! ;o)

    Reply

  18. I had some very, very late plums I wanted to use up and didn’t feel like pie or crisp or cobbler. Voila!! This recipe appeared. I made it up (my husband kept asking ” is it cool yet? Is it cool yet?”) This custard cake is something special. It came out perfect the first time. My hubby loved it. I’ve never made a cake like this before. What type of cake pastry is the base? Does it have a specific name or technique? I’m taking servings to my boss and his wife, tomorrow. They are well traveled, experienced gourmets. Maybe they can shed some light on its history. I’d love to hear from you, too, Audra. Thank you for a great dessert.

    Reply

    • I don’t have the answer to your questions, but I will say that I came across this recipe while looking for plum Kuchen, a German dish. I grew up hearing my dad talk about eating one that one particular woman made, that was heavenly. He had tried several recipes, and none came close. The way he described it seemed just like this lovely cake!

      I just made one, adding a little cardomom to the spices, and using almond extract in place of most of the vanilla in the custard. I turned the broiler on at the end to brown the custard a bit. It smells and looks absolutely delicious – still waiting for it to cool (I’m with your husband on that one – it’s really hard to wait!), but ran a knife around the edge, and tasted what stuck to the knife. So good!! What a delightful recipe – can’t wait to have a big slice of it.

      Reply

  21. The recipe sounds wonderful.It would be good with most fruits, ie. apples. My Mom made an upside down cake with a baking powder type cake, ( not very sweet ) for those looking for another recipe.

    Reply

  23. The plum ship doesn’t even arrive where I live until mid-September! Am making this today – the beginning of October- to use up the last of these yummy fruits,

    Reply

  24. I just made this today with plums from a neighbor’s tree and it turned out beautifully. So delicious! It will definitely become a staple in my home.

    Reply

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