By Serah Blackstone-Fredericks
Right near my house in Arcata, there is an Italian plum tree that has absolutely delightful and juicy plums, bursting off the branches. Instead of letting them all go to waste, I mentioned it to a friend, and fellow baker, who sent me a recipe to try. I loved it so much — my bestie came over and we baked it to bring to a friend’s potluck. The subsequent eve, I baked it again just to enjoy at home as a snacking cake with my daughter. This recipe is based off of Marian Burro’s famous New York Times recipe, Original Plum Torte.
I love baking as it grounds me to place and space. I stress baked through my twenties and it saved me so many times that now, I always appreciate it when it finds me again. When I am covered with more flour than soil, I can tell I am quite overwhelmed and should seek out ways to re-center and return to myself a bit.
The start of the semester is a whirlwind. I invite you to explore a new possible hobby that you can enjoy for yourself and share with your friends and loved ones for many years to come.
My personal philosophy, having been raised in Berkeley, is to use what is available and in season. Baking with the seasons forces you to be present with what is around you and what is abundant. It can stretch your mind towards the possibilities of how delicious things can truly be with minimal effort. Seasonal baking is a force to be reckoned with.
This recipe is pure simplicity in one bite. It brings a joyous celebration for the abundant finale summer offers before the season changes and we shift inwards towards hibernation and rest — or, dare I say, finals. As someone who enjoys growing my own food, foraging and feeding those I love, there is nothing better than enjoying fruit off a local tree — and it’s free, an added bonus for us broke college students! When foraging, it is imperative to be certain what you are identifying. If you are unsure, ask a few people, or sign up for a foraging walk!
Arcata has many places you can find fruit and safely acquire things to try and bake with for free. As always, please do your research about which local plants are safe to consume and if you are unsure err on the side of caution.
You will need:
A springform pan (or any pan you have around)
One stick of butter
½ cup of sugar
A tsp of salt and a tsp of baking powder
2 eggs
24 small plums (12 halves)
⅔ cup of whole wheat flour
⅓ cup of cornmeal Some sugar for dusting the plums.
And to coat the pan in butter, leave the excess — more on that below.
I am someone who loves my sweets and I find most things have way too much sugar. I am usually inclined to add less as I find that most recipes are too sweet for my preference. If you find it is not sweet enough, make it again and add a bit more sugar to see what is your preferred sweetness.
Preparation:
Start by adding your dry ingredients together and mixing them until well incorporated.
Then add your two eggs and gently cream them in, either with a whisk or a spatula. Use your hand tool for this, not a mixer, to avoid overmixing.
After this, you can add in your butter. If you planned ahead and set your butter out beforehand, you can skip this next step. If you are like me and don’t set the butter out, just melt it low and slow over the stove and then gauge the temperature of the butter. I would not let the butter start to bubble as it starts to separate then burn. Once melted low and slow, give it a beat to cool and add it to your dry ingredients. Do not wash that pan you just melted the butter in as you can use the residual butter to coat your pan.
Mix, mix, mix and then use the excess butter to coat your baking pan.
I use a springform pan, but use what you have around and work with what you got.
For the fruit, wash and halve the plums. Once you have 12 halves, put them in a separate bowl and toss them in sugar. You can add a splash of lemon too, but plums — like many stone fruits — bake bitter so I might recommend you see how you feel about the recipe first.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (175 C), and let it come to temp. You can bake this in a toaster oven too. I solely bake in my convection oven.
For assembly, pour the batter in the bottom. It will not be a lot and that is alright. Just roll with it and move the pan around until it reaches most of the edges.
After this, add your plum halves face down, so the skin is facing towards you.
Once the oven is ready, pop it in and bake it for an hour. I accidentally baked one at 355 and it came out fine. Any temperature standard for a cake should bake it fine.
It may look a bit under because of the plums in some areas. If you have not baked before, text a photo to someone who does and ask, “does this look done?” They can tell you yay or nay.
When done, take it out and let it cool.
A dear friend suggested trying this as an upside down cake, and while the plums are bountiful, I think I’ll give it a go!
Bon appétit! Enjoy your new favorite summer snack!
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