In Florida, it pretty much feels like summer year round. With the exception of a few weeks in the winter, the temperature doesn’t give much indication to the season we’re currently in. One way we stay in touch with the seasons, like the rest of the country, is via the produce that’s being harvested.
I don’t know about you but there’s something about a juicy stone fruit that screams summer. Peaches are my favorite variety, but with plums only 0.99¢ a pound, I could’t pass up the opportunity to snatch a bunch to bake with. Available from May to October, plums hit their peak harvest in July. There are over 2,000 varieties worldwide, with more than 100 types in the U.S. alone, making for plenty of options at your local farmstand throughout the summer and into early fall.
Although lusciously juicy and sweet to eat out of hand, plums provide a complex flavor and texture to any dish they’re added to. The sweet flesh and tart skin of plums are particularly fantastic in desserts, with this plum buckle being a perfect representation of that fact. In case you aren’t familiar, a buckle is a dessert where fruit is placed on top of a layer of cake batter, which rises to the top while baking and then buckles when cool. Buckles are quick and easy to prepare, which means you can whip this dessert up fast for that unexpected BBQ or have it on the table for dinner in no time!
Plum-Almond Buckle
Ingredients:
- 7.6 oz. (about 1 & 1/3 cup) White Whole Wheat Flour
- ¾ tsp. Baking Powder
- ¼ tsp. Baking Soda
- ¼ Salt
- 6 tbsp. Unsalted Butter; softened
- ½ cup plus 1 tbsp. Sugar
- 1 tsp. grated Lemon Zest
- 1 ½ tsp. Vanilla Extract
- 1 large Egg
- ½ cup lowfat Buttermilk
- 3 Plums; halved, pitted, & sliced ½ in. thick
- 2 tbsp. Sliced Almonds
Preparation:
- Preheat oven to 375°. Coat an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, place the butter, ½ cup sugar, lemon zest, and vanilla. Beat mixture at medium speed until creamy. Add egg and beat until combined. Alternatively add the flour mixture and buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, blending just until combined.
- Spread batter evenly into the prepared pan. Arrange sliced plums on top of batter. Sprinkle evenly with almonds and the remaining tablespoon of sugar.
- Bake 30-40 minutes, or until the top of the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool cake in the pan on a wire cooling rack before serving.
Honeybee's Patisserie 