Dried Plum Butter Stack Cake Recipes

DRIED-PLUM-BUTTER STACK CAKE

Steps:

• Dried-plum butter: Bring dried plums, orange juice, lemon zest and juice, and 2 cups water to a boil in a covered medium saucepan. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until fruit is beginning to break down, 35 to 40 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup water, brown sugar, and salt, mashing mixture with the back of a spoon until jam-like. Transfer to a medium bowl; let cool completely. Dried-plum butter can be stored in refrigerator, covered, up to 1 week.
• Cookies: Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, cardamom, and baking soda in a medium bowl. Beat butter with sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in egg. Reduce speed to low and beat in flour mixture in 2 batches, alternating with milk, until combined. Divide dough into 9 pieces. Shape into disks, wrap each in plastic, and refrigerate at least 1 hour and up to 1 day.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Working with one dough piece at a time (keep the rest in refrigerator), roll out on a lightly floured surface with a floured rolling pin into a roughly 8 1/2-inch round. Using a paring knife and a cake pan or plate as a guide, cut dough into an 8-inch round. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet; refrigerate while rolling and cutting remaining dough pieces, placing 2 rounds on each sheet.
• Bake cookies in batches until golden and firm in center, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool completely on sheets on wire racks.
• Place 1 cookie on a cake plate and spread with 1/2 cup dried-plum butter, leaving a 1/4-inch border. Top with another cookie and spread with another 1/2 cup dried-plum butter. Continue stacking and spreading until all 9 cookies have been used. (Do not spread filling on top layer.) Wrap in plastic; refrigerate at least 12 hours and up to 1 day.
• Serve, dolloped with whipped cream and sprinkled with cinnamon.

PLUM CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease and flour one 9-inch tube pan.
• Separate the eggs. In a small bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form, and set aside.
• In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Beat in the egg yolks and the lemon zest.
• Stir together the flour and baking powder and then blend the flour mixture into the creamed mixture. Gently fold in the egg whites. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan. There will only be a little over an inch of batter. Arrange the plums, skin side down, attractively over the batter.
• Bake in preheated oven until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack and allow to cool before serving.

OLD-FASHIONED STACK CAKES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, ginger, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with molasses and buttermilk, beating well after each addition., Drop 2 scant 1/4 cupfuls of batter, at least 7 in. apart, onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. With well-floured fingers, pat each into a 5- to 6-in. circle. Bake 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely. Repeat with remaining batter., To assemble, place 1 cake layer on a serving plate; spread with 2 tablespoons apple butter. Repeat layers 4 times; top with a sixth layer. Repeat to make 2 more stack cakes. Refrigerate, covered, until serving. If desired, serve with additional apple butter.

PLUM UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

Steps:

• Melt butter in a 10-in. cast-iron or ovenproof skillet. Sprinkle brown sugar over butter. Arrange plum halves, cut side down, in a single layer over sugar; set aside. , In a large bowl, beat eggs until thick and lemon-colored; gradually beat in sugar. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to egg mixture and mix well. Blend water and lemon extract; beat into batter. Pour over plums. , Bake at 350° until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 40-45 minutes. Immediately invert onto a serving plate. Serve warm, with whipped cream if desired.

PLUM SKILLET CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Butter an 8-inch cast iron or oven-proof skillet. Dust with flour, tapping out any excess.
• Whisk together 1 cup flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium bowl.
• Combine 4 tablespoons butter and 3/4 cup sugar in a large bowl; beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Beat in egg. Add flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with buttermilk, beating batter briefly after each addition. Pour batter into the prepared skillet and smooth the top with an offset spatula. Fan plum slices on top of batter, and sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.

PLUM STREUSEL COFFEECAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. and butter and flour a 9-inch round or square baking pan at least 2 inches deep.
• Make streusel:
• In a food processor pulse together streusel ingredients until combined well and crumbly.
• Make cake batter:
• In a bowl with an electric mixer beat butter with sugar until light and fluffy and add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, and vanilla. Sift in flour with baking powder and salt and beat until just combined.
• Spread cake batter in pan, smoothing top, and arrange plum slices over it in slightly overlapping concentric circles. Sprinkle streusel over plum slices and bake cake in middle of oven 1 hour, or until a tester comes out clean. Coffeecake may be made 1 week ahead: Cool cake completely in pan on a rack and freeze, wrapped well in plastic wrap and foil. Reheat cake, unwrapped but not thawed, in a preheated 350°F. oven until heated through, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool cake slightly on a rack and sift confectioners' sugar over it. Serve coffeecake warm or at room temperature.

PLUM UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Pour melted butter into 13x9 pan.
• Sprinkle toasted walnuts and brown sugar evenly in pan.
• Cut plums in half and remove pits, cut each half into 4 pieces and arrange over walnuts, overlapping pieces.
• Prepare cake mix as directed on package, adding vanilla and almond extracts.
• Pour batter over plums.
• Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 40-55 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean.
• Remove from oven and immediately loosen edges of cake with a knife.
• Invert cake onto a serving plate.
• Drizzle cake with any remaining brown sugar from cake pan.

PLUM UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place 3 tablespoons butter in an 8-inch round cake pan; melt in preheating oven, about 4 minutes. Sprinkle melted butter with 1/2 cup brown sugar. Arrange overlapping plum wedges in a circle around edge of pan; repeat in center, covering bottom of pan. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, beat together remaining 6 tablespoons butter, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, and egg. Beat in sour cream until blended. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, salt, pumpkin-pie spice, and walnuts. Stir flour mixture into sour-cream mixture until just combined (batter will be thick).
• Spread batter evenly over plums. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Cool in pan 5 minutes. Run a knife around edge of pan; invert onto a serving plate. Serve warm or at room temperature, with whipped cream if desired.