NYT Plum Torte Recipe

As the last of the autumn fruits start to dwindle in March, and before winter comes around and all that's left to eat are oranges and apples, I frequently find myself down in Dandenong Market on Fridays riffling through the many plums, nectarines and strawberries that are on sale. After all, one does not move to another continent just to eat fruits commonly found back home. Even after 3 years, it's still a novelty to find seasonal fruits at a fraction of the price back in Singapore.  

When I read a recipe, I want to be entranced by its back-story. A little bit of its history, where the recipe came from, and how it originated. I want to envision generations and generations of bakers rolling out dough, of grandmothers in households serving festive desserts, of children running out of yellow school-buses into a home smelling of freshly-baked cookies.

One hallmark of a great recipe is one that uses ingredients that bakers commonly have on hand, without calling for exotic ingredients in minuscule quantities (like a drop of orange blossom water). I've heard nothing but good things about this plum torte recipe, which prompted me to give it a go last weekend. This recipe was deceptively simple, and made a dessert that rivaled any tortes I had outside. This recipe appeared in The New York Times every autumn from 1982 until 1989, and was so well-received that when it failed to appear in the 1990 edition, the paper was flooded with angry letters demanding the recipe.  

With sweet, oozing plums embedded in every slice and the scent of cinnamon and the hint of Christmas waffling through the air, sharing this delightfully simple cake with close friends late in the cold autumn night is a joy in itself. 

A classic dessert, and perfect for the last few days of autumn. 

To a new season.  

Photos by R and EJ 

Plum Torte Recipe

Recipe by Marian Burros, published in the NYT 

Ingredients
115g (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened. 
150g (3/4 cup) sugar, plus 2 tablespoon more for topping. 
140g (1 cup) unbleached flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
9 purple plums, pitted and quartered (Use plums that are squishy and ripe for a sweeter taste)
1-2 tsp ground cinnamon, for topping
lemon juice (optional) for topping


Steps
Preheat oven to 175C (350F).

Cream the sugar and butter in a bowl. Add flour, baking powder, salt, eggs and vanilla extract. Beat well.

Spoon the batter into an unbuttered spring-form pan of 8, 9 or 10 inches. (The batter may seem too little, but it expands as it bakes.) Place the plum halves skin side up on top of the batter. Sprinkle lightly with sugar and lemon juice, depending on the sweetness of the fruit. Sprinkle with (about) 1-2 teaspoon of cinnamon, depending on how much you like cinnamon.

Bake 45 minutes to one hour, approximately, until top is nicely browned and the sides are nicely crisped. 

Notes: 
There are several varieties of plums, but try and find the classic Black Plums, which has a deep red flesh that gives this torte a distinctive colour (as opposed to the red plums with the pale flesh.)

The best way I find to cut the plums is to run a knife all the way into the seed, then turn the plum a full circle around the knife. Remove knife, twist the two halves of the plum in opposite direction and presto.  

Depending on the quality of your springform pan, plum juice may leak as it bakes (I am using a one came free with every two sticks of Philadelphia Cream Cheese purchased, and it leaks quite a bit...). It helps to bake it on a tray to catch any leaks.

To freeze, double-wrap the tortes in foil, place in a plastic bag and seal. To serve a torte that was frozen, defrost and reheat it for above 5 minutes at 300 degrees.

Update:
It's been a few years since I started making this torte. Now, I bake it in a unbuttered square tin, so torte can be partitioned into neat little squares. I also like using David Lebovitz's Red Wine Poached Pears in lieu of plums. If so, reduce the sugar from 150g to 100g, and drizzle the spiced wine over the pears before baking.