PLUMMY DESERTS FOR SEPTEMBER

 

                            Plummy desserts for September

 

          The colorful fruit baskets at the local farmers would make anyone aware that fall has arrived with its usual fanfare, even if you did not know the astronomical calendar details. We tend to focus on apples, their many colorful varieties and fall outings for apple picking at local orchards. The less familiar fruit of this fall bounty are plums.

          Plums belong to stone fruit variety with the distinguished quality of being very juicy. They have been domesticated in Europe and Asia, with most familiar varieties being blue (or prune plums), purple and red. If you can find the more unusual Damson, yellow or greengage European varieties, they will reward you with the sweetest delicate flavor. The intriguing word “sugarplum” appeared in the English language some time in the 17^th century when it described candied fruit, nuts or any oval confectionary in shape of fruit. Although “Sugared plums” were first recorded as part of King Henry IV wedding menu in 1403. While all plums have some laxative qualities, dried prune plums are available year around for snacking and recipes for compotes, deserts and fruit infused roast meats.

Fresh plums though are one of those seasonal fruits that we can take advantage of in the fall.  Perusing old recipes, I was intrigued by the New York Times claim of having published their Plum Torte recipe every September since 1983 because of its great popularity. Here is an adaptation with available ingredients from my kitchen, mostly black plums substitution for the smaller blue plums that remain on top of the Torte and some flavoring agents.

                                                    Black plum torte

Beat ½ cup soft unsalted butter with an electric mixer until fluffy then beat in ¾ cups sugar, 1 tsp. lemon flavoring and 2 eggs, one at a time.  Stir in 1 cup flour sifted with 1 tsp. baking powder. Spread the thick batter in a 9 in. ungreased spring form pan. Pit and quarter 3 large black plums, sprinkle them with juice of ½ fresh lime and arrange them cut side down on top of the batter. Sprinkle the top with ½ tsp. each of cinnamon and nutmeg. Bake in a 350-degree preheated oven for 1 hour with a piece of aluminum foil on the rack below to catch any butter drips from the cake. Cool, remove sides of the pan and serve plain or with whipped cream. The cake will remain moist when stored at room temperature for a couple of days.

Plum Torte is very rich in taste and calories. For a more modest offering, the juicy nature of plums adapted well to an old Apple Brown Betty recipe with more recent addition of nuts and raisins.

                                      Plum Brown Betty with nuts and raisins

          Toast 6 slices from 4–5-day old bread and cut in ¾ inch cubes, or stale Ciabatta bread cut in ½ inch cubes to make 4 generous cups of bread cubes. Toss with 3 tbsp. of melted butter. The Ciabatta bread will give the dessert more texture while regular bread will become more pudding like. Butter a 2-quart casserole or baking dish with a lid. In a small bowl blend ¾ cups of sugar with ½ tsp. cinnamon.

          Pit and slice or cut in small pieces 4 black plums and toss with 1 tbsp. lime juice and ½ tsp. grated fresh ginger. Place nearby ½ cup raisins and ½ cup rough hazelnut or pecan pieces.

          Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Add ¼ of the buttered crumbs to the baking dish and toss the rest with sugar and cinnamon. Then layer in the casserole ½ of the plums and ½ of the nuts, ½ of the remaining breadcrumbs and repeat the process ending with breadcrumbs. Press everything down with your hands to slightly compact the layers. Sprinkle with 2 tbsp. lime juice and dot with 2 tbsp. butter. Cover the dish tightly with the lid and bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes until the fruit is bubbly. Uncover and bake for 10 additional minutes to slightly brown the top layer. Remove from oven and serve warm or at room temperature plain or with whipped cream. For an elegant presentation this would go well with Crème anglaise.

 (I. Winicov Harrington lives in coastal Maine and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day…”and “Uncharted Journey from Riga”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)