This week the object of my affection is a basket of prune plums I picked up in an effort to stock my freezer with summer fruit for the inevitable lack there of in the coming months. My plan was to quarter them and individually freeze them on a tray before tossing them into a zip loc bag to hang out in the freezer for a while. That was the plan. Then my friend (and neighbor) Yewande called me to arrange a cooking date. Knowing me oh-so-well she inquired as to what fruit, if any, I had lying around and was pleased to hear of my basket o' plums. She quickly appeared with a few cake layers she had lying around and two beautiful fresh figs from the tree in her yard (sigh, I wish I had a fig tree in my yard).
We proceeded to cube and toast the cake layers in the oven until they were golden brown and my apartment smelled sweetly of butter and vanilla. Then came the preparation of said plums. I assumed they were prune plums as they were a dark, bruised purple color and oblong in shape. I was quite surprised when I cut into them and discovered a vivid green interior. I was even more surprised when I timidly tasted a sliver and found them to be sweet, through and through. To my delight the skin was lacking the characteristic mouth puckering tartness I so dislike. However, I am now unsure as to what kind of plums they were. Hopefully I can snag another basket tomorrow and bend the farmer's ear for more information.
Since our cake was already baked (twice) we opted for cooking the fruit alone and topping it with the crumbs at the very end to prevent them from growing too toasty. We debated among spices, would it be clove or cinnamon? Allspice or nutmeg? Ultimately, after tasting the slivers of plum, we concluded it would be a shame to hide their flavor and simply tossed them with a little brown sugar, a splash of red wine vinegar for acidity, and topped each ramekin with a wedge of fig for good measure.
As the fruit bubbled away in the oven we sat, ogled over pastry books, and talked shop (I love that I have friends who are just as big of food geeks as I). In fact, we nearly forgot about our plums amidst all the chattering, though were reminded by the jammy scent wafting across the room. With a peek we assessed the plums were ready for the application of crumbs (that rhymed!) and with a few more minutes in the oven both were hot, toasty, bubbling, and crying out for a generous dollop of freshly whipped cream before being devoured with nothing more than the sound of spoons digging for more and the occasional sigh of contentment.
Plum Crumble
Yields 6 4-oz ramekins
1 pint basket of plums, pitted and quartered
3-4 Tbsp brown sugar, depending on the sweetness of the fruit
1 tsp red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar
left over cake, such as pound cake or butter cake, cubed
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Scatter cubed cake on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silpat (not mandatory, just makes clean up easier). Toast in the oven until golden around the edges and dry to the touch. Set aside to cool.
In a medium bowl mix your plums, brown sugar, and vinegar. Taste for sweetness. Pile fruit into individual ramekins, or a casserole if you are making one large crumble. (Top with figs if you are lucky enough to have a fig tree in your yard, or know someone who does.) Lower the oven temperature to 375. Bake the fruit, uncovered, until tender and the juices are bubbling. Remove from oven, top with cake crumbles, and pop back in the oven for a few minutes, just to rewarm the cake and let it soak up some of the juice. Top with a generous blob of lightly sweetened whipped cream and savor the moment.
(I had 1 crumble that sat in my fridge for a few days before I got around to eating it and it had a decidedly more pronounced plum flavor, so if you can wait to eat at least part of your crumble, you will not be disappointed. It is best re-warmed in the oven for a few minutes to take the chill off the fruit and re-crisp the cake.)
This sounds AMAZING! I've never enjoyed that tart skin of a plum but think I'd enjoy one immensely after you'd had your way with it! :)
ReplyDeleteI too love love love figs! Too bad they can't be found anywhere near me. Occasionally, I splurg on a small basket from Whole Foods and feel only slightly guilty about it.