Plum Cake fresh from the Baking Sheet

We have a season of plums here and no matter where you go you see lovely baskets full of plums, as soon as you enter any cafe, you get the sweet aroma of the plum cakes all over.

The plums are of different shapes and colors; I like the oval ones as they are soft yet firm in shape and good for baking as you can open them up easily, just one cut and you can take out the stone easily without breaking the whole plum : )

       (Google Image)

I had bought a whole lot of them and had invited my friends for tea so thought to bake this sheet cake. I have used my fruit cake recipe here, it’s a very nice one and especially because it is so soft exactly the way we love to have it.

(Click on the Pictures for a larger Image) 

Usually the plum cakes are made of the yeast dough but I don’t really like that as that makes the cake too heavy and gives a stuffy feeling.
 I made the sponge mixture, I also spread the crumble on the top which was not a good idea as the crumbles all sunk in the batter but in the end I think it was super as the butter and flour gave the cake a more creamy and spongy touch that was wonderful!
 

 

 

So it’s up to you if you want the crumble, but don’t be surprised to see them sinking immediately :D

I made a half sheet of this and believe me just had one piece left in the end, I wish I had made a larger one …lol

 

 

 

So let’s get set to bake it, these ingredients are for the half of your oven’s baking tray and this is what you need:

 

½ kg plums

75g soft butter (not melted!)

100 gram sugar

1 tsp vanilla custard powder

½ tsp lemon zest

Dash of salt

2 eggs

150g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

Milk as needed

 

 

*wash the plums, take out the stone and cut in halves, keep aside
*sieve the flour and baking powder in a bowl, add 1 tsp of custard powder and mix all three
*beat the butter and sugar, add the eggs and beat all till fluffy
*add the salt and lemon zest, mix all
*now add the flour mix and keep mixing*if the consistency is thick add drops of milk as needed until you have a nice creamy batter
 

*grease your baking sheet, and spread this batter evenly

*now place the plums in a row, or if you like more you can cover the whole top

*I spread the plums so there is just 1-2 pieces of it in each piece of cake.

*make the crumble and just sprinkle unevenly all over the top

 

 

For the crumble:

100g soft butter
70g sugar
100g flour

*mix all three well till you have chunky crumbles

Bake this cake in a preheated oven of 170°C around 40 minutes

The top will start to turn light golden, insert a stick to check if cooked

As you take it out from the oven let it rest at least 15 minutes before you cut it

Reason: because the cake will come out very very soft and juicy as butter  spreads all over so give it the time to set and then you can cut it.

It is honestly the best moist and soft cake, my friends were like, you have to make it again this week  and this time a full sheet of it :)

 

Enjoy with your tea and loved ones : )