Italian Plum Cake Barefoot Contessa Recipes

PLUM CAKE "TATIN"

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter a 9-inch glass pie dish and arrange the plums in the dish, cut side down.
• Combine 1 cup of the granulated sugar and 1/3 cup water in a small saucepan and cook over high heat until it turns a warm amber color, about 360 degrees F on a candy thermometer. Swirl the pan but don't stir. Pour evenly over the plums.
• Meanwhile, cream the 6 tablespoons of butter and the remaining 3/4 cup of granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, until light and fluffy. Lower the speed and beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the sour cream, zest, and vanilla and mix until combined. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt and, with the mixer on low speed, add it to the butter mixture. Mix only until combined.
• Pour the cake batter evenly over the plums and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes, then invert the cake onto a flat plate. If a plum sticks, ease it out and replace it in the design on top of the cake. Serve warm or at room temperature, dusted with confectioners' sugar.

PLUM CLAFOUTIS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Arrange 2 racks equally spaced in the oven. Place six (6 1/2-inch) individual gratin dishes on 2 sheet pans.
• In a small bowl, combine the vanilla seeds with the 2 teaspoons of sugar. Butter the six gratin dishes well with the butter and sprinkle the dishes with the vanilla and sugar mixture. Set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs and the 2/3 cup sugar on medium speed, until blended. Lower the speed and add the flour, cream, milk, and Armagnac. Whisk in the star anise and salt just until combined and set aside for 10 minutes. The batter will look like pancake batter.
• Cut the plums in half through the stem, discard the pits, and cut each half in wedges, again cutting through the stem. Distribute half a plum to each gratin dish, placing them in a pinwheel pattern. Distribute the batter evenly in the gratins (the plums will only be half immersed in the batter) and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the edges are golden brown and the custard is just set.
• Sprinkle with the orange zest and serve hot or warm.

PLUM CAKE " TATIN" BAREFOOT CONTESSA - INA GARTEN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F; generously butter a 9-inch glass pie dish and arrange the plums in the dish, cut side down.
• Combine 1 cup of the granulated sugar and 1/3 cup water in a small saucepan and cook over high heat until it turns a warm amber color, about 360 degrees on a candy thermometer. Swirl the pan but don't stir. Pour evenly over the plums.
• Meanwhile, cream the 6 tablespoons of butter and the remaining 3/4 cup of granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, until light and fluffy. Lower the speed and beat in the eggs one at a time.
• Add the sour cream, zest, and vanilla and mix until combined. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt and, with the mixer on low speed, add it to the butter mixture. Mix only until combined.
• Pour the cake batter evenly over the plums and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.
• Cool for 15 minutes, then invert the cake onto a flat plate.
• If a plum sticks, ease it out and replace it in the design on top of the cake.
• Serve warm or at room temperature, dusted with confectioners' sugar.

PLUM CRUNCH

Steps:

• Vanilla ice cream, for serving
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• For the fruit, in a large bowl, combine the plums, brown sugar, flour, and cassis. Pour the mixture into a 12 by 8-inch shallow baking dish.
• For the topping, combine the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, oatmeal, walnuts, and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the mixture is crumbly and the butter is the size of peas. Scatter evenly over the plum mixture.
• Bake the plum crunch for 40 to 45 minutes, until the plums are bubbling and the top is browned. Serve warm or at room temperature with ice cream.

PLUM CAKE

Steps:

• To make the cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8-inch springform pan with butter.
• In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and brown sugar, until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the bowl after each. Mix in the zest and vanilla. In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the butter/sugar mixture and mix on low speed until just combined. Spread half of the batter into the prepared pan.
• Place half of the cut plums on the batter, cut-side up. Spread the remaining batter over the plums. Spread the batter into an even layer and top with remaining plums.
• To make the topping: In a bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon and melted butter. You may have to mix it with your hands to get all the butter incorporated.
• Spread the crumb topping over the plums evenly.
• Place the cake on two stacked cookie sheets, to prevent the bottom from getting too brown during the long baking time. Bake for about 1 hour 15 minutes or until a tester come out clean. Cool on a rack.
• Serve it slightly warm or at room temperature.

SPICY ITALIAN PLUM CAKE

Steps:

• Place plums in large saucepan with about 1 inch of water. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes, or until soft. Drain and cool.
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Butter and flour a 10-inch bundt pan (or tube pan).
• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, and continue beating until mixture is very light in color.
• Sift flour with spices and soda. Add to butter mixture in thirds, alternating with the milk. Beat just until ingredients are incorporated.
• Stir in plums and walnuts. Pour batter into pan and bake 1 hour, or until cake begins to pull away from sides of pan. Let cool in pan 5 minutes. Turn out onto wire rack and cool completely before frosting.
• For frosting:.
• Cream butter. Add powdered sugar and cocoa gradually, stirring until well blended. Stir in salt.
• Stir in coffee, a little at a time. Add just enough to make the frosting a spreadable consistency. Beat until fluffy and add vanilla. Frost cake.

BAREFOOT CONTESSA'S PLUM TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Combine the flour, walnuts, and sugar in a large bowl.
• Add the butter and the egg yolk.
• Mix, either by hand or with an electric mixer, until crumbly.
• Press 1 1/2 cups of the crumb mixture in an even layer into the bottom of a 9 1/2-inch springform or tart pan.
• Arrange the plums in the pan, skin side down, to form a flower pattern; begin at the outside and work your way inches
• Sprinkle the rest of the crumb mixture evenly over the plums.
• Bake the tart for 40 to 50 minutes, or until it's lightly browned and the plum juices are bubbling.
• Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes.
• Remove from the pan and transfer the tart to a flat plate.
• Serve warm or at room temperature.
• **Cooling time is not included in cooking time.

ORIGINAL PLUM TORTE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Cream the sugar and butter in a bowl. Add the flour, baking powder, salt and eggs and beat well.
• Spoon the batter into a springform pan of 8, 9 or 10 inches. 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 teaspoon of cinnamon, depending on how much you like cinnamon.
• Bake 1 hour, approximately. Remove and cool; refrigerate or freeze if desired. Or cool to lukewarm and serve plain or with whipped cream. (To serve a torte that was frozen, defrost and reheat it briefly at 300 degrees.)