You arrange the plums in the tart crust and pour the custard over them and (carefully-the tart crust gets precariously full!) transfer the tart to the oven, where the fruit slumps and the custard bakes into a nice creamy-but-sliceable dream.

It’s incredibly simple, but it feels luxurious and just complex enough to be interesting. Some rich, tangy crème fraîche gets stirred together with brown sugar, eggs, and a bit of vanilla. And while the fruit is resting, you stir together the easiest custard ever. The fruit gets tossed with brown sugar and a bit of cornstarch and the spices and the orange zest. And they all play well with plums and with each other. The cinnamon feels like comfort to me, the ginger adds a subtle background heat, and the orange zest wakes everything up. And it has never failed me yet.įrom there, I knew I wanted something with a different flavor profile and landed on a fragrant trio of ground cinnamon, freshly grated ginger, and orange zest. It’s crisp and buttery and doesn’t require any rolling or chilling. I was in a tart or pie sort of mood, and started with my favorite, foolproof easy shortbread tart crust. I considered making this raspberry plum crisp with walnuts and cardamom or some version of this almond anise plum torte, but neither felt quite right for the moment. And even better, plums are easy to pit and don’t require peeling, which makes them an unfussy fruit to work with. They’re tart enough to handle some sugar and versatile enough to work with a variety of spices. My favorite plums for baking are the purple oblong plums, sometimes called Italian plums or prune plums. While fresh plums can be inconsistent, sometimes bland or too mealy, baking brings out extra layers of flavor and sweetens and smooths over any imperfections in ripeness or texture. Plums feel like a bit of a sleeper in the pantheon of fruit (apart from William Carlos Williams’ famous poem about them), but they undergo an impressive transformation in the oven. It’s something I threw together after coming home from the farmers market with a pint of oblong Italian prune plums and knowing I wanted to bake with them. Remove the tart from the oven, sprinkle on the 1/4 cup sugar, and serve warm or at room temperature.This plum custard tart is just the thing for the first blush of fall. Return the tart to the oven, and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the plums are juicy. Sprinkle with the cinnamon and lemon zest.Ħ. Starting at the outside, arrange the plums in a circle so that all the pieces overlap, creating concentric circles that wind into the center of the pan.

If using another rounder variety of plum, cut them into 8 wedges.ĥ. Pit the plums, and cut them into 4 wedges each, if using Italian plums.

Mix the jam with the brandy in a small bowl, and spread over the crust. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees.Ĥ. Remove the crust from the oven, and let cool slightly. Reduce the oven to 375 degrees, and bake for another 5 minutes. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees, and bake the crust for 10 minutes. Dust your fingers with flour, and gently press out the dough to cover the bottom and sides of the pan. Put the dough in the center of an ungreased 9- or 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Then add the egg yolk, and pulse until the dough comes together.Ģ. To make the crust, pulse the flour, sugar, salt, and butter or margarine together in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade until crumbled. “How To Make a Rosh Hashanah Dessert That’s Not Just Apples and Honey” via Tablet INGREDIENTSġ2 tablespoons unsalted butter or pareve margarine, cut into piecesġ 1/2 pounds Italian blue plums, or other plum varietyġ.

Italian plum tart