Summer Plum Crumb Cake w/ Cardamom, Orange Zest, & Vanilla (Gluten Free) (Dairy Free) (Lower Sugar)

We're heading into the last days of summer so just enough time left to fit in one more stone fruit cake. As usual, the Smitten Kitchen's recipe for "Dimply Plum Cake" was a winner. 

The use of olive oil and butter provided both moisture and flavor. Cardamom, orange zest, vanilla were great backdrop flavors for the soft baked plums. And the brown sugar - just one half cup - provided a gentle sweetener to bring it all together. While the plums were baked to perfection, use any stone fruit that looks good such as nectarines, peaches, apricots or cherries. Same for the citrus zest (mix and match). This is a lovely, light cake that I look forward to making every stone fruit season.

My Paleo Marin Rating: 4.5 Persimmons*

How to Make Summer Plum Crumb Cake:

Ingredients:

5 tablespoons (70 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature (Note: for non-dairy, use Miyoko’s Vegan Cultured Vegan Butter Spread

1/2 cup (100 grams) light brown sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

1/3 cup (80 ml) flavorless vegetable oil, such as safflower oil

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Zest of 1 orange

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom (or cinnamon)

1 1/2 cups (195 grams) Cup4Cup Gluten Free Multipurpose Flour (Note: for for dairy-free flour, use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour)

6 - 8  purple or red plums, medium size, halved and pitted (about 2 1/2" wide)

Directions:

Place rack in center of oven. Preheat oven to 350º F. Butter an 8" square baking plan and dust with flour. Tap out excess flour. Set aside.

1. In a stand mixer, beat the butter at medium speed until it's soft and creamy, about 3 minutes. Scrape the bowl. Add the sugar and beat for another 3 minutes. Scrape the bowl. Add 1 egg and beat for 1 minute. Add the other egg and beat for one minute. Scrape the bowl. 

2. On medium speed, add the oil, vanilla and orange zest. Beat for 1 minute. Add the baking powder, salt and cardamom and mix to combine. The recipe says beat for 20 seconds more than you think it needs. Add 1/2 the flour and beat at low speed until it settles in. Switch to medium speed and add the rest of the flour. Mix just until combined.

3. Remove the bowl from the mixer. Use a spatula to make sure all of the ingredients on the bottom are mixed in. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and spread out with an offset spatula. Add the plums cut side up around the pan. Jiggle the pan so they settle in the batter.

4. Bake for 20 minutes. Turn the cake around and bake for another 15-20 minutes, or until a wooden

skewer comes out clean. Put the baked cake on a wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the edges of the pan. Carefully flip the cake over onto a plate (or your hand) and then flip back and place on the wire rack to continue cooling, plum side up. 

To serve, slide the cooled cake onto a plate or cutting board. Add powdered sugar (optional) and cut into individual pieces. The cake can be wrapped and stored at room tempeature for up to 3 days. 

Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen website here. 

#paleo #glutenfree #dairyfree #lowersugar #cake #stonefruit #plums #cardamom #oranges #dessert #snacks #crumbcake #instarecipes

For Another Stone Fruit Dessert, see link below:

Lidia Bastianich's Free-Form
Stone Fruit Tart (GF)

*My Paleo Marin Rating between 1-5 Persimmons

I try out these recipes so you don't have to (and modify them for Paleo where possible). The rating will reflect my opinion of the final result in terms of taste, ease of preparation, nutrition, and sometimes, cost.