Plum Cake {Cheese Cake}

If I could give any advice to someone moving home, it would be to plant a small plum tree as soon as they have settled in. Apart from the remarkable abilities of courgettes they are the most successful crop in the garden, putting up with any number of adverse weather conditions and requesting no effort in return.

I looked out into our front garden this week and saw our valiant little tree laden with dusky-pink Victoria plums. That tree has seen out two longed for greengage trees that shrivelled and died without producing a single fruit.

I made one bowlful of ripe plums into a tray bake cake that has allusions of being a cheesecake.

I almost didn’t share this recipe for a reason that would seem ridiculous to most. The last two posts we have published have been rectangular things. The Apple Focaccia and Ed’s Gift Box are both somewhat oblong and beige. To post another brown, rectangular ‘make’ upset my chi, or chakra or ‘visual OCD’ if you will.

I was on the brink of making it again in dinky little round tins just to shake things up a bit. But then I decided to get over myself.

If you like a cake that can give you the ‘clartyness’ of cheesecake, the toffee rich flavour of muscovado and the tang of fresh fruit then this is one for you.

So here it is, in all its simple quadrilateral glory.

It’s a keeper.

Ingredients

• 3 large eggs and 1 egg yolk
• 150g light Philadelphia
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 175g softened butter
• 100g muscovado sugar
• 75g caster sugar
• 75g icing sugar
• 200g self-raising flour plus an extra spoonful
• 300g ripe plums, halved, stoned and roughly chopped

Method

1. Grease and line a 28 x 18cm brownie type tin with parchment
2. Preheat the oven to 175°C
3. In one bowl make the cheesecakey goo: beat the cream cheese until soft, add the vanilla extract, 75g icing sugar a spoonful of flour and an egg yolk, beat until smooth
4. In a second bowl make the cake mix: cream together the other 75g of caster sugar, the 100g of muscovado and the butter until pale, gradually add the flour and 3 eggs and beat until smooth
5. Spread the cake mix into the baking tray, sprinkle on the plums, then dollop the cheesecakey goo on in blobs, swirling it all about a bit
6. Bake at 175°C for around 35-40 minutes until a skewer comes out ‘almost’ clean, the cheesey bits need to still be a bit moist
7. Leave to cool in the tin before cutting into squares.

It’s really good with some Jersey cream and a drizzle of syrup…so I’ve heard.

My cake is based on a Waitrose recipe that sounded delicious, but people had found unsuccessful due to issues with the runny cheesecake mixture. I have amended some ingredients and most of the quantities to get this just right.