Late Summer Plum Cake
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Gently spiced, this jammy plum cake celebrates the summer-into-fall season. Serve it for brunch or dessert.
Taking a cue from Martha Stewart’s fresh strawberry cake (a favorite on this site), this plum cake is the perfect dessert for late summer when plums are at their prime. Tucked into the batter, the fruit bakes into rich, jammy pockets, while warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom add a hint of cozy fall flavors. Enjoy this dessert any time of day—plain and simple with a cup of coffee, or topped with whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
“A wonderful cake! The spices really make it stand out and the plums cut through to make the whole thing sing!”
What you’ll need to make Plum Cake
- Flour, baking powder, and salt – Your dry base to give the cake structure.
- Warm spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom) – Just enough to give the cake a cozy, fall-like flavor.
- Butter and sugar – Creamed together until light and fluffy for that tender crumb. A little sugar is also sprinkled over the top so the cake gets a caramelized finish.
- Egg and vanilla – Bind the batter and add depth of flavor.
- Milk – Any kind you have on hand works here; low-fat is fine.
- Plums – Ripe but firm, pitted and quartered so they bake into jammy little pockets.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1: Combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, and salt together. Set the mixture aside.
Step 2: Cream butter and sugar. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or beaters, beat the butter and 1 cup of the sugar until pale and fluffy—it should take a few minutes.
Step 3: Add the egg and vanilla. Beat on low speed until evenly combined.
Step 4: Add the dry ingredients and milk. Gradually add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk, and beat on low speed until smooth.
Step 5: Transfer the batter to the pan. Scrape the batter into a greased springform pan and smooth the top with an offset spatula. As you can see, the batter is quite thick.
Step 6: Top with plums. Arrange the sliced plums on top of the batter, skin side up, in a circular pattern so that they cover most of the cake. Then sprinkle the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar over the plums.
Step 7: Bake. Bake the cake for 60 to 70 minutes, until golden on top and set in the center.
Step 8: Cool and serve. Once the cake comes out of the oven, run a knife around the edges and release the springform side (leave the base in place). Let it cool completely on a rack, then slice and enjoy.
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Late Summer Plum Cake
Ingredients
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon cardamom
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing the pan
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons tablespoons sugar, divided
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup milk (any kind)
- 1 lb plums, pitted and quartered
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and set an oven rack in the middle position. Grease a 9-in (23-cm) springform pan. (Alternatively, the cake may be made in a 9-in/23-cm cake pan or pie pan and served directly from the pan.)
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, and salt.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or beaters, cream the butter and 1 cup (200 g) of the sugar until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and beat on low speed until well combined. Gradually add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk, and beat on low speed until smooth. (Note: the batter will be quite thick.)
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth the top with an offset spatula. Arrange the plums on top, skin side up, in a circular pattern so that they mostly cover the batter. Sprinkle the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar over the plums.
- Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, until golden on top and set in the center.
- When the cake is hot out of the oven, run a knife around the edges of the pan and then remove the springform edge, leaving the base in place (if using a springform pan). Let the cake cool on a rack completely. Slice and serve with ice cream or whipped cream, if desired. The cake keeps well, loosely covered at room temperature, for several days.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I made this recipe, substituted the sugar for erythritol, and it came out beautifully! It’s really great when a recipe works with sugar substitutes.
This is my go to recipe when the Italian Prunes make their entrance. It is delicious just as written. I have been making this for a number of years and everyone I serve to loves it. It’s beautiful when it is baked the only change I make is the sprinkle 2 tablespoons of raw sugar on the top instead of using the plain sugar. Gives the cake a little sparkle.
Typo alert !
Transfer the batter to a greased Springform pan and smooth the top with an offset spatula. Note that the batter is quick thick.
Thanks so much for pointing that out – I just fixed it – it takes a village! 🙂
I made this cake today. Very tasty! It came out exactly as on Jennifer’s photo. My butter was very soft so I needed more flour. But I added almond flour instead.
The cake is very light! I will be making it all the time! Thank you!
As per usual, Jenn’s Summer Plum Cake is spot on. Moist, just the right amount of sweetness, and with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, over the top. Soooooo delicious!
This is so easy and wonderful. Thanks
Hello Jennifer,
Can you replace the flour with almond flour? I would like to make this dessert but my company will not touch a cake unless almond or other kind of flour.
Thanks
Debora
Hi Debora, I don’t think this will translate well to all almond flour. You could try subbing out a small portion of the all-purpose flour with it, but I can’t say for sure how it will impact the texture. You can find more information about alternative flours here. Hope that helps!
We had a nice crop of plums this year and as those of you who have trees know, they ripen pretty much all at the same time. The question always is the same. What to do with our plums? We made this super easy Plum cake. Jen’s instructions were easy to follow and we feel it turned out great. It was beautiful as well as delicious. It received rave comments from friends and family. This is now our new go-to plum cake! Five star ❣️⭐️
My family enjoyed this cake with vanilla ice cream. One of my guest mentioned that it brought back memories of his grandmother’s recipe! I will make it again when I have some nice ripe plums.
I made this summer plum cake yesterday and it turned out delicious. The only thing different I did was slice the plum in eights rather than quarter them. I felt the plums quartered were too large.
Hello. I Made your delicious recipe.
But my Plum cake had a soggy Bottom ! I was thinking shall i use parchment paper and bake one rung down in my oven ? Plus I prefer using grams or ounces when weighing my flour and sugar. ( Butter is very standard ) But flour and sugar weight is not. Would you please convert your unbleached flour measure and cake flour and sugar measure to Your recipes standard. !! I would soo Appreciate
The Clarification. So frustrating when using good ingredients and time and effort and the end product ends up gooey or dry or soggy. And trash bound !!! Thanks 😊
So sorry you had a problem with this, Dawn! The majority of my recipes actually do have conversions to weight/metric measurements. To view them, scroll down to the recipe and immediately under the recipe title on the right side, you’ll see a little toggle. If you move it from “cup measures” to metric, you’ll see measurements that will work for you. Hope you have better luck if you try this again!!