Late Summer Plum Cake
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Gently spiced, this jammy plum cake celebrates the summer-into-fall season. Serve it as a brunch cake or for dessert topped with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
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 plums turn into rich, jammy pockets as they bake, 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, or topped with whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
What you’ll need to make Plum Cake
Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin by whisking the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, and salt together in a large bowl.
Next, beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.
Add the egg and vanilla and mix to combine.
Gradually add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk, and beat on low speed until smooth.
Transfer the batter to a greased Springform pan and smooth the top with an offset spatula. Note that the batter is quite thick.
Arrange the plums on top, skin side up, in a circular pattern so that they cover most of 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 (leave the base in place). Let the cake cool on a rack completely.
Slice and serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.
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- Summer Strawberry Cake
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- Plum Galette
Late Summer Plum Cake
Gently spiced, this jammy plum cake celebrates the summer-into-fall season. Serve it as a brunch cake or for dessert topped with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
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
- 8 tablespoons (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing the pan
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, divided
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup milk (low-fat is fine)
- 1 pound plums, pitted and quartered
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Grease a 9-inch springform pan. (Alternatively, the cake may be made in a 9-inch 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 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.
- Note: This cake keeps well, loosely covered at room temperature, for several days.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cake can be frozen for up to 3 months. After it is completely cooled, double-wrap it securely with aluminum foil or plastic freezer wrap, or place it in heavy-duty freezer bag. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Calories: 344
- Fat: 13g
- Saturated fat: 8g
- Carbohydrates: 54g
- Sugar: 35g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 4g
- Sodium: 231mg
- Cholesterol: 55mg
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 have a question. I have already added a 5 star review considering it was fantastic, but I knew if I did not put it in the freezer I would eat it all by the time Sunday arrived for a family dinner.
It did not freeze well at all. I wrapped in 3 layers of aluminum foil. Left it there for 4 days and took out the night before. When I unwrapped, it crumbled. No longer when I sliced did it hold. Here is what I did differently:
Used Cake Flour
Used less sugar on top
Added a little over 3/4 C of sugar vs. the 1 C.
Baked 60 min.
It was still delicious, but looked so sad. Do you have any advise? Thank you…
Hi Heather, Sorry to hear you had a problem with the cake’s texture after freezing it. Because cake flour makes for a more tender cake, I suspect that was the cause of it breaking apart after freezing.
Excellent cake. I put in 3/4 of a cup of sugar into the dough and it was sweet enough. Will definitely bake again (very soon!)
I followed directions except used less sugar and I used dark plums. Cooked perfectly at 60 min. This cake is beautiful and easy. I had a slice while it was still warm with no ice cream or whipped cream and it was just delightful. So light and just lovely flavors. I have never used Cardamon before, but luckily Sprouts sells in bulk so I purchased a tablespoon. enough for the cake. This will be my go to forever… Fantastic! Thank you so much!!
I made this exactly following the directions except, didn’t have cardamom so I added a little freshly ground allspice and I used “Cherry Plums” instead because they were fresh AND on sale. Everybody LOVED it. My wife has told me that I could make this anytime. My only change will be that next time I’m going to cut back from 60 minutes to 50 because my dark colored springform pan came out a little dark on the bottom. It was still moist and nobody complained. Every recipe I’ve cooked from Jenn Segal has been a winner!
This made a very nice, light cake that wasn’t too sweet, perfect for summer. I did make one small change, using 2 tablespoons of Demerara sugar sprinkled over the fruit instead of white sugar. It gave a little more crunchy texture to the top of the cake without changing the flavor. I would definitely make this again, maybe experimenting with different fruit.
I used “Sugar in the Raw” on mine and everyone agreed that it added a nice little crunch without being too sweet.
I was looking for a cake to make for my moms birthday when I came across this recipe. She’s not much of a sweets person and will usually take a couple bites of someone else’s piece rather than having one of her own. She loves peaches so I substituted them instead of plums…it was SUCH a hit. She ate an entire piece (served w vanilla ice cream!) and told me at least three times after how delicious it was! Thank you yet again for a delicious recipe!! My husband requested your key lime pie for Father’s Day tomorrow so another day, another recipe from Jenn! We will continue to make our way through your cook book!!
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This plum cake is absolutely superb, thoroughly recommend it. However in a gas fan-forced oven it was cooked in just 45 mins at 180C.
I want to make this for my father who can’t chew well. Would it work to peel the plums or are the skins not too chewy?
Thanks, Barbara
Hi Barbara, I wouldn’t say the skins are particularly chewy, but I think it depends upon how challenged your dad is with chewing. I think it couldn’t hurt to remove the skins and then not have to worry about it. Hope he enjoys!
Wonderful recipe. Making again this weekend, delicious and pretty!
This was wonderful. I doubled it and used a 9×13 glass baking dish. I used King Arthur Flour GF Measure for Measure flour. It took 2.5 days for my plums to ripen on the counter in small brown paper bags (about 4 to a bag). I found I didn’t need to double the plums–they didn’t all fit–but I enjoyed eating the pieces I couldn’t use. I served the cake with whipped cream made earlier in the afternoon. Everyone loved it.