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 made this cake for years. I substitute 1/4 cup of cornmeal for 1/4 cup of flour. Cornmeal and plums are incredible together.
Any thoughts on turning this into muffins?
Hi Sara, I think you could use this recipe for muffins, but I’d dice instead of slice them. You could also use this recipe and replace the blueberries with plums.
Sounds great. Can you publish a gluten-free version? Perhaps made with ground almonds. Thanks!
Hi Loren, I’m not in the practice of baking with almond flour, but I think this would work nicely with an all-purpose gluten-free flour. A number of readers have commented that they have good luck with King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten-free flour and Cup4Cup gluten-free flour. Hope you enjoy if you try it!
I have had phases in my gluten free journey from autoimmune paleo, to paleo, to now just gluten and mostly lactose free. Almond meal / flour GREATLY changes the crumb of baked goods and doesn’t allow for the same absorption of wet ingredients in the batter that flours do. For GF flour, this absorption takes longer and bakers should allow extra sitting time of a batter for the absorption to occur. This helps the crumb in the final product. Almond flour would definitely not work in the recipe and get even close to the final product. I did use King Arthur’s all purpose gluten free flour as a sub and Fairlife 2%milk with fantastic results, though!
Hi Jenn,
This was so delicious! I want to make it again but plums are now out of season here in Australia…would this work with pears? How would you adjust the sugar?
Hi Jahnavi, So glad you like it! I haven’t tried it, but a few other readers have mentioned they’ve used pears successfully. (I’d make sure to use pears that are good for baking like Bosc or Anjou.) I’d love to hear how it turns out if you try it!
I was a bit dubious to be honest but when it was baked, it was the BEST. We all loved it (with vanilla ice cream, of course)! I compared it to another similar recipe and this recipe is more moist as it has the half cup of milk. Have currently got another cake to n the oven with apricots, so looking forward to it. Thanks!
I baked this once and it was lovely. Second time it was hard and sugary and very moist inside. It wasn’t very nice. What did I do wrong that time please?
Hi Denise, Sorry this didn’t work out! If you had success with the cake the first time around, I suspect you must’ve made a measuring error this time. You mentioned it was sugary and moist; might you have inadvertently added too much sugar? Sugar not only makes things sweet, but also adds moisture to things (as it dissolves) so that would be my guess. Please LMK if I can help in any other way.
This cake is delicious!!❤️
I made this recipe earlier this month, just to see if it would be popular. Today I am making it again, doubling the recipe, because it proved so popular that it lasted a day. Everyone loved it and I was asked to make it again in place of our traditional Christmas cake. Definitely a recipe I would and will recommend.
I’ve made this recipe multiple times. It’s easy and super delicious; my wife said it’s the best thing she ever tasted! I just made it by hand in my daughter’s kitchen which presented the challenge of an unfamiliar kitchen. It turned out great! It smells terrific!
Looks fantastic! Is it freezable?
Yep, it freezes nicely!
Delicious! Loved it! Quick and easy to make and so yummy. I loved how the plums sank down and you couldn’t see them. Thank you for this recipe 🙂