Salted Buttermilk Plum Cake

What can I say about this cake? I’m made it using plums, again. I know. I really like plums. I like that they can be tangy or sweet but they are always fragrant. I like that they are still in season now, even when you think that all delicious stone fruit hope is lost for another year, and I like that they are adaptable. So when I found this recipe, it hit two birds with one stone – using up the remainder of the buttermilk, and yet another plum vehicle, I had to make it.

Pretty soon it was in the oven and quietly rising, though I wasn’t sure it would work. I mean it just seems so healthy! There is only 1/2 of a cup of sugar in it, and only a tiny taste of butter, too. I fully expected it to taste like flavourless spongy cardboard – dull – and have to slather it with jam or caramel to bring it to life so that I wouldn’t have to throw it away. Happily, things didn’t turn out this way.

The buttermilk added extra moisture and a depth of flavour, the fruit melted in and the sugar and salt topping added interest and crunch. The cakey bottom would be boring and bland without the fruity topping so don’t skip it, but don’t feel constrained by my plum love affair. Berries, pear, peaches or apple would all work well, as would pre-cooked quince. 

I am not sure that this would work with the go-to fake buttermilk we all know and love. So, bake it when you’ve bought a carton of real buttermilk for pancakes, and need an excuse to use up the rest. Or forget the excuses and buy the buttermilk specially to make this cake. It is worth it, and guilt-free healthy, too.

Salted Buttermilk Plum Cake
Adapted from Saltkissed Buttermilk Cake Recipe from 101 Cookbooks.

2 1/2 cups plain flour
1 T baking powder
1/2 cup or brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
3 eggs
1 1/4 cup buttermilk
40g butter, melted and cooled slightly
zest of 2 lemons
5 or 6 plums, or other fruit.
3 tablespoons raw sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt flakes

Preheat oven to 200C degrees. Grease and line a rectangular loaf pan.

In a large bowl, sift in flour, baking powder, brown sugar and the table salt. In a separate bowl whisk the eggs and buttermilk together until combined, then mix in butter and lemon zest. Pour the wet mixture into a well in the dry mixture and fold in gently until just combined.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, pushing out toward the edges. Place the sliced plums in a pattern over the top of the cake. Press into the batter. Sprinkle over the extra raw sugar and sea salt. Back for about 20 minutes, or until cake is set and a skewer come out clean.

This cake keeps for about 5 days, though the salt will make the top soggy. Best to eat it on the day it is made.