Even though it happens every year, somehow I am always sort of surprised that the Jewish holidays come in such a jumble. We celebrate one holiday on top of another and are busier than ever, observing and celebrating.
Not to mention — LOTS of food.
I don't want to even count the calories.
And there's still Sukkot to come.
This year I didn't make my usual Plum Torte for Rosh Hashanah. I needed a change of some of my menu items.
But I still can't resist those once a year Italian-style prune plums (President/Empress plums), so I decided to use them for this Plum Streusel Cake. It turned out to be one of my favorites during the holiday.
If you are still looking for a fabulous dessert for Sukkot -- try this one. Btw, you can make this with any variety of plum. But plum season is almost over, so do take advantage while you can.
Plum Streusel Cake
Streusel:
1/4 pound unsalted butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Melt the butter and set it aside to cool. Place the sugar, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl and mix until well blended. Pour in the butter and blend it in. Let stand for 4-5 minutes, then crumble the mixture using your fingers. Set aside.
Cake:
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon peel
2 large eggs
1 cup milk
6-8 Empress plums, sliced, pit removed (President plums, 10-12 Italian prune plums)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Make the streusel and set it aside. Lightly grease a 9-inch springform pan. Melt the butter and set it aside to cool. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon peel in the bowl of an electric mixer. In another bowl, combine the eggs, milk and melted butter. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ones and stir only to combine: do not overbeat. Turn the batter into the prepared cake pan. Top with the plum slices. Cover with the streusel. Bake for about 45 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove the outer ring from the pan and let the cake cool completely.
Makes one cake serving 8