Plum Cake Take 2!

It's plum cake season again (yay!). Actually, I made prune cake, but that doesn't sound nearly as tempting. This was a really easy cake to whip up before going to a dinner party at a friend's house. The whole wheat flour adds a nuttiness that I like for the fall, and the oil makes it nice and moist. My prunes were way too sour to eat raw, but the baking brought out all the juices, and with a little extra brown sugar sprinkled on top, they were sweet as can be. You could serve it with a side of whipped cream or cinnamon ice cream, but it doesn't need it.

The recipe was inspired by Guilty Kitchen, but I altered it quite a bit (more plums!)...

Plum Cake

At least 30 fresh prunes, cut in half and pitted

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup coconut oil, or other vegetable oil

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 cup buttermilk (I used soymilk, mixed with 1 tblsp of white vinegar)

vanilla

3 eggs

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

a pinch of salt

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

a pinch of nutmeg

2 cups slivered almonds, lightly toasted

apricot preserves

Grease the cake pan of your choice (I used a 9" springform pan, but had enough batter left over to fill a little 5" pan as well).

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Sift together the flours, baking powder, salt and spices. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk the sugar with the butter and oil. When light and fluffy, gradually whisk in the eggs.

Alternately mix in flours and buttermilk, in four additions. Stop mixing when just combined.

Pour the batter into the cake pan. Arrange the prunes as close together as you can (the more the juicier). Sprinkle with 2-3 tablespoons of brown sugar, and maybe a handful of slivered almonds.

Bake for one hour, or until a skewer comes out clean. Let it cool in the pan. 

Once unmoulded, brush the sides of the cake with apricot preserves and press the almonds into it to cover the sides.