A Plum Assignment

Though it might appear that my daughter and I are having “dueling desserts”, I was inspired by her recent yummy offering and decided it was time to crack open the newest cookbook (a gift from her) to see what desserts were seductively waiting to be made. Talk about inspired…I was enthralled with the book, “Earth to Table” (by Jeff Crump and Bettina Schormann) and devoured both text and photographs with equal enthusiasm.

What caught my eye was a luscious “Plum Tarts”recipe. While this book whose premise is seasonal, local fare, is sectioned into…you guessed it…seasons, I couldn’t resist the temptation to create these little beauties. I figured, we live in California…if we have to pay over a million bucks for a modest bungalow to live in, then we deserve to have produce a few weeks ahead of the rest of the country. Faulty a notion as that might be, I do appreciate that our farmer’s markets are so prevalent while the truck-ripened produce is relegated to the supermarket.

I came upon the most gorgeous dark-skinned plums, spilling out of a basket from one

of my favorite produce vendors. They positively glistened as I rinsed them in preparation for their final emergence, tucked delectably

within the folds of a sweet cookie-like crust, vaguely reminiscent of snickerdoodle cookies of my youth.

Plum Tarts

Tart:

8 plums, cut into wedges

2/3 cup sugar, divided

1 Tbl. ground cinnamon

All-purpose flour

1 recipe Pâte Sucrée (see below)

½ cup Frangipane (see below)

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

In a bowl, toss together plums, ½ cup sugar and cinnamon; set aside.

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Lightly sprinkle with flour and set aside.

On a lightly floured surface, divide pâte sucrée into 8 equal portions. Using a floured rolling pin, roll out into eight 7-inch rough circles. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Spoon 1 Tbl. frangipane in the center of each dough circle and spread out evenly, leaving a 2” border. Place a scant 1 cup plum wedges in the center of each circle. Lift border of pastry up over filling, letting pastry fall naturally into folds. Brush sides with egg and sprinkle with the remaining sugar. Refrigerate for 10 min.

Preheat oven to 350ºF, with rack placed in bottom third of oven. Bake tarts until filling is bubbly and crust is golden brown, about 45 min. Let rest for 5 min. before serving.

Pâte Sucrée:

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

3 Tbl. sugar

2 tsp. salt

1 cup cold unsalted butter

2 large organic egg yolks

¼ to ½ cup ice water

In a bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt. Using a box grater, grate butter into the flour mixture. Toss together, like a salad, using your fingers.

In another bowl, whisk together egg yolks and water. Add to flour mixture, a few tablespoons at a time, kneading dough until it comes together.

Shape dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.

(Make ahead: Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks or freeze for up to 3 months.)

Frangipane:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

½ cup ground almonds

¼ cup icing sugar

¼ cup all-purpose flour

2 organic eggs

Using an electric mixer, mix butter, almonds, icing sugar, flour and eggs until smooth.

(Make ahead: Transfer to an airtight container

and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks or freeze up to 1 month.)

The results of these juicy little babes were worth the effort, and since it produced eight of them, I was able to offer up a few for friends to try (boy was I popular). No wonder this was titled “A Plum Assignment”.

The book is a must-read and belongs in every cook’s library.

--the Mother