On my first day of work I brought over cookies. I’m shy. I’m bad at small talks. People like cookies. Cookies make conversation easier. It worked out pretty well. But this kind of solution has it ups and downs. On Friday I was reminded kindly by one of my coworkers that it’s been quite a while since the last time I brought over treats. Well, it wasn’t that long ago, something like a month ago, and it was the strawberry cheesecake.
I actually planned to bake a cake over the weekend even before anybody reminded me of it. And I also planned to bring anything that lasts to work, as it’s my solution for not eating too much. My plan was actually to test some old school, a little bit forgotten Polish cakes, that I haven’t baked in years, but when I went to a shop I saw those gorgeous plums I couldn’t say no.
I love plums, they are sweet, juicy jewels, the violets ones look the best on cakes, but I love yellow and green ones, so I was more than happy to grab those.
The cake is very simple, but it’s not very traditional, at least not for me. It’s full of marzipan. I don’t know about you, but I love marzipan in cakes. The apple pie with marzipan was delicious. If you are marzipan fan you will love this cake, if you don’t like it, don’t bake it.
Marzipan plum cake
- 250 g marzipan, cold (you can place it for 10 minutes in a freezer)
- 120 g light brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 110 g plain flour
- 50 g ground almonds
- 1 tsp ground cardamon
- 10-15 plums, pitted and halved
- 40 g butter, cold and cubed
- 40 g plain flour
- 40 g sugar
- 40 g ground almonds
- pinch of salt
Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan.
Place all crumble ingredients in a bowl and rub with your fingertips until it will resemble coarse breadcrumbs.
Grate marzipan coarsely. Leave 3 tablespoons aside for later (you will use it for sprinkling at the end).
Mix the remaining marzipan with sugar.
Add one egg at a time still mixing.
In a separate bowl mix together flour, ground almonds and cardamon.
When the egg mixture is smooth and well-combined start folding in the flour mixture in a few batches. Mix until it is well combined.
Line in a baking tin with baking paper and place the mixture in a tin.
Arrange the plums at the top of the cake (the skin down).
Sprinkle it with marzipan and then crumble mixture.
Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Magda's Cauldron 
I’m always getting hints about bringing in baking too! I spotted plum and marzipan muffins in an Ottolenghi cookbook and I have been meaning to make them ever since, such a gorgeous combination of flavours.
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Adriene, I still didn’t get my hands on an Ottolenghi cookbook, but I got a few others ones 😉
I use a marzipan quite a lot, it’s delicious and most of recipes is so simple, just I prefer not to think how much calories are there…
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I love the sound of this! I haven’t really experimented at all with marzipan in the kitchen, but looking at this delicious-sounding cake is making me want to give it a go 🙂
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Thank you Eva. I tried this combination a few times and it always tastes nicely. Apparently the addition of marzipan to cakes is Danish invention 🙂
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Magda, the cake looks fantastic. I am not much of a bake but just looking at this make me want to run to the kitchen and get the ingredients out and start messing around. very nice pics too!
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Thank you Joanna. Lucky you, I can be easily convinced to run to the kitchen, it may be delicious, but very dangerous 🙂
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Why don’t you work at my office?? Why??? 😉
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Marta, maybe I’m somewhere close enough?
Or just try to see if any of your colleagues is easy to persuade to bring cakes into the office. Maybe you have hidden baker in the office, you never know 🙂
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Magdo, ciesze sie bardzo, ze przepis sie przydal! Sliczne zdjecia 🙂
Pozdrawiam serdecznie!
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Dziękuję Beo jeszcze raz za inspirację i za komplement 🙂
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