Almond and Plum Upside Down Cake

There seems to be a theme developing here. Another plum recipe... Yes, I have a glut of them and a glut of recipe to share! This easy to make but does take a long time to bake. It's nice and moist from the plums and is not to sweet.

Serves 6-7

3/4 cup or 175g of softened butter

3/4 cup & 2 tbsp or 175g of cane sugar

Enough plums to cover the bottom of your tin and 50g more for the cake about 8.8 oz or 250g

3 large eggs

1/2 cup & 2 tbsp or 75g of self-raising flour

2/3 cup or 100g of ground almonds

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C or 375°C and grease and line an 8 inch or 20 cm springform tin. Halve enough plums to put face down to line the bottom of the tin and measure of those left 50g or 1.8 oz. Set aside.

2. Beat together the butter and sugar until soft and creamy then slowly add in the beaten eggs. (If it splits don't worry as the cake will be perfectly fine). Fold in the almonds and flour and the 50g or 1.8 oz of chopped plums. Bake for 90 minutes or until the cake is completely cooked in the center, you can test for this by inserting a toothpick and if it comes out clean it's done other wise return it to the oven.

3. Once its baked leave it to cool for 30 minutes. Take a plate and place it on the bottom of the tin and another on top. Quickly flip it over to reveal the beautiful moist cake beneath.

Roast Plum Sorbet

This is a really good recipe, (although it's more of an idea really), for using up plums if you have a glut of them. It's rather fragrant and nicely tart and has a wonderful pastel pink colour.

Serves 4-5

1/2 cup or 100g cane sugar

4.4 lb or 2kg red and yellow plums

1. Fit the plums in a roasting tin so they sit snugly and sprinkle them with the sugar.

2. Put them under the grill until they're bubbling and slightly charred on top.

3. Now mash them lightly with a potato masher and pour off the juice into a pan. Place the pulp in a juicer/coulis maker or force through a sieve to remove the pips and skin.

4. Reduce the juice by half and mix with the puree. At this point add any extra sugar if you think it needs it and churn in an ice cream.