PLUM KUCHEN MARTHA STEWART RECIPES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine 3/4 cup sugar, the milk, oil, and egg. Fold into flour mixture.
• Divide batter evenly between prepared pans, and smooth tops. Arrange plums, cut sides up, over batter.
• Combine cinnamon and remaining sugar, and sprinkle over plums. Dot with butter. Bake until tops are dark golden, plums are soft, and a toothpick inserted into center of cakes comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool. (Cakes are best the day you make them; leftover cake is great for breakfast the next day.)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place 4 tablespoons butter in an 8-inch square cake pan. Heat in oven until butter melts, about 4 minutes. Remove from oven; sprinkle brown sugar evenly over butter. Arrange the plum slices like rooftop shingles. Start at one end of the pan, then stagger and overlap the slices so the bottom of the pan is covered.
• In a large bowl, cream remaining 8 tablespoons butter with sugar and lemon zest. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until combined after each.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together cake flour, baking powder, salt, and allspice. Add flour mixture to butter mixture in 3 batches, alternating with the milk and starting and ending with the flour.
• Pour batter into cake pan, and spread evenly over plums. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes, then invert cake onto wire rack to cool again slightly before serving.