Plum Cake

I first fell in love with this cake when I was in Italy a long time ago. They sold it in packaging and stores that made it seem like the Italian equivalent of Twinkies. But no matter. I was hooked.

PLUM CAKE

5 oz. unsalted butter (one stick is close enough)

5 oz. brown sugar

2 eggs

10 oz. flour (pastry is best here)

.25 oz. baking powder (about 3 t.)

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/4 t. salt

9 oz. (in weight, not volume) milk, this works out to be roughly 1.5 cups.

1 lb. plums, halved and pitted

Cream butter and sugar in a mixer with paddle attachment. Scrape down and remix until it is light in color and is not forming a ball in the bowl. Add eggs one at a time, mixing slowly after each addition. Add dry ingredients and briefly mix. Remove from mixer and fold in milk by hand. This is helpful because the sugar and butter tend to hold up on walls of bowl if you use the paddle to do this part. Make sure to fold until you have an even cakelike batter.

Pour into prepared cake round or square pan. Add your plum halves facing up. Bake at 400 for about 35 minutes. Until a cake tester comes out clean. Slice and enjoy.