Plum Pie

Plum Pie


Okay, It looks a little burnt around the edges.  I did have the oven a touch too high and left it in for  5 minutes more than I should have, but it didn't taste burnt or dry. The plums were oozing moisture.  Do I sound defensive?
Anyway, it was delicious and I got rave reviews from those who ate it.

The pie is based on a recipe called "Plumb Cake" from a cookbook my sister gave me, called The Monday Morning Cooking Club. This cookbook has it origins in a group of Sydney Jewish women who came together each week to share recipes and cook. Each of the culturally diverse dishes in the book have a history.  Many of the recipes have been handed down through generations.

This recipe called "Plumb Cake" comes from Lyndi Adler and has been past down from her Czech born mother and grandmother.  Along with Lyndi's father, her mother and grandmother had survived the holocaust to migrate to Melbourne in 1949.  Lyndi's mother misspelt plum in her written recipe. The family affectionally continue to call it plumb.

In this recipe I use half the sugar Lyndi does, as I like the pie to be more sour than sweet. And on tasting it with less sugar, I loved it.
I also found this recipe makes enough for two pies if you use a 30cm pie dish.

Dough
225gm plain flour
225gm self raising flour
250 gm unsalted butter
115gm caster sugar (half the sugar that Lyndi uses)
3 egg yolks
150 sour cream

Crumble
300gm plain flour
170gm castor sugar (half the sugar that Lyndi uses)
190gm unsalted butter
12-16 blood plums (washed, halved and stoned)
cinnamon for sprinkling

Make the dough the day before, wrap in cling wrap and rest in fridge.
To make dough blend flour and butter (by hand or in blender)
Add sugar, egg yolks and sour cream and mix to form a soft, sticky ball.

To make the crumble, combine flour, sugar, butter in food processor or mix by hand.

Remove dough from fridge 30 minutes before using.
Preheat oven to 180c. Grease spring form cake tin, or use pie dish as I did.
On a floured service, roll out to fit base and up the sides of the dish (only halfway if the dish is deep).
Place plums on top, very closely together.
Squeeze crumble mixture into cavities and over the top of the plums.
Sprinkle with cinnamon.

Bake for 1.5 hours... but check it 15 minutes before the time is up, so you can ensure it doesn't brown too much like mine!
Serve warm or cold with cream or ice-cream.