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    You are here: Home / Recipes / Menu / Sweet Treats / Plum, Walnut & Lavender Cake

    Plum, Walnut & Lavender Cake

    Oct 30, 2019 · 1 Comment

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    Juicy, tart, sweet plums are baked into this moist walnut oil cake that’s topped with icing and sprinkled with floral lavender creating a deliciously complex and rustic fall treat!!!

    Plum, Walnut and Lavender Cake! Overhead shot on a black background.

    Inspired by Ottolenghi’s apricot cake, and staying true to my oh-so-purple-loving- ways, I swapped the apricots for plums, simplified the recipe and tweaked it a bit.

    Why this Plum, Walnut & Lavender Cake Works

    • Quick & easy to make! The batter comes easily come together in 10 minutes and the icing can be whipped up while the cake bakes.
    • Recipe is adaptable! All other stone fruits can work as the topping too! Peaches, pluots, apricots and more.
    • Recipe is versatile! The cake works just as well for dessert as it does for brunch or afternoon tea.
    • Complex & balanced flavor! Using both walnuts and walnut oil in the batter adds a layer of complexity to the nutty lemony-buttery batter that’s balanced by the juicy tang of the plums and the floral sweetness of the icing.
    • Looks highly impressive & is low maintenance! My favorite intersection for recipes, making it perfect for entertaining or easy, weekday treats.

    Overhead shot of the plum, walnut and lavender cake on parchment paper, on a white background.

    The ripe plums soften into luxuriously jammy pockets as they bake… and just look at that color!!!

    It’s a perfect cake for the summer-into-fall season. Or if ya live in SoCal like me, it’s more like the summer–into-summer season… and I gots no complaints about that!

    This is *officially* the very first recipe I've shot in my new SoCal home!!!

    Blue plate filled with plums, cut in half.
    fresh plums from the Santa Monica farmers market

    How to Make this Plum, Walnut & Lavender Cake

    Beat your butter, sugar and walnut oil. Fold in your flour, ground walnuts, vanilla, lemon zest and salt. Pour into a cake pan and arrange plums on top, skin side down. Whisk icing together while cake bakes. Top with icing and lavender. Marvel at your rustically gorgeous creation and enjoy!

    Please see my images below for easy cooking!

    Walnut cake batter topped with raw plums, ready for the oven.
    top with plums skin side down
    Side angle shot of the cake batter topped with plums cut in half, skin side down.
    it's ok to have the plums overlap a bit
    Plum & Walnut cake just out of the oven, pre-icing.
    post oven!
    Side angle shot of the plum and walnut cake just out of the oven.
    plums turn luxuriously jammy!

    I love topping my cakes with whole fruits to really celebrate the best of the season’s fresh fruit bounty! This spectacular plum topping is a showstopper!

    Stoked on other cakes with some show stopping fruit toppings? I got ya!!!

    Check out my:

    • Almond Rhubarb Cake
    • Strawberry Snack Cake
    • Rhubarb Tart with Ginger & Pistachios 
    • Plum Upside-Down Cake
    • Fig Skillet Cake
    • Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake

    Cooks Tips

    • For the best, fluffiest results, be sure to use room temperature butter when creaming it with the sugar.
    • We want no soggy cake! Be sure to place plums skin side down in batter so the cake it moist but not wet.
    • If the top starts to brown too much in the oven, simply cover with foil.
    • Cake will keep in an airtight bag or container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

    The recipe was sponsored by La Tourangelle. All opinions in it are my own.

    Side angle shot of the plum and walnut cake, with a bottle of walnut oil in the background.

    Have ya tried this recipe? I’d love to hear about it and see it too! Please leave a comment below and take a pic and tag it on Instagram with #chefdanielagerson. You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest to see more colorfully delicious food and all sorts of awesome adventures!

    Let's make waves in the kitchen!

    Plum, Walnut and Lavender Cake! Overhead shot on a black background.
    Print Recipe

    Plum Walnut and Lavender Cake

    Juicy, tart, sweet plums are baked into this moist walnut oil cake that’s topped with icing and sprinkled with floral lavender creating a deliciously complex and rustic fall treat!!!
    Prep Time15 mins
    Cook Time1 hr 20 mins
    Course: Brunch, Dessert
    Cuisine: Californian
    Servings: 10
    Author: Daniela Gerson

    Ingredients

    For the Cake

    • 12 tablespoons unsalted butter diced and at room temperature, 1.5 sticks
    • 2 tablespoons walnut oil
    • 1 cup granulated sugar 1 cup
    • 4 large eggs beaten
    • ½ cup ground walnuts
    • 1.5 cups of all purpose flour
    • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
    • zest & juice of 1 lemon divided, juice will be used for icing
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 10-15 plums halved & pitted
    • 1 teaspoon lavender flowers fresh or dry

    For the Icing

    • 1 tablespoon lemon juice from the lemon we zested for the batter
    • 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar

    Instructions

    • Heat the oven to 375ºF. Line the base and sides of a 9-inch cake pan with parchment paper and lightly butter the paper.
      Place the butter, walnut oil, and sugar in the bowl of a mixer and beat on a medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs bit by bit, making sure each is well incorporated before adding the next, then fold in the walnuts, flour, vanilla, lemon zest, and salt.
      Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan and use an offset spatula to smooth the top. Arrange the plums halves, skin side down and slightly overlapping, over the top of the cake, right out to the edge.
      Bake for 70-80 minutes, until golden on top and set in the center. When you insert a skewer to test for doneness, they’ll be a moist crumb or two because of the moisture in the plums, that’s OK! Once cooled enough to handle, remove the sides of the pan. 
      While the cake is baking, whisk together the icing sugar and lemon juice until you have a light, pourable icing (adjust the amount of sugar or juice slightly, to taste. Drizzle the icing over the slightly cooled cake and sprinkle with lavender flowers. 
       

    Notes

    • For the best, fluffiest results, be sure to use room temperature butter when creaming it with the sugar.
    • We want no soggy cake! Be sure to place plums skin side down in batter so the cake it moist but not wet.
    • If the top starts to brown too much in the oven, simply cover with foil.
    • Cake will keep in an airtight bag or container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
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    Meet Daniela

    VEGGIES ARE SEXY 

    Hi, I'm Daniela - a Los Angeles based food photographer and creative director. I began my career as a chef with a passion for sourcing colorful produce from local markets. I love emphasizing the beauty of real food with my images. I’m also a food stylist and recipe developer with a gorgeous prop-filled studio in Venice, California.

    Daniela Gerson Photography

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    95 shares