Original Plum Torte-Birdy

[wilderness]

This is a New York Times classic recipe originally written for late-summer plums. I was looking at it the other day and realized after reading the comments that it could be used for just about any fruit--fresh, frozen, or canned. I have some lovely Jersey blueberries that would be good in this. I wonder if strawberries would work? It's easy to cut in half, too.

Original Plum Torte-Birdy
cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/3783-original-plum-torte

The Times published Marian Burros’s recipe for Plum Torte every September from 1983 until 1989, when the editors determined that enough was enough. The recipe was to be printed for the last time that year. “To counter anticipated protests,” Ms. Burros wrote a few years later, “the recipe was printed in larger type than usual with a broken-line border around it to encourage clipping.” It didn’t help. The paper was flooded with angry letters. “The appearance of the recipe, like the torte itself, is bittersweet,” wrote a reader in Tarrytown, N.Y. “Summer is leaving, fall is coming. That's what your annual recipe is all about. Don't be grumpy about it.” We are not! And we pledge that every year, as summer gives way to fall, we will make sure that the recipe is easily available to one and all. The original 1983 recipe called for 1 cup sugar; the 1989 version reduced that to 3/4 cup. We give both options below.

¾ to 1 cup sugar
½ cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup unbleached flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt (optional)
2 eggs
24 halves pitted purple plums
Sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon, for topping

Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Cream the sugar and butter in a bowl. Add the flour, baking powder, salt and eggs and beat well.
Spoon the batter into a springform pan of 8, 9 or 10 inches. Place the plum halves skin side up on top of the batter. Sprinkle lightly with sugar and lemon juice, depending on the sweetness of the fruit. Sprinkle with about 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, depending on how much you like cinnamon.
Bake 1 hour, approximately. Remove and cool; refrigerate or freeze if desired. Or cool to lukewarm and serve plain or with whipped cream. (To serve a torte that was frozen, defrost and reheat it briefly at 300 degrees.)
Tip
To freeze, double-wrap the torte in foil, place in a plastic bag and seal.

5 WAYS TO ADAPT OUR FAMOUS PLUM TORTE RECIPE
nytimes.com/interactive/2016/09/14/dining/marian-burros-plum-torte-recipe-variations.html

First published in 1983, Marian Burros’s plum torte has become one of the most popular recipes in the history of The Times, and it’s no mystery why. There are so many things to love: It’s easy, it’s practically no-fail and it’s endlessly adaptable. Here are five ways to make the legendary torte your own, drawn directly from readers who have done just that. And her original plum torte recipe is above.

1. REPLACE THE PLUMS WITH ALMOST ANY SEASONAL FRUIT: apricots, halved and pitted; cranberries or any summer berry; sliced apples, nectarines, peaches and pears. Canned and frozen fruit can stand in for fresh.

Made this for the first time using 4 cups of blueberries and raspberries (mixed). It was perfect! - Jane F.

I’ve been using a version of this for years as a cranberry holiday bread. - Marie Schappert

I have made this with about a quart of drained canned fruit of any type, as well as frozen. I can plums, peaches and pears in season, and if a jar fails to seal, you can bake this cake with it rather than reprocess the jar. - Jennifer Robinson

2. EXPERIMENT WITH SPICES, HERBS AND EXTRACTS: vanilla extract, almond extract, nutmeg, ginger, cardamom, rosemary, orange or lemon zest.

I add about a half teaspoon of vanilla or almond extract to the batter. This cake is so easy and good. I even memorized the recipe — except my memorization was imperfect and I baked the cake with the fruit on the bottom by accident. It still was delicious! - Jane Eyrehead

I added a teaspoon of finely minced fresh rosemary to the batter… nice, subtle flavor. - Gail

3. PLAY WITH THE FLOURS. You can add almond or cornmeal flour to the all-purpose flour, or swap in gluten-free flour blends, with excellent results. (Melissa Clark made a version with whole wheat flour.)

Made this with gluten-free flour and it turned out Perfectly! Everyone loved it. - Suzanne

I substituted 1/2 cup almond meal and 1/2 cup brown rice flour for 1 cup of wheat flour. I also added parchment paper over the greased bottom of the spring pan. It was delicious served warm. - Mari Schappert

Made this last night after tasting the one made by our daughter. Used raspberries and blackberries, one basket each, instead of plums, and 1/3 cup cornmeal and 2/3 cup flour. Fantastic!!! The cornmeal adds a very sophisticated “Italian” character to it, very slight crunch, and amazing flavor. - John

4. DOUBLE, TRIPLE, EVEN QUADRUPLE IT. The batter scales up like a dream, and the baked cake freezes well.

This is one of my favorite recipes and has been for many years. In addition to plums, I’ve used blueberries, peaches, apples and various combinations of more than one fruit. It also freezes great. I line the baking dish with aluminum foil and once baked and cooled slightly, turn the baking dish upside down on a plate, peel off the foil, then turn it right-side up on another plate. - Deborah

Double the recipe and it fits nicely in 13-by-9-inch disposable aluminum pans. - Nellie Armstrong.

Think about making two…one is not enough. - Sandra T.

5. CHANGE UP THE PAN. The torte can be baked in any dish provided it’s approximately 8 to 10 inches in diameter and oven-safe.

Make it in any Pyrex, casserole, anything. - Cynthia

Used my pie plate because my springform pan was nowhere to be found. - Kelleryjones

A 9-inch pan gives greater height and moisture to the tart than a 10-inch pan. - J. David Nelson