Roasted Plums
Celebrate summer while cozying up to fall with one of the most underrated and controversial spices. Oh, and I have strong opinions on cinnamon.
I felt a bit discombobulated this week but in the best possible way.
First, it's the tail end of summer, so I'm panic-buying produce to stave off the December through June dearth. I refuse to release my death grip on summer.
Secondly, I've been writing up a storm. As a new-ish writer, I'm still building my writing muscles and stamina. Not only am I working on my cookbook, but I'm working on pieces for Food & Wine, the Chicago Tribune, and other fantastic outlets. And even before I get to writing, I'm baking my tush off because of these glorious deadlines.
What’s new?
An update and improvement to my Gold Medal Chocolate Muffins, filled with gooey peanut butter goodness in the Chicago Tribune, including goofy photos of me making them at home.
And, a piece all about alternatives to cinnamon in baking.
Listen, I adore cinnamon. The spice is like a huge hug while covered in an alpaca blanket—so cozy and comforting. But it's overused. We shove it in everything, just like we do with vanilla extract. Cinnamon has no place in a peach cobbler or cherry pie. And do we always need to feature cinnamon in our banana bread, zucchini bread, granola, and carrot cake? Why not switch up our spices once in a while? Variety is the spice of life.
Oh, and my friend Karis Stucker came to Chicago for her friend's wedding and made a stunning, gorgeous wedding cake. Just as we did on the Great American Baking Show, we still like to help each other out. So I loaned her a mixer, provided some tools, and lent a hand carrying things up three flights of stairs. Follow Karis's wedding cake adventure on social media and her gorgeous blog.
Roasted Plums with Orange and Star Anise
Here’s a great recipe using a tragically underrated spice for sweet things: Star Anise. Its warm, licorice-y flavor can be controversial, but give it a try. The subtle earthy, sweet notes of these plums, paired with the sunny tones from the orange, give a really crave-worthy complexity to this simple dish. Â
My staple breakfast consists of some kind of seasonal fruit, plus yogurt and toppings. From about June through September, I cycle through the best fruit. Summer fruit doesn't need to be cooked. You wash, maybe slice, and pop it in your bowl. But once September hits, I make roast plums as long as the late plum season lasts.
I prefer to make this with dark purple oblong plums, Zwetschgen as the German-speakers would say. My favorite variety around here is Stanley. They're at the markets and groceries right now, so don't wait. They don purply-blue skins over green-yellow flesh. The pits pop right out. These plums are made for cooking, and they're my favorite in the classic Plum Torte, which I make every year. Or my buckwheatified version.
This is a bit of a flexible non-recipe.
Recipe:
About 500 g of plums, Stanley or other oblong purple-skinned varieties. (Or enough fit in your favorite ceramic roasting dish in about 1 layer. My pan fits about 500 g of plums, weighed before pitting.)
1 orange
A glug of white wine or a splash of plum brandy (optional)
6 to 8 seconds of honey (about 3-4 Tablespoons)
A pinch of fine sea salt
2 whole star anise
Heat the oven to 400F. Halve the plums and remove the pits, then slice each half in half. Toss them in a ceramic baking dish. Using a peeler, peel off 4 large strips of orange zest and toss them into the baking dish. Squeeze the juice of the orange into the dish, followed by a quick glug of wine or plum brandy. Squeeze the bottle of honey over the plums for six seconds, sprinkle with salt, then toss in the star anise. Toss everything with your hands. Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 25 minutes; remove the foil and bake for another 20-30 minutes, until the liquid has reduced and the plums are tender but not totally disintegrated. It will look very liquid, but don't fret; it will thicken to a lovely burgundy syrup. Discard the star anise and let it cool mainly. Discard the orange peel before eating.
As dessert, spoon over vanilla ice cream and a slice of pound cake. For breakfast, spoon it over your morning yogurt or oatmeal.
Once cool, transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Happy Baking,
Martin
Martin, Roasted plum with star anise! Who knew!? So excited to try this!
Have you ever heard of Zwetschgenröster?