Brown Butter Almond Upside Down Plum Cake

Want a refresher on how to make this?

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Makes 1, 9 inch cake Oven: 350°

INGREDIENTS

For the Top

• about 1 pound (4 usually is enough) black plums

• 3/4 cup granulated sugar

• 1/4 cup water

For the Batter

• 1 cup granulated sugar

• ½ cup brown sugar

• 1 stick butter, browned and slightly cooled

• 2 whole eggs

• ½ cup neutral oil

• ¾ cup buttermilk

• 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

• ½ teaspoon almond extract

• zest from 1/2 orange (optional)

• 1 ¾ cups all purpose flour

• ½ cup almond flour

• 1 teaspoon salt

• ½ teaspoon baking soda

• ½ teaspoon baking powder

INSTRUCTIONS

Line a 9-inch cake round with parchment and set your oven to 325°F.

Slice the plums into ⅛-inch thick slices, setting aside any of the small or awkward bits and saving only the perfect semi-circle slices. This will give you the best finished look.

Arrange all the slices in the bottom of the cake pan, tightly packing them so there is no space. Do your best to ensure no gaps—otherwise the cake batter will seep between and ruin the beautiful finish.

In a small pot, combine the sugar and water and place it over medium heat. Allow this to come to a boil, undisturbed. Once the sugar has melted, boil it for 3–4 minutes, just until the bubbles have started to appear a bit bigger and less frequent.

Gently pour the hot sugar syrup over the plums, swirling a bit to spread the hot syrup if necessary, then set aside.

Make Your Cake Batter

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, almond flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Set this aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the sugars, browned butter, eggs, and oil until well combined and slightly more pale in color.

Add in the buttermilk and extracts, zest (if using), and stir well, then add all of the dry ingredients. Mix until just barely combined and no lumps remain.

Carefully pour the batter over the plums—be gentle so as not to disturb your beautifully arranged slices.

Gently tap the cake on the counter to release any air bubbles, then pop it into the oven for about 45–55 minutes, until the top is a deep golden brown and a knife or toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.

Cool for at least 15 minutes before inverting onto a cake plate (you may want to run a paring knife or palette knife around the edge of the cake pan first) and carefully removing the parchment to expose those sexy plums!

Cool completely before serving with some ice cream or whipped cream.