Plum Tart
Author Notes: I was reminded of this recipe when one of food52's members, Erika Kerekes, wrote about it at Examiner.com. In her version, she made the crust savory and topped it with beet greens and cheese. And she inspired to make my own changes. I swapped out the peaches for plums and change the oil in the crust to half olive oil, half canola. The olive oil adds fragrance, and the canola keeps the dough flaky. Small Italian plums are just coming into season, so now is the moment to make this -- enjoy.
—Amanda Hesser
Serves 8
-
1 1/2
cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
-
3/4
teaspoon kosher salt
-
3/4
cup plus 1 teaspoon sugar
-
1/4
cup olive oil
-
1/4
cup vegetable oil
-
2
tablespoons milk
-
1/2
teaspoon almond extract
-
2
tablespoons cold unsalted butter
-
20
small Italian plums (1 1/2 to 2 lbs), halved if they're small; otherwise quartered
- Heat the oven to 425 degrees. In a bowl, stir together 1 1/2 cups flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon sugar. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, milk and almond extract. Pour this mixture into the flour mixture and mix gently with a fork, just enough to dampen; do not overwork it.
- Pour the tart dough mixture into an 11-inch tart pan. Use your hands to pat out the dough so it covers the bottom of the pan, pushing it up the sides to the edge of the pan. This will be easy if you pat firmly and confidently, but not if you curl your fingertips into the dough. It should be about 1/8-inch thick all around; trim and discard excess dough.
- In a bowl, combine 3/4 cup sugar, 2 tablesoons flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt and the butter. Using your fingertips, pinch the butter into the dry ingredients until crumbly, with a mixture of fine granules and tiny pebbles.
- Arrange the plums in concentric circles, cut-side-up on the pastry, leaning against each other like fallen dominos; they should fit snugly. Sprinkle the pebbly butter mixture over top (it will seem like a lot). Bake for 35 to 45 mimutes, until shiny, thick bubbles begin enveloping the fruit and the crust is a nut brown. Cool on a rack. Serve warm or at room temperature, preferably with large dollops of whipped cream.
- This recipe is a Community Pick!
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9 months ago Lux Judit
I'm planning to do this tart this week but I am wondering what size is the tart pan? I only have a 18cm (7in) and a 32cm (12,5in) pan so I may need to modify the quantities...
9 months ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Thank you for asking this question because I hadn't realized I forgot to add the pan size! It should be an 11-inch pan (I just edited the recipe to reflect this). I would recommend using your 12.5-inch pan and increasing the amounts by 1/4. Hope this helps!
9 months ago Lux Judit
Thank you for the advice, I baked it this afternoon and it came out incredibly delicious!:) My only issue is that it's really crumbly and while its not a problem for me, while I'm stuffing my face near the kitchen sink, but I made it for my colleagues and I'm worried about the presentation:) Do you think I over-baked it (it came out relatively brown, bit on the over done side)? Or it's supposed to be this crumbly, like the base of a cheesecake? Do you have any advice how to avoid this next time? (Because there are going to be many many more next times:)
9 months ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
I would add 1 more tablespoon of oil to the dough so it's a little more moist and sticks together better.
10 months ago barbarac
Amanda, thanks so much. I have made this fantastic tart for the past three years. Having a family of omnivores, vegetarians and vegans, this is one tart we call all enjoy (omitting the butter in the final crumble!) It is so delicious, and , to our family, the epitome of summer and the beautiful fruit of our Pacific NW!
10 months ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
So glad to hear this!
10 months ago barbarac
Aman
about 1 year ago Florence Lindhaus
Just making it for the second time. This recipe is priceless!! Huge success!!
over 1 year ago michelle
This is in the oven as I type this! I can't wait to try it. How does the skin break down? I've never been a fan of chewy skin in tarts/soup/cooking in general. Beatific photos by the way.
over 1 year ago IEH
This was fabulous! I'd never made pastry with oil before but it was amazing - so flavorful and shortbready! Mine cooked to perfection in a convection oven in 30 mins. Definitely a keeper!
almost 2 years ago Emma Aline
I love this tart, and have made it many times (my go to recipe to bring to a family party), but my cook time is never 35-45 minutes! At 45 minutes I always still have unmelted sugar crystals covering the middle of my tart. Does anyone else experience this?
about 2 years ago Giustina
Wonderful and simple recipe! I used black plums that are somewhat out of season and not sweet at all. I was surprised how jammy and beautiful this tart was when it finished in the oven. The crust was flaky and delicious albeit delicate so my slices often came out looking less than perfect. I like less sugar in my desserts so I may try 2/3 cup sugar next time for the topping instead of 3/4 cup. Perhaps even less sugar if my plums are actually sweet and in season. Even as is, this recipe makes for a lovely dessert. You can't go wrong making it!
about 2 years ago Giustina
I can confirm that 2/3 cup sugar worked out great for me the second time around. Also, I'd like to note that I used regular black plums (instead of small Italian plums) and only 6-8 regular plums are needed for this tart. Again, wonderful recipe!
about 2 years ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Thanks for reporting back!
over 2 years ago Jessica
I was skeptical about the crust, but ... YUM!! Great combination with plums. I'm definitely going to try other fruits.
about 3 years ago Liza's Kitchen NYC
Am I missing something? Why is this categorized as a slow cooker recipe?
about 3 years ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Not sure why this happened -- just fixed it!
over 3 years ago Cydney
What kind of "pan" did you use?
over 3 years ago em-i-lis
Emily is a trusted source on General Cooking.
Fluted tart pan w removable base
over 3 years ago danette
did I miss where to cut the plums? just in half am assuming if they are the small plums.
over 3 years ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Yes -- halves if they're small. Thanks for pointing this out! I'll fix it now.
almost 4 years ago em-i-lis
Emily is a trusted source on General Cooking.
This remains one of my all-time favorite desserts. As plums just aren't quite here yet, I made this last night with rhubarb and velvet apricots. Amazing!
almost 4 years ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Oooh! Like the sound of this!
almost 4 years ago em-i-lis
Emily is a trusted source on General Cooking.
Seriously good and beautiful too! http://em-i-lis.com/wordpress...
Here starts my summer o' plum tart eating!
over 4 years ago SarahZiker
It is just me and my man at home...we could make the whole pie and eat it of course...but has anyone tried to make a smaller portion? In a cupcake dish perhaps?
almost 5 years ago gustus
The peach version of this is now part of my summer peach season repertoire, and this looks like a great line extension. I had also wondered how to convert the crust to make a savory tart, so thanks for the reference to Erika's recipe, which I easily found on examiner.com. I'm looking forward to experimenting with different fillings for both sweet and savory versions.
almost 5 years ago giuia.grady
This was fantastic! It has become my go-to tart and have taught my 11 year old to make it. It comes together so quickly and easily. It got fabulous compliments at gatherings and even the husband who never eats plums loved it. I served it with marscapone-whipped cream as suggested by another poster. Great recipe!
almost 5 years ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Thanks for your feedback -- and glad your husband has come around to plums!
over 5 years ago em-i-lis
Emily is a trusted source on General Cooking.
Amanda, Do you think I could make, cook and then freeze this tart? I have so, so many plums, and it'd be a treat to pull one of these out of the freezer post-plum season. Thanks!
over 5 years ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Unfortunately, I don't think this tart would do very well in the freezer. I think the topping would get gooey in a not nice way. And I fear the crust wouldn't defrost well. :(
over 5 years ago em-i-lis
Emily is a trusted source on General Cooking.
boo! thank you so much for getting back to me. i'll just make and eat another one. :)
over 5 years ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
I know -- bummer. But I like your way of dealing with the bad news.
over 5 years ago em-i-lis
Emily is a trusted source on General Cooking.
When life gives you plums...
over 5 years ago Synky
Really great recipe! Really liked how the tart ended up not being overly sweet, just plumy. Big hit! Ate the whole 10" in one meal!
over 5 years ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
So glad you liked it -- I've got to take another photo, this one was clearly taken by me, at night. Bad combo. Here's this tart's sister recipe: http://www.food52.com/recipes...
almost 6 years ago Midge
Made this for the first time in a long time yesterday and was reminded why this has been my summer standby since I first read about it in Mr. Latte. Such a cinch and SO good!
almost 6 years ago em-i-lis
Emily is a trusted source on General Cooking.
I totally agree with you, Midge, isn't it awesome!? Mmm!!
almost 6 years ago em-i-lis
Emily is a trusted source on General Cooking.
LOVE this. I made it last night and used pluots in place of the plums. Served it with a mascarpone-whipped cream. FAB!
almost 6 years ago Amanda Hesser
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Hey -- glad you like it. Is one of the first recipes I uploaded to the site.
Showing 39 out of 46 comments