The famous NY Times Marian Burros plum torte recipe.
Summer plums are delicious on their own. But juicy, ripe plums baked into an easy plum cake tastes even better. This lovely plum cake recipe (plum torte) from the New York Times’s Marian Burros is famous for a reason. Here’s the recipe.
The Best Plum Cake (Torte) Recipe of All
One of the most all-time popular recipes ever in the New York Times’s collection is the Marian Burros original plum torte recipe in the New York Times.
First published in September 1983, and then every subsequent September thereafter, the annual appearance of the NY Times’s plum cake recipe speaks to both its timelessness, and its success.
What’s the Difference: Plum Torte vs. Plum Cake
Wondering what, exactly, is a torte? Definitions vary, but generally, a torte is a short, smallish, usually rich or fancy cake-esque dessert, generally of European origin or inspiration. Food52 did a whole article on it that you can check out. A torte is a cake. But not all cakes are tortes. I know. Hang in there.
For purposes of this recipe, torte and cake can be used interchangeably. This is a smallish, single-layer cake (torte) made from combining a buttery cake batter and fresh seasonal plums.
Call it torte, call it cake. Either way, call it one of the most essential and delicious summer dessert recipes you will make all year.
Marian Burros’s Original Plum Torte: Recipe Notes
This plum cake recipe works so well for several reasons. First, the flavor is absolutely delicious. A simple vanilla cake batter bakes around juicy, sweet plums, which bake into sweet, red-purple goodness.
Second, the recipe is flexible. The Times’s version is written as “3/4 cup to 1 cup sugar,” and allows bakers to use an eight-, nine- or 10-inch cake pan. While flexible, I do think that this kind of permissiveness can also be confusing. At least it was to me. Which is best? Which are the right proportions? Will I need the same amount of plums for all the cake pans?
Adapting The NY Times’s Plum Cake Recipe
My adapted recipe clarifies some common recipe questions into a clear, more precise recipe to follow. See below.
What Type of Plums to Use? How Many?
The N.Y. Times’s recipe calls for 12 plums.
The type of plum is unspecified, but the author means small Italian plums. If you cannot find Italian plums, you will use about 5 or 6 standard plums. Make sure the plums are ripe for the most flavor.
What ingredients are in the NY Times plum cake recipe?
The ingredients are unchanged from the NY Times Marian Burros, except for the addition of vanilla extract, which rounds out the sweetness of the cake batter. You will need:
- Sugar
- Unsalted butter
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Eggs
- Pitted purple plums
- Sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon, for topping
What Size Cake Pan to Use
I prefer an 8- or 9-inch cake pan.
I find that a 10-inch pan makes too flat a cake. A smaller cake pan gives a little more height to the cake. You will also only use about five or 6 standard plums or 10 to 12 Italian plums total.
Did you like this easy plum cake recipe? You’ll also like:
The N.Y. Times Plum Cake (Plum Torte)
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- pinch kosher salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 5 or 6 ripe plums, pitted and halved, or 12 small, ripe Italian plums
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 8" or 9" springform or cake pan, and grease and line the bottom with a parchment round if using a cake pan.
- Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape the bowl. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until smooth and light. Scrape the bowl again.
- Add the salt, baking powder, and flour, and mix just until fully combined.
- Pour the batter into the cake pan. Arrange the plum halves, skin side up, on top of the cake. Feel free to crowd them in there; the cake will rise around them. Dust with a little sugar and the cinnamon.
- Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, depending on the size of the cake, or until a cake tester comes out clean, and the plums are juicy and bubbling.
- Let cool before releasing the cake from the springform pan or turning out onto a dish. PRO TIP: A springform pan is preferable because the batter is a bit delicate. But if you are turning this cake out from a regular cake pan, never fear. Place a cooling rack directly over the cake pan, then in one swift, meaningful motion, flip the cake onto the rack. Remove the parchment. Then immediately flip it right side up again onto the serving plate.
I love this recipe and have been making it for years. So glad to see it here. It really is wonderful.
gorgeous and easy, but looks fancy. the cake has a wonderful flavor mixed with the plums.
fabulous little cake. will make again.
LOVE this recipe and make it often. I substitute almond extract for vanilla in all stone fruit recipes – it takes themh to a whole new level of deliciousyness!
That’s a fantastic idea and I am totally with you on the almond extract + stone fruit love connection. (I have a chocolate cherry shortbread recipe coming out soon, and used almond extract there and it was next level compared to developing the recipe with vanilla. Which I also love, of course.) Thanks for this!
Haven’t made this but there is a similar cake made in Germany. It uses the small Italian plums. I believe they are Damsen plums. Perhaps the original recipe used these which would account for the 12 plums needed.
This is exactly right. When I first made this recipe I was so confused because there was just no way I could squeeze 12 plums in that little cake pan. But I looked into it and yes–it was because of using the smaller Italian plums. I just googled Damsen plums, by the way! Thanks so much for this info! Happy baking 🙂
This cake is fabulous! Everyone just loved it.
We have been making it for years. Pat
Isn’t it such a classic? It’s just not late summer without it in my world!
Made this and the original. Only had a 9” springform, so that’s what I use. I’ve also made one fromCooks Illustrated. The one uses prune plums (which) are smaller) and some ground almonds in the batter. Love it. Look forward to making the plum torte every year.
I love the idea of using ground almonds and am going to try this! I think it would be such a nice complement to the plum flavor, and would probably make it a little extra moist, too. Thank you for this wonderful tip!
It looks so delicious – I am excited to make it for an upcoming end of summer cottage dinner party — however, I wondered If I needed to make this cake in advance, will it keep for a couple of days?, Or would it be best served on the same day it was made? Also, wondering if it could be frozen once made — and then defrosted on the counter before serving?
Hi, Dana! This is such a lovely cake, and I hope you like it. I firmly believe (as do many pastry chefs) that cakes generally taste better the next day. I would certainly recommend making this a day in advance. It will keep just fine covered at room temperature. You can also freeze it, but unless you’re making it more than two days in advance, it will still be fine without freezing. Enjoy!
I made a half batch as a breakfast treat for my 6 year old son and myself and the batter fit perfectly into two 3″ mini cake pans. I baked them just before I went to bed and left them in the cooled oven until morning. Best breakfast ever! I thought the batter was a bit stiff so I folded about 2TB plain yogurt in and they turned out to be fantastic!!! I’ll definitely be making this for us again!
That all sounds delicious and I love the addition of yogurt — one of my favorite baking ingredients. Yea, plum cake!!
By using the smaller Italian purple plums, you can easily use 10 to 12 plums in this N.Y. Times recipe. These plums usually are available in late August. A delicious, easy to make cake.
Yes! Great call. When I first saw the NYT recipe and how many plums the recipe called for, I thought, “No way these can fit.” But then I learned she meant Italian plums. What a difference! Thanks for this savvy comment!
A perfect little cake!
I’ve tried this recipe several times trying to get it to look like the pictures. My plums sink to the bottom and get covered by the batter everytime. It does not have that cake look that I see in pictures online. It’s also soggy even though I bake it as instructed. I use a 9″ springform. Any suggestions? It is really delicious though, but soggy and not as pretty as the ones my German mother-in-law’s. She used the same recipe.
Hi, Cora. Ugh, sorry to hear that! Hmm…I am trying to think of a couple of diagnoses. One thought is that your cake pan is too deep. Try using a cake pan where the plums are not fully covered in batter. As for the sogginess, depending on how juicy your fruit is, you may need to bake the cake for a few extra minutes. Fruit can vary so wildly by type, moisture content, and size. Use your instinct, and keep me posted.
Great recipe! I made one and it was so easy I made another with plums and nectarines. I made brown butter and cooked it before using and added 1/2 tsp almond flavoring. Fantastic! This will be my go to recipe whenever local appropriate fruit is perfectly ripe.
Cooled the brown butter, didn’t cook it!
So glad you loved it!!
I love the dough and will try it with different fruits.!! Thank you!!!
That’s a great idea! This could be delicious with chopped apples this fall, or berries any time of year. Enjoy, and thanks for writing.
Would it be possible to use less sugar?
I think that you could definitely cut things down a bit. Skip the dusting of sugar on top and just dust lightly with plain cinnamon. And I think removing up to 2 tbsp. sugar from the batter quantity would work. I worry that any more than that could make the batter taste too bland. Please let me know what you decide!
Hi. Just for clarification, do you bake it for 45 minutes or 60 minutes. There are two places in the recipe where it says 45 minutes and another says 1 hour. Thanks!
Bob