Don't be glum , my Sugar Plum

I 'love' baking and there is absolutely no secret about that . There is unadulterated beauty and joy in putting together a cake into being and it creates an intense sense of warmth and serenity , both in my heart and home kitchen . The best part is that this quarantine period has gifted me a lot of free time in hand to experiment with multi flavors , which has been an absolute joy and led to many beautiful revelations . With this bake , i can't help but share , with certain excitement , that my new found traditional cake baking obsession , has reached its apogee in the form of 'this perfect sponge'. You will see that for all my cakes suggested on this blog , i have tried to make the best use of seasonal ingredients and focus unabashedly on the flavor quotient .

The idea of this plum jam cake in my head was that of a ' quintessential cake ' , similar to how it first originated - which is simple , beautiful , fragrant , spongy and enchanting. With many forms of prunes being in season now, i can't help but resist from coaxing you to make this fervent 2 ingredient instant plum jam and pair it with along your bakes or as a accompaniment to any other dessert or savoury roasts .The skin of the Indian Plum is particularly tart but the fruit , being innately sweet , restricts the need to use any large amounts of additional sugar , while making the jam . If you are a plum fan , you can also preserve this jam and pair it later with some vanilla soaked french toasts or beautiful home made crepes . Try chopping and eating the fruit on top of yogurt or porridge for breakfast or maybe even pair it with your salad . For me ,this Plum Jam was like catching the fresh flavors of summer and storing them in a jar !

Let me take you through this :)

Things you will need for the Plum jam

• 08-10 whole plums

• 02 tbsp sugar

Things you will need for the sponge cake

• 01 cup of self-raising flour

• 01 cup of granulated sugar

• 4 large eggs

• 1 tsp baking powder

• 2 tbsp vanilla essence

Things you will need to assemble

• 1/2 cup cream cheese

• 1/2 cup full fat cream

• 04 tbsp powdered sugar

• 1/3 cup of fresh plums , finely diced

Steps to follow :

• Wash and dry the plums completely - then cut them to small pieces and de-seed.

• Toss the chopped plums with the sugar in a pan - Saute them on low heat and allow the sugars to reduce . Using a fork , break down the plums slightly and keep stirring , to prevent the jam from burning the bottom ( this will take anywhere between 10-15 minutes) . Saute the jam till it coats the back of a spoon with a thin layer

• The jam will thicken as it cools down - Keep aside in a glass bowl / jar.

• To make the sponge , heat oven to 150 C.

• Grease and line the base of a rectangular tray ( approx 12 inch * 12 inch ) with baking parchment or butter paper.

• In a large bowl , sieve the flour and baking powder ( Repeat this step at least 3-4 times, as airing the flour , will give you the best results on the sponge )

• Next , separate the yolks from the white .

• Using an electric whisk , beat the egg yellow along with the powdered sugar and vanilla essense, until pale in color . Beat the egg whites in a separate bowl to form soft peaks .

• Using the folding method , lightly incorporate the beaten egg white into the yellow .

• Next , fold in the sifted flour very lightly , using the cut and fold method only ( Do not over mix the batter ).

• Pour the batter into the baking tray and bake this for 10-15 mins , until light golden in color. When cool , remove the sponge from the parchment lining and leave to cool completely on a rack.

To assemble :

• Beat the cream cheese & full fat cream together with powdered sugar ,until stiff .

• Cut the rectangle sponge equally into 03 smaller rectangles .

• Layer one sponge with generous amount of cream cheese , plum jam and fresh plum dices and sandwich it with the other layer . Repeat this , till you have stacked all the 3 layers one on one top of another.

• Sprinkle the top layer with some powdered sugar and chill the cake for 20 mins in the refrigerator . Slice and Serve ! Bon Appétit !