Plums are in abundance now, it is their season, and I am using every chance I get to bake with them. They are glorious for all kinds of desserts in all forms, and they pair so amazingly well with walnuts.
This is the type of pie that would be my first choice when it comes to coffee desserts. The wonderful combination of textures is what makes it so appealing, as well as that wonderfully rich plum and chocolate filling.
Wonderfully soft base, fantastic filling, and a delightfully crunchy crumb topping make this the true epitome of late summer and early autumn. Especially served with a mug of tea, I have to admit.
My tips for success.
The base layer needs to be baked enough to be able to hold the filling without it sinking, so if you feel that 10 minutes is not enough, do extend the baking time to 12 or even 15 minutes, adjusting the overall baking time based on that. The pie bakes relatively quickly, so the chances to overbake it are slim.
If you have plum jam that needs to be used up, feel free to use that instead of cooking the filling. Heat it up gently so it loosens up, add the chocolate and the walnuts, mix, and then simply spread it on the base layer. It will work perfectly!
Ingredients
For the base
120 grams plain flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
100 grams granulated sugar
40 millilitres vegetable oil
100 grams carbonated water
1 teaspoon lemon juice
For the chocolate plum filling
400 grams plums, stones removed
120 grams granulated sugar
30 grams cornflour
30 grams cold water
30 grams toasted walnuts, ground
50 grams extra dark chocolate (80%), chopped
½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste
For the crumb topping
60 grams vegan block butter, cold
80 grams granulated sugar
60 grams plain flour
40 grams toasted walnuts, ground
Preparation
Start by making the filling, as it needs time to cool down. Either chop up or blend the plums, add in the sugar and combine. Pour the fruit into a heavy saucepan and place it over medium high heat. Let it slowly come to a boil, and cook, stirring often, for 10-15 minutes, or until thickened and fragrant.
In a separate small bowl, whisk together the cornflour with the cold water, add it to the plums, and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, until the filling becomes thick. Remove from the heat; add in the walnuts, vanilla, and the chocolate, and mix to combine. Set it aside to cool down.
Turn on the oven to preheat to 180°C. For the crumb topping, whisk together the flour, sugar, and the walnuts, add in the very cold cubed butter, and create a rough crumb topping, either with a pastry cutter or simply with your fingers, because it's such a small quantity.
For the base layer, mix together the flour with the baking soda and sugar, and add in all of the wet ingredients, mixing until just combined. Line a small square baking pan (18x18 cm) with baking parchment, pour in the base batter, and bake in a nicely preheated oven, at 180°C, for about 10 minutes, until it starts to firm up. Remove it from the oven, gently add the plum filling and the crumb topping, and return to bake for another 25-30 minutes. It should be delightfully fragrant and slightly crispy on the edges.
Let the pie cool down completely in the pan, then slice up and serve with freshly brewed coffee. Yields 16 pieces.
