Desserts · By Sharon
Fruit Kuchen
Grandma gave me this cookie sheet recipe for using fresh fruit on a vanilla cake base. I would say it's a family favourite. It was passed down from an aunt of James' Mom, but we remember Grandma making it all the time in the summer and fall months. It's a quick and summery fruit cake.
Ingredients
Filling
- ~30 prune plums or small apricots
Crumble
- ½ cup butter
- ¾ cup granulated white/brown sugar
- 1 cup flour (add more flour if you want topping to be crispier rather than soft)
- Option: add a hint of cinnamon (¼ tsp) and a tiny hint of cloves (a small pinch) — this hint of spice adds a lovely dimension to the fruit
Cake
- 2 large eggs at room temp, beaten, with 1 cup white sugar gradually added as they are beaten
- ¾ cup oil or ½ cup butter (butter just barely melted, not hot; then, leave to cool to room temp before adding it with the milk, flour, etc.)
- 1 cup milk (can sub in part sour cream at a 1:1 ratio for extra rich flavor)
- 2 cups flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla
Method
- 1
Grease a cookie sheet / baking pan (~12 × 18 inches) with sides. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Filling
- 1
Select and wash the plums or apricots. Remove pits and cut each into 6 segments. Set aside.
Crumble
- 1
Cut the butter, sugar, and flour together to make a crumble. You can use a food processor, but it's easier and less clean-up to do it by hand.
Cake
- 1
Beat the eggs, gradually adding the sugar. Stir in the butter or oil, milk, flour, salt, baking powder, and vanilla. Pour into the cookie sheet/baking pan. Spread out and even with a spatula.
Assembly
- 1
Lay fruit segments, with military precision, across the cake. Side by side. You want as much fruit on as you can, but not overlapping because it won't cook.
- 2
Bake the cake for 5 minutes at 350°F (convection). Turn down the oven to 325°F and bake for 20–25 minutes until golden brown on top.
A note from Sharon
Drink pairing: Coffee.
— the end —