Long red plums — Alsace quetsche, Ente plums, or "pruneaux" as they're called in French-speaking Switzerland (not to be confused with dried prunes!) — signal the end of summer, and my friend Evelyne's jams. These plums also call for a slightly brioche-like pastry for tarts, or, as here, a crumble. Pairing them with cinnamon should please your nutritionist too (though... this combination led a friend to help himself more than once this week! Oh dear — I plead guilty, your honour.)
Ingredients (serve 6)
Method
Crumble topping
80 g unsalted butter
1 pinch of salt
80 g sugar
60 g light brown sugar
10 g vanilla sugar
80 g ground almonds or hazelnuts
80 g flour
Filling
1 kg long red plums
20–30 g caster sugar
Cinnamon
A splash of "vieille prune" plum brandy from Souillac, by the Louis Roque distillery (optional)
Make the crumble by mixing all the ingredients together until you get a coarse, sandy texture with a few small lumps still visible.
Chill.
Butter a baking dish.
Wash, stone and halve the plums, arrange them in the dish, and sprinkle with caster sugar and cinnamon.
Scatter the crumble on top.
Bake in a preheated oven at 190°C (375°F) for 25 minutes.
A splash of vieille prune before baking adds a lovely fragrance — though some will rightly prefer, I think, to serve it instead in a small glass, as a pleasant way to end the meal.
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