Fall has always been my favorite time of year. I quickly get tired of the hot days of summer and start looking forward to the mild days and crisp nights of September by midsummer. When I left on my vacation the first of September the temperature was in the 90’s and my poor yard was the color of a paper bag…dried out and brown. But when I came home last weekend the temps had dropped down where they should be, the grass was greening up and I could leave the windows open a crack at night. Much better. I grew up on a farm and my favorite fruits and veggies all appeared in the fall. My grandparents lived in a cottage close to the big farmhouse where I lived and every day after school I made a beeline for her kitchen to see what was in the oven or simmering on the top of the stove.
Closest to the house were an ancient enormous Gravenstein apple tree, flanked by two Italian prune trees, a fig tree and several hazelnut trees (filberts to us Oregonians). My grandmother (I called her by her name “Alice”, not “grandma” for some reason I don’t know) was always canning something or another and had at least two desserts cooling on her kitchen counter. There were lots of us back then and baking was a daily thing. I loved her prune kuchen and when I found one cooling on a rack I couldn’t wait for her to cut into it. When I was making this kuchen this morning and I smelled it baking I could close my eyes and see us in her kitchen peeling apples, cracking nuts (I sat on the floor with a hammer and a board and cracked bags of nuts for her holiday baking) and I would give almost ANYTHING to experience that again just for a few minutes. Isn’t it funny how the littlest things can become our most treasured memories? And the sense of smell can be the most powerful retriever of those memories. So…here is my fall prune dessert that brings my grandma back to life in my mind.
The batter for this kuchen is heavy…a cross between cake and shortcake and it’s easy to put together. Just don’t overmix the dough. It’s like biscuits and will become tough if you do. I used an 8-inch springform pan, but if you like a thinner cake with more topping use a 9-inch pan. I had my camera right on the counter ready to take a photo of the cake with the toppings so you could see how I arranged the fruit, but I’m still suffering from jet lag and forgot that step. I cut some prunes in half and some in quarters and started placing them on the dough in circles starting from the outside. Overlap the fruit if you like lots of it ( I could easily have added another half dozen prunes). There is no hard and fast rule…whatever you like will work. Top the fruit with the streusel mixture and bake the cake for 25 minutes. Then pour the custard over the hot cake and return to the oven for another 12-15 minutes. Let the cake cool for 15 minutes, remove from springform pan, and serve. If you refrigerate the kuchen give it about 10 seconds in the microwave to soften the butter in the cake and slightly warm the fruit.
So there you have it… my grandma’s prune kuchen. If you want to indulge and enjoy prune kuchen the German way have it “Mit Schlag“, with a big scoop of whipped cream.
- 1-1/2 lb Italian prunes (8-10 medium size)
- 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 tablespoon King Arthur Flour's cake enhancer (optional)
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 extra-large eggs
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ cup brown sugar, firmly packed
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter,
- 1 extra-large egg yolk
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 rounded tablespoon brown sugar
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter and flour an 8-inch springform pan.
- Sift the flour with the baking powder and cake enhancer, salt and sugar into a medium bowl.
- In a small bowl beat the eggs, milk and vanilla. Dribble this mixture over the flour, then stir in the melted butter. Mix only until the ingredients are combined. Spread the batter in the bottom of the prepared springform pan. Arrange the prune slices on top of the batter. Place the prunes in circles, overlapping the fruit, starting at the outside and working toward the center of the dough.
- Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl. Using a pastry cutter blend butter into the dry ingredients until it is the size of small peas. Sprinkle the topping on the batter topped fruit. Bake the kuchen for 25 minutes.
- Thoroughly mix the ingredients in a small bowl. Pour the glaze over the kuchen and bake until the top has set, 10-15 minutes more.
- Cool the kuchen in the pan for 15 minutes. Release the springform and cut the kuchen into slices. Top with sweetened whipped cream if desired.
Wow is that pretty! I am so jealous of your memories of your grandma and her trees. My food memories of my grandma involve Tropicana orange juice and Sara Lee coffee cake 🙂 I adore prune plums, they are the prettiest ones of all, I neeeeeeed to try this one!
sue/the view from great island recently posted..Hard Cider Braised Pork with Apples and Onions
Oh, I loved this post Cathy! My Mom and I were JUST talking about how the sense of smell can bring right back to a special memory. Yours are so lovely. How wonderful to have lives so close to your Grandma to be able to just run over!!
I had a neighbor and friend who was of German descent. She made something called Kuchen, but she pronounced it Ku-ga. Is that how you say it? She made it is a jelly roll pan. And she used canned fruit usually. Like a comstock apple or something. Cherry and apple were my favorite. I would go over for coffee while the Kuga was in the oven, and then we would have that wonderful sweet treat together. Those are some great memories for me. I have her recipe too. Think I will make a Kuchen today!!!
Hugs,
Kris
Hi Kris – We pronounce kuchen “koo-kan”. It’s German for cake and can refer to different kinds of cakes. Your neighbor’s version sounds delicious. I was so lucky to have that time with my grandmother. My great grandmother lived with her so I was able to spend time with both of them. Thank you for your comment.
Cathy recently posted..Prune Kuchen with Cream and Streusel Topping
I’m jealous of your Grandma too. I never got to meet any of my grandparents. Those are such great memories and sounds like a whole lot of love involved too.
Your kuchen looks divine.
I was very fortunate to have grandparents in my life, Ramona. Thankfully the women in my family live to their 90’s and I hope to have many more years with my grandchildren, God willing.
Cathy recently posted..Prune Kuchen with Cream and Streusel Topping
I loved this post Cathy. Food memories shape all of us and you were fortunate to have such a rich heritage in your Grandmother and her cooking. This Kuchen looks absolutely delicious. I love your photos. The tablecloth and silver urn are perfect with the cake.
Penny recently posted..Chicken and Orzo Soup
Thanks for your comment, Penny. I was a very lucky little girl to have my grandma close by. Even my great grandmother lived with us until I was in high school. She was born just a couple of years after Lincoln was shot. Doesn’t seem possible when I think about it now.
Cathy recently posted..Prune Kuchen with Cream and Streusel Topping
Your grandmother sounds like a fabulous person and your post made me miss my grandmother. I knew one of my grandmother’s much better than the other, but the one I was close to sounds a lot like your grandmother. Your kuchen looks so pretty. Comfort food at it’s finest.
Sam
Sam @ My Carolina Kitchen recently posted..Strawberry Parfaits with Yogurt and Granola
It’s gorgeous!
I have a very defined sense of smell..like most people I guess..
But it’s important to me..:)So often I hear myself saying..MMM smell that!
I never knew any of my grandmothers..:(
But I can tell you that I would give anything for a few moments relived with my mom:) So I know what that feels like.
Monique recently posted..Tea Time~Et Sablés Bretons~
Our memories are our treasures, Monique, the real riches of our lives. Thank you for your comment.
Cathy recently posted..Prune Kuchen with Cream and Streusel Topping
Hi Cathy, love recipes with a story, sounds like you have such wonderful memories. Love the way this looks.
cheri recently posted..Cottage Cooking Club September 2014 Two Recipes
Thank you, Cheri.
Cathy recently posted..Prune Kuchen with Cream and Streusel Topping
One of the benefits of writing/blogging has brought back memories that I thought I had forgotten or better yet they did not mean anything until I started writing about it. Just pealing an apple or slicing a peach triggers some long forgotten moment. It has reinforced wonderful memories. Thanks for sharing.
Madonna
Madonna/aka/Ms. Lemon recently posted..Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
looks wonderful and what wonderful food memories Grandma’s are the best
rebecca recently posted..Southern Heritage Apple Orchard
I agree, Rebecca. Grandmas are the best. Thank you for your comment.
Cathy recently posted..Prune Kuchen with Cream and Streusel Topping
My Mom and my Grandmother before her, made this cake, only they called it Flaum Kuchen, which I guess means plum..I never learned their kind of Swiss/German because they used it to keep secrets 🙂 My Mom didn’t put streusel on it, just some powdered sugar. Not sure if theirs was just plain, or if she didn’t know how to make streusel….but I’ve been looking for this recipe!! I tried it with some home made yellow cake batter, but the cake, while tasty, wasn’t the same,,this looks much more like what I can remember. thanks !
This looks delicious Cathy – I’d never heard of KUCHEN and had to look it up, so I learned something.
Larry recently posted..Pork Tenderloin and Salad
What a wonderful story about your grandmother, Cathy! There are certain smells that bring back such wonderful memories of family and growing up. Her plum kuchen looks so delicious! And yes, I’ll have mine Mit Schlag 😉
Susan recently posted..Creamy Colcannon (Cabbage and Potato) Soup with Cheddar Straws
Bentornata! My, but this looks wonderful. Your writing made me smile. Growing up hazelnuts were”filberts” to us too, even though we were an Italian family. Maybe that was my parents’ bow to “Americanism”, I am not sure, but it was not until I was in my late twenties and really into Italian cooking that I began calling them hazelnuts. And as for my “Grandma Crocetti”, well, woe betide the kid that EVER addressed her as such. It was “Mom” if you wanted to get her attention. This kuchen sounds absolutely luscious. I am reading your post at just after 7:00 AM on Saturday, and I’d sure like you to waltz in my back door with a bit of this right now!
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Hi Adri – I wish I could appear at your back door with a big slice of kuchen. It would be such fun to have a nice visit. I don’t know the reason for it but I called all my grandmas by their first names. Kind of odd now that I think of it. I had 2 grandmas and 2 great grandmas until I was in about the 6th grade. Thank you for your comment. Have a lovely Sunday.
Cathy recently posted..Prune Kuchen with Cream and Streusel Topping
Your prune kuchen looks wonderful, but what’s even more delicious are those memories it evokes. Food does that for me too.
ciaochowlinda recently posted..Lemon Spaghetti with Swiss Chard
Oh Cathy, that looks marvelous. Wish I could cut into it right now! I love posts that remind us of our heritage…my grandmother and her sister owned a bakery in Detroit. You can just imagine what went on in our kitchen when she was there!
Barbara recently posted..Ina First Fridays: Conchiglie al Forno with Mushrooms and Radicchio
My FIL was always hunting for a similar recipe to his grandmother’s apple kuchen, but he loved any fruit topped dessert. I know he would have loved your dessert…and I would love to have made it for him (and gotten a few slices for myself, too). Welcome home, Cathy!
Hi Liz – I’m with your FIL – I love fruit topped desserts. Thank you for your comment.
Cathy recently posted..Prune Kuchen with Cream and Streusel Topping
Plums are wonderful in baked goods Cathy, your dessert sounds great:@)
Lynn recently posted..Witch Riding Pig Ornament
Oh! That looks absolutely delicious! I think this will be my special treat next weekend.
Cassandra recently posted..Meatless Monday – Breakfast Spread
I loved reading this post, Cathy! Isn’t it wonderful how food conjures up a flood of memories deep in the soul? I can see where you received your love for cooking and the kuchen looks divine!
Kitty recently posted..Happy 40th Birthday, Molly!
Lovely memories, Cathy. They sustain us. And, I have never turned down a Pflaumen Kuchen. But, it has been years since I have eaten this favorite delight. Must try and will be thinking of you when I do.
Susan recently posted..Pretty Good Fishing This Summer
My mouth is watering. Now I wish I still had plums from our tree.
This looks oh so good.
Marilyn recently posted..Tea Presentations and Tastings
How did I miss this post? I’m so sad that I cannot find Italian prunes, anywhere near where I live! I get this blank stare when I ask for them. I want to make my Mutti’s traditional zwestche dazi kuchen and I can’t! This cake is so similar and I so wish I could taste it. How lucky that you had a tree. My German cousin had one, but one year, it just died. I love the yellowish flesh of these prunes, and they are so good.
Foodiewife recently posted..Loaded Baked Potato Soup
how much sugar in the cake? In instructions you say to mix it with flour but no sugar mention in the list of ingredients for the cake, only for the topping
Hi Marian – Thank you so much for your question. I can’t believe I left out the amount of sugar needed in the recipe. It is 1/2 cup granulated sugar and I’ve made the correction in the recipe. I appreciate it so much that you took the time to write to me. Thanks for reading my blog.