Plum, blackberry and bay friand bake

Working with The University of Sheffield

Season: AutumnSummer

It’s plum season! And local blackberries are starting to ripen, so put this delectable pud on your To Do list. Friands with your cup of coffee are wildly popular in Australia and New Zealand and are similar to French ‘financiers’. The basic batter is made of ground almonds, egg whites, sugar, butter and not much flour. Typically friands are dainty, individual cakes but this tray-bake version is a great idea – from Yotam Ottolenghi’s book ‘Sweet’.

I love this kind of dish: something from the Regather box (plums), something foraged (blackberries) and something from the garden (bay leaves). Substitute other stone fruit and berries if you wish – e.g. nectarines and blueberries. With the leftover egg yolks, have a go at some homemade mayonnaise.

Ingredients

200g blackberries

4 ripe plums, stones removed, cut into 1cm wide wedges (360g)

1 tsp vanilla extract

60g caster sugar

3 fresh bay leaves

1 tsp ground cinnamon

60g plain flour

200g icing sugar, sifted

120g ground almonds

⅛ tsp salt

150g egg whites (from 4–5 large eggs)

180g butter, melted and slightly cooled

Method

(You will need a 20 x 30cm baking dish.)

Place the blackberries and plums in a bowl with the vanilla, caster sugar, bay leaves and ½ teaspoon of cinnamon. Set aside for 30 minutes. Don’t be tempted to leave them sitting around for longer than this, as the fruit will become too juicy.

Preheat the oven to 190°C fan / gas mark 5.

Mix the flour, icing sugar, ground almonds, the remaining ½ teaspoon cinnamon and salt in a separate large bowl. Set aside.

Lightly whisk the egg whites by hand for 30 seconds, so they just start to froth. Stir into the flour mixture, along with the melted butter, until combined.

Tip the batter into a 20 x 30cm parchment-lined baking dish and top evenly with the fruit and juices. Bake for 40 minutes, covering the dish with foil for the final 10 minutes, until the batter is golden-brown and the fruit is bubbling. Set aside for 10 minutes before serving.