Plum Kuchen
*You can make this traditional German coffee cake in under an hour, which includes baking time. Slip out of bed before everyone else does and let the baking aroma wake up the family. Great with a cup of coffee. Also good with bacon.
For the cake:
1 1/2 c. flour
1 1/2 t. baking powder
1 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. kosher salt
6 T. unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
2/3 c. sugar
2 large eggs
2 t. vanilla extract
1/2 t. almond extract
1/2 c. sour cream or Greek-style yogurt
For on top:
5-6 large plums, pitted and cut into wedges
1/4 t. cinnamon
3 T. raw sugar
2 t. melted butter
Heat oven to 325°F. Butter and flour your baking pan (I usually use 2 6-inch springforms so we can give one of the cakes to a friend, but you can use a 9×13 pan, 2 loaf pans, etc.)
Combine flour, baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and salt into small bowl. Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, combine butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs and extracts. Alternate adding flour mix and sour cream (or yogurt) until just combined. Spread batter in pan, smoothing the top.
Arrange plum wedges on the batter. Take an extra minute and make it look pretty. Sprinkle cinnamon-n-sugar over plums. Drizzle the melted butter on top.
Bake about 40 minutes or until tester comes out clean. Let cool to just barely warm before removing from the pan. Or leave it in the pan and just cut pieces for the hungry family to have with their morning coffee. Covered with foil, the kuchen can sit on your counter for a day or two. Serves 4-8, I guess.