This is Molly’s sweet and sour twist on a fruit crumble. She pairs fresh plums with Japanese umeboshi plums that are pickled, giving them a salty, sour, addictive flavor, then adds a brown butter-five spice crumble on top for rich balance. Plus, stone fruit season coincides with wheat harvest season, so crumbles just make sense on the farm.
| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 1 hr 25 min |
| Active: | 20 min |
| Yield: | 6 servings |
Ingredients
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, to grease the baking dish
- 2 pounds plums, pitted and cut into 1/8ths
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 6 umeboshi plums, pitted and mashed with a fork
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (120 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 5 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- 1/2 cup chopped toasted almonds
Instructions
- For the brown butter: Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Increase the heat to medium. Using a rubber spatula, stir the butter occasionally, scraping the browned bits of milk solids from the bottom of the pan. Continue to cook and scrape, allowing the butter to sizzle and pop, until it’s light golden and quiet, 5 to 7 minutes. Pour the brown butter into a heat-resistant bowl and set aside to cool to room temperature. Once cooled, place into the refrigerator until solid.
- For the plum filling: Arrange an oven rack in the middle position. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 10-by-7-inch baking dish. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the plums, brown sugar, flour, umeboshi plums and vanilla extract. Mix well to combine, making sure that the umeboshi paste and flour are thoroughly incorporated. Transfer the plum mixture into the prepared baking dish.
- For the crumble topping: In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the flour, salt, brown sugar, five spice and almond extract. Add the cold brown butter, break it up with a spoon and gently incorporate to create a crumbly mixture. Add the chopped almonds and mix to combine.
- Evenly top the plums with the crumble mixture.
- Bake in the oven, uncovered, for 45 to 50 minutes until the crumble is toasted and the plums are jammy and bubbly. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before serving.
- Serve immediately or topped with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. Leftovers can be stored for 5 days.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 6 servings |
| Calories | 542 |
| Total Fat | 28 g |
| Saturated Fat | 14 g |
| Carbohydrates | 71 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 5 g |
| Sugar | 47 g |
| Protein | 7 g |
| Cholesterol | 56 mg |
| Sodium | 195 mg |