This recipe is from the team at NZ House & Garden magazine.

The candied almond topping adds a lovely crunch to this moist plum cake. Tinned apricots or stewed rhubarb will also work well as an alternative to plums. Serve it with cream or yoghurt.

BLACK DORIS PLUM & ALMOND CAKE

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

Almond topping

Zest of ½ orange

20g caster sugar

25g butter, melted

70g slivered almonds

Plum cake

120g butter, softened

170g caster sugar

2 free-range eggs

70g ground almonds

100g flour

1½ teaspoons baking powder

8 black Doris tinned plums, cut in half and stones removed

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line a 20cm cake tin with baking paper.

Almond topping: Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside.

Plum cake: In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides with a spatula between each addition. Add the dry ingredients and mix until thoroughly combined.

Pour half of the cake batter into the lined cake tin, then top with half of the plums. Add the remaining cake batter and finish with the plums. Bake for 25 minutes.

After 25 minutes of cooking, scatter the almond topping over the cake and return to the oven for 15 minutes, or until cooked through.