Five Spice Plum & Almond Crumble Pie

For this recipe featured on Lyndey Milan’s Summer Baking Secrets, I wanted to celebrate the last of summer stone fruit with some luscious plums as I am always sad to see the season end and grateful they linger for so much longer.

First I poach the plums in a spiced syrup, and allow them to cool. They’re good enough to eat like this with yoghurt for breakfast or whipped cream for dessert. Then I make a rich pastry dough to encase the plums. This particular pastry method is extra buttery (& flavoursome!) which is known in the baking parlance as a ‘short’ pastry. It is also very easy to push into a tin minus the hassle of rolling it out, though of course you can roll it out too between two sheets of baking paper.

I use Devondale salted butter for this pastry, which is made of pure cream and salt with no hidden preservatives – this not only gives the pastry a rich taste, the hit of salt balances out the sweetness in the rest of the dish which makes it sooo more-ish! Moreover this pastry is amazing, in that if you put your tart tin on another tin tray and fill it, there is no need to blind-bake the pastry first! Simply pour in the cooled, syrupy plums and top with additional crumbled pastry,  similar to a crumble but with no extra work! The tart is then sprinkled with slivered almonds and baked until bubbling and irresistible.

Dusted with icing sugar and served with whipped cream, this tart is sure to please anyone!

I hope you give this recipe a try,

x
Lyndey 

Five Spice Plum & Almond Crumble Pie

Serves 6 – 8
Preparation Time: 30 minutes + resting and cooling time
Cooking Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

6 medium (675g) plums, or yellow nectarines
1 cup (220g) caster sugar
1 teaspoon five spice powder
2 whole star anise
1 medium orange, finely grated zest and 125ml juice
150g salted Devondale butter
¾ cup (165g) caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
1 egg, lightly beaten
½ cup (60g) ground almonds
1 2/3 cups (250g) cups plain flour
¼ cup (35g) slivered almonds
Icing sugar and softly whipped Devondale cream, to serve

Method

1. Thickly slice the plums, place in medium saucepan, and add the sugar, five spice powder, star anise and the orange zest and juice. (Top up with a little water if less than 125ml). Place over a low heat and stir gently until sugar dissolves. Bring to simmering point and remove the softened plums with a slotted spoon. Set aside to cool. Increase heat to high and cook the remaining liquid, stirring occasionally for about 20 minutes, or until thick and syrupy. Remove from heat to cool, remove and discard the star anise.
2. Beat the butter and sugar in a small mixing bowl with electric beaters until light and creamy. Add the vanilla bean paste and egg, beat well. Using a spatula fold in the ground almonds and flour to form a soft dough. Place on a lightly floured surface and knead gently (about 30 seconds) until smooth.
3. Shape the dough into a small rectangle, cut off one third and wrap it in plastic wrap. Wrap the remaining piece in plastic wrap also. Refrigerate pastry for 30 minutes.
4. Pre-heat oven to moderate, 180°C (160°C fan-forced). Lightly grease a 35cm x 11cm fluted tart tin. Roll the larger pastry rectangle out on floured surface, or between two sheets of baking paper to a 3mm thickness. Carefully place pastry in tin to line the base and sides, trim edges. Place the tin on a baking sheet for easier handling and to ensure an evenly cooked golden pastry base.
5. Combine the cooled syrup and plums, and spoon into the pastry case. Crumble the remaining rectangle of pastry (and any pastry scraps) over the plums. Sprinkle with almonds.
6. Bake for 30-40 minutes until pastry is golden and the plums are bubbling. Remove from oven, cool a little. Serve warm, dusted with icing sugar and whipped cream. Can be stored it in an airtight container in a cool place for up to two days and served cold.

Lyndey’s Note: This pastry dough is rich and buttery, handle it gently and don’t over knead. If it tears or breaks as it goes in the tin, simply press pieces together. Any scraps are perfect to add to the crumble topping. It’s important the filling is cool when you place it over the pastry. This helps the pastry become crisp rather than soggy.

Follow Lyndey on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to hear more about the show!

Lyndey’s Bake Range is now available to purchase in store from Blueprint Retail in Potts Point! They are located at 46A Macleay St, Potts Point NSW 2011 and are open every day from 10:00-6:00pm (except Sundays – close at 5:00pm).