Plum Ricotta Cake with Almonds
·Marinate the plums
Pit and halve the plums and place them in a bowl. Add vanilla sugar and brandy for extra flavor and aroma. Stir and let them rest while you prepare the batter.
Ricotta base
Put the ricotta in a bowl, add cane sugar, vanilla sugar and freshly grated orange zest. Using the paddle attachment (flat beater), mix everything together well.
Add the liquid ingredients
Gradually mix the egg yolks (set the whites aside for whipping) and the cooled melted butter into the ricotta mixture. Mix well each time so everything combines into a smooth batter.
Combine the dry ingredients
In a separate bowl, mix the plain flour, ground almonds, baking powder and a pinch of salt. Gently fold this dry mixture into the ricotta batter.
Getting ready to bake
Whip the egg whites with a balloon whisk until stiff. Preheat the oven to 170 °C. Grease the cake tin thoroughly with oil and dust it with flour.
Fold in the egg whites
Very gently fold the whipped egg whites into the batter in stages using a spatula. The egg whites give the cake its light, airy texture, so handle them carefully so they don't deflate!
Assembling the cake
Pour the finished batter into the prepared tin. Arrange the marinated plums evenly on top, cut side up. Sprinkle everything with flaked almonds. You can add an extra sprinkle of cane sugar and a pinch of cinnamon.
Bake until golden
Bake the cake in the preheated oven for about 40–50 minutes. The center may stay slightly moist, which is perfectly fine. It will firm up beautifully once cooled, staying perfectly moist.
Finishing touches and serving
Let the baked cake cool completely in the tin. Before serving, you can dust it lightly with icing sugar. It tastes great on its own or with a spoonful of sour cream or a dollop of whipped cream.