The flour aisle of the supermarket is a much more interesting place these days. Plain flour lives up to its name in comparison with the myriad exciting grains we can now use instead, such as spelt, an ancient type of wheat that was popular in the Bronze Age. It boasts a nuttier flavour and better credentials in the nutrient department, and it produces lovely, dense-textured cakes. Here, I use it with plums and ginger, to make a boldly flavoured, jammy, pudding-like number.
Sunken plum, spelt and ginger cake
The apple puree adds extra moisture to compensate for the lack of eggs in vegan baking. It’s best to use firm plums here, because ripe ones will release too much juice. This can be eaten hot or cold, though it’s best warm, with a little non-dairy yoghurt, ice-cream or cream.
Prep 15 min
Cook 40 min
Serves 8
2 tbsp milled flax seeds
6 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
120g sunflower spread (I like Biona)
80g dark brown soft sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
80g apple puree (again, I like Biona)
½ tsp vanilla extract
100g white spelt flour
60g ground almonds
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
4 tsp ground ginger
1 pinch sea salt
7 small firm plums (about 350g), halved and stoned
Heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas 4 and line a 20cm tin with greaseproof paper. Mix the flax seeds and almond milk in a small bowl.
Put the sunflower spread, sugar, apple puree and vanilla in a large bowl and vigorously mix with a hand whisk – it will look a little split, but that’s OK. With a wooden spoon, fold in the spelt flour, almonds, baking powder, bicarb, ginger and salt, until just combined. Now add the flax seed mixture, fold once more to combine, then pour into the prepared tin.
Top the batter with the plum halves, overlapping them slightly as you go, then sprinkle over about a tablespoon of sugar. Bake for 40 minutes, turning the tin halfway through, until the top of the cake is firm to the touch, golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin for a few minutes, then remove from the tin and serve warm.
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