Quetschekuche, or Plum Tart

This is a delicious dessert for the height of plum season, because the plums really must be perfectly sweet and juicy to make it worthwhile. Get the blackest plums you can find, and let them ripen until they are very fragrant and their flesh gently yields under pressure.

2/3 cup granulated sugar, divided

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

3 oz. (3/4 stick) butter, cold (n.b. substitute margarine for a pareve tart)

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 Tbsp. Drambuie or cognac

1 1/2 lb. plums (6 or 8 medium)

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Mix half the sugar with the flour and the baking powder. Cut the butter (or margarine) into pieces and rub into the dry ingredients with your fingers, until the mixture resembles wet sand. Mix in the egg and Drambuie, stirring with a fork and then working by hand to bind. Add a little bit more flour, 1 Tbsp. at a time, if the dough is too sticky.

Rub a 12” tart pan with butter (or margarine), making sure to coat every crevice. Press the dough into the tart pan with your fingers to form the crust.

To slice the plums, begin by halving the plums, removing the pit, then placing the plum cut-side down and slicing as thinly and evenly as possible. Save the curved ends to make a pretty design in the middle of tart.

Fan out the pieces of fruit in concentric, reversing circles on top of the prepared tart dough, overlapping just a little. Sprinkle the remaining sugar over the top.

Sprinkle the remaining sugar over the top of the plums. Bake on the center rack of the oven for 45-50 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and the fruit juices are bubbling.

Serve warm or cold (with a wee glass of Sauternes, if desired).