Maple-Baked Plums — The Mid-Late Summer Dessert That Takes Twenty Minutes and Asks Nothing Else of You

Name: Maple-Baked Plums
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Canadian
Ingredients: 6 ripe plums, washed, halved and pitted; 3 tbsp Canadian maple syrup; 1/2 tsp vanilla extract; 1 pinch of sea salt; Vanilla ice cream, plain yogurt or crème fraîche, to serve

Jul 3
3 min read

Ripe plums baked with Canadian maple syrup, vanilla, and a pinch of salt until caramelized and yielding. A twenty-minute mid- late summer dessert that serves beautifully with ice cream, yogurt, or nothing at all.

By: HF Kitchen

Maple-baked plums are one of the most quietly extraordinary things you can make in twenty minutes. The plums go into the oven cut-side up, the maple syrup pools into the hollow where the pit was, and the heat does the rest — caramelizing the edges, softening the flesh into something that holds its shape but yields completely to a spoon. The salt and vanilla do not announce themselves. They simply make the maple taste more like maple and the plum taste more like itself.

Serve them warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and the syrup pooled in the bottom of the tray spooned over the top. Or let them cool and add them to a bowl of yogurt in the morning. Or eat them straight from the tray, standing at the counter, because that is what late summer is for.

Maple-Baked Plums — The Mid-Late Summer Dessert That Takes Twenty Minutes and Asks Nothing Else of You. Baked maple plum recipe

A Few Notes Before You Begin

Ripe plums are ideal — past-prime plums that have softened slightly at the shoulders work even better, as they caramelize faster and release more juice into the syrup. Either works; underripe plums will not yield the same result. Use real Canadian maple syrup — not pancake syrup, not maple-flavoured syrup. The distinction matters significantly here because the syrup is the sauce, and it needs to be the real thing.

The baking time varies with plum size and ripeness. Check at ten minutes — smaller, riper plums may be done; larger, firmer ones may need the full twenty. The plums are ready when the edges are caramelized, and the flesh is completely tender when pierced with a knife.

The baked plums keep well refrigerated for up to three days and are excellent cold from the fridge the following morning over oatmeal, granola, or plain yogurt.

Servings: 4

INGREDIENTS

• 6 ripe plums, washed, halved and pitted
• 3 tablespoons Canadian maple syrup
• 0.5 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 pinch of sea salt
• 1 vanilla ice cream, plain yogurt or crème fraîche, to serve

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat: Preheat your oven to 200°C (400°F). Line a baking tray with parchment paper.

2. Prepare the plums: Place 6 ripe plums, washed, halved and pitted, cut-side up on the prepared tray. In a small bowl, combine 3 tablespoons Canadian maple syrup, 0.5 teaspoons vanilla extract, and 1 pinch of sea salt and stir to combine. Spoon the mixture evenly over the plums, making sure the syrup pools into the hollow of each half.

3. Bake: Bake for 15–20 minutes until the edges are caramelized, the flesh is completely tender when pierced with a knife, and the syrup is bubbling around the base of the tray. Check at 10 minutes — smaller or very ripe plums may be done earlier.

4. Serve: Remove from the oven. Spoon the caramelized syrup from the tray over the plums. Serve warm with 1 vanilla ice cream, plain yogurt or crème fraîche to serve alongside.

NOTES

Past-prime plums that have softened slightly work even better than perfectly ripe ones — they caramelize faster and release more juice into the syrup. Use real Canadian maple syrup only. Leftovers keep refrigerated for up to three days and are excellent cold the following morning over oatmeal, granola, or yogurt.

If You Make This

Tag us at @homefindss — we want to see your late summer table. The Plum Galette with Brown Butter Frangipane on the site is the more involved version of the same recipe, worth making when you have a little more time.

You might also like: → Plum Galette with Brown Butter Frangipane

Our Recommended products

Jakeman's Organic Maple Syrup
Vanilla Extract, 473 mL
Williams Sonoma Goldtouch® Pro
Ruffoni Olivewood Utensils, Se
Williams Sonoma Olivewood Tong

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