Roasted plum and nutmeg custard cake

More cake today. This time with fruit which totally makes it healthy. And with big gooey pockets of custard which makes it more healthy. Custard’s good for you right? Lots of calcium, good for strong bones. Ahem. The idea for this cake has been kicking around for a while now going through various transformations in my head before it ever even hit the mixing bowl. The first seed of inspiration came from Dan Lepard’s Short and Sweet, an encyclopaedia of all things good, which has a recipe for apple and walnut cake dotted with custard. I pinched the custard element and reduced the sugar since his recipes always turn out too sweet for my tastes. The cake is a basic sponge made with both caster and soft brown sugar for a caramel depth and spiced with nutmeg, the traditional and perfect flavour pairing for creamy custard and a good match with plums.

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Baked cinnamon doughnuts

I’m not really a lover of doughnuts, anything deep-fried tends to scare me. (I fear for both my health and safety!) Beyond that, if I’m going to indulge myself, I generally prefer something a bit more exciting than fried dough (please don’t hate me!). As children my brother and I were allowed to pick a bakery item for dessert on Fridays; while my brother nearly always plumped for a jam doughnut, I was always drawn to the delightfully wobbly custard tarts. I used to nibble off the pastry sides before devouring the nutmeg-speckled custard with a slurp (what a delightful child I was). Maybe it’s a boy thing? My husband is a bit of a doughnut fan too. But the idea making a baked version at home really appeals and is possibly a teeny bit healthier than the standard fried version.

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