“Cafe Sperl” Plum Squares

Personally, I thought these plum squares were amazing. Like, way-better-than-I-was-expecting-them-to-be amazing. They were super juicy and a little tangy and not overly sweet in a very refreshing way. They are an ideal late afternoon or post-breakfast snack. Or an ideal breakfast. And I can definitely see remaking this recipe into a plum pie next summer. Lastly, these squares are gorgeous. All that purple richness really gets me. So if you’re looking for a little escape from February and don’t mind cheating just this once on your Locavore commitments, try these. You’ll be glad.

“Cafe Sperl” Plum Squares

Makes 9 squares.

• 2 c. flour
• 1 stick cold butter, cut into small pieces
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3-6 TBS ice cold water
• 3-4 medium, ripe plums
• 2 TBS turbinado sugar
• 2/3 c. apricot jelly

1. Combine flour and cold butter in a food processor and pulse until mixture is coarse with pea sized chunks.  Add sugar and salt and pulse a few more times.  Add egg yolk and vanilla and pulse until dough begins to come together.  If dough will not come together, add ice cold water 1 TBS at a time, pulsing in between additions, until dough stays loosely together when pinched.  Alternatively, this entire process can be done without a food processor, using a large bowl and a pastry cutter to mix the dry ingredients with the cold butter.  If no food processor is used, you will likely need more cold water to get the dough to come together.  Form the dough into a ball, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Press dough into a 8×12 inch baking pan.  Halve plums and remove pits, then slice into 1/2-inch thick slices.  Layer plum slices over dough, then sprinkle with the turbinado sugar.  Bake for 40-45 minutes, until plum juices are bubbly.  Allow to cool.
3. Heat apricot jelly in a small saucepan over low heat, until jelly is thin enough to pour.  If jelly is not thinning, add 1-2 TBS water.  Spoon warm jelly over plums, then allow to set.  Serve chilled.  Store in the refrigerator.