I had some Italian plums I’d bought with the vague idea of making one of various recipes for a plum cake or a torte, or even mini pies. But, I (naturally) wanted something smaller, didn’t have the right pan, and I didn’t have the patience for lots of little crusts and fillings. Stumped, I stared at my bookshelf and thought, hey there’s a Pierre Franey cookbook I haven’t opened in a while. That’s silly. And lo and behold, there was an easy plum tart recipe inside. One pan, one crust, and no fiddly time-consuming individual filling. Plus, you only have to chill the crust for a few minutes, rather than hours. Less wait time. Perfect!
So, I cut the ingredients in half, and got myself an easy delicious dessert. It requires no special tart pan and there’s no need to run to the store for non-standard or expensive ingredients (like puff pastry). My ordinary six-inch baking pan worked just fine. I used Italian plums (the oblong kind), but ordinary, round plums would work too.
Easy Plum Tart Recipe for One
An easy -to -make French plum tart that's sized for one and doesn't require special equipment or ingredients.
Notes
*Note that the full original recipe called for 3T of water. But that never seemed to be enough. I made a full recipe on a few occasions and repeatedly found I needed 5-6 T of water. So, start with 2T and add more if needed. Other recipes I checked seem more in line with 5 or 6T of water. In addition, the original also called for 6T of sugar (too sweet). I can't help but wonder if the two measurements got reversed!
Ingredients
- 3/4 C plus 1 T flour, divided
- 5 T cold butter, cut up into small pieces
- 2-3 T cold water, preferably from the fridge*
- 3 T sugar, divided
- 4-5 Italian plums (or 3 standard round plums)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- If you have a food processor, add 3/4 C of flour, 3T of the chopped up butter, and the water into the bowl. Add 1 1/2 tsp. of the sugar and the cold water. Process that all together for about 30 seconds. If you don't have a food processor, put everything in a medium-size bowl and combine it with a pastry blender. If you don't have a pastry blender, use two knives. Without the food processor it will take a minute or two to combine. Once the dough comes together and forms a ball, remove it.
- Flour a board and a rolling pin. Place the ball of dough on the floured board and roll it out. It should be about 6 or 7 inches wide and 1/4 inch thick.
- Butter and flour a six-inch baking dish.
- Drape the dough over the rolling pin and place it in the baking dish. Trim off any excess dough.
- Put the whole thing in the fridge and let it cool for about 10-15 minutes.
- Once the dough has cooled, remove the dish from the fridge.
- Cut the plums in half or thirds (depending on size) lengthwise. Arrange them over the dough with the skin facing up.
- Mix together the remaining 1 T of the flour and and remaining 2T and 1 1/2 tsp of sugar and sprinkle it over the plums. Then top it with the rest of the butter.
- Put the dish in the oven and bake for 40 minutes.
Easy Plum Tart Recipe for One Substitutions and Variations
- Experiment with different fruits: try it with sliced apples and some cinnamon, or use sliced pears, cinnamon, and ginger
- Replace 1 T of flour with 1 T of ground almonds
- Sprinkle sliced almonds on top of the tart
- Brush the crust with egg for a beautiful shine
- Or, try some heavy cream or milk on the edges to make it golden brown
Tools for This Recipe
This is one of my favorite baking gadgets. It’s much easier to use than the two knife method, and takes up a lot less space than a food processor. It’s held up really well (I bought it about four years ago), and it now comes in your choice of colors (so it will match your kitchen).
J.K. Adams FRP-1 Maple French Rolling Pin
I started out baking with an old, relatively small rolling pin that I got as a gift. It was pretty (with incised patterns), but a real pain the neck to clean. It was also too small. This one is miles ahead. It’s easier to manipulate and hold, and does a much better job rolling out dough.
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