Plum Cobbler Bars

Plum Cobbler Bars -doesn’t that sound good? I had never really cooked with plums before, so this was an experiment. But it turned out delicious!

We had purchased plums to eat fresh, but the whole container got ripe at once, so I decided to try a new recipe to use them.

Chop up about 2 1/2 pounds of plums and remove the pits. You do not need to peel them, the skin adds flavor dissolves into the mixture as it cooks.

Put plum mixture in a large pot and heat for about 12-15 minutes, then carefully puree the mixture in the pot with an immersion blender, or remove it and puree in food processor or blender. Then put the plums back on the stove, cook for an additional 10 minutes. Add sugar and cornstarch, simmer one minute and add vanilla.

Cool plum mixture to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 350. Place remaining dry ingredients in a large bowl and stir to combine.

Add melted butter and stir until the mixture forms streusel-like crumbs.

Prepare pans. The recipe calls for a 9 x 13, but I used an 8 x 8 and a round pie pan, so I could easily share. Press 2/3 of the crumb mixture into the bottom of the pans.

Spread the cooled plum mixture evenly on top.

Sprinkle with the remaining crumb mixture and sanding sugar, if desired.

Bake 45-55 minutes for a 9 x 13 or about 35 minutes for the smaller pans.

Serve warm, with or without a bit of vanilla ice cream….YUM! Enjoy!

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5 from 1 vote

Plum Cobbler Bars

Use fresh plums to make this scrumptious dessert.

Prep Time1 hour hr

Cook Time1 hour hr

Total Time2 hours hrs

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Cobbler, Cookies, Plum

Servings: 12 servings

Author: Erin Jeanne McDowell, NYT Cooking

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 pounds red, black or purple plums, pits removed and roughly chopped – about 6 cups. Do not need to peel.
• 1 1/2 cups plus 1/3 cup, granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 cups old-fashioned oats
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter (3 sticks), melted
• sanding sugar, optional

Instructions

• In a large pot, combine plums and 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar. Leave over medium-low heat stirring occasionally, until the fruit release juices and becomes very tender, 12-15 minutes. Meanwhile, place a small place in the refrigerator to chill. You'll use this later to check the doneness of the jam.
• Puree plum mixture in pot, using an immersion blender (be careful of splashing), or remove from the pot and puree in a blender or food processor until relatively smooth. Return puree to the pot if you removed it, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture thickens and reduces by about half, about 10 minutes. You should end up with about 3 1/2 cups of plum jam. You can test the doneness by spooning a small amount of the jam onto the chilled plate, returning to the refrigerator and letting it sit for 2 minutes. It should keep a clean line when you run your finger through it.
• In a small bowl, whisk the remaining 1/3 cup granulated sugar with the cornstarch to combine. Whisk sugar-cornstarch mixture into the jam and cook, stirring occasionally until it simmers. Simmer for 1 minute, stirring well to prevent scorching. Stir in the vanilla extract and cool plum mixture to room temperature.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees and line a 9 x 13 inch pan with parchment paper with overhang on all sides. In a large bowl, combine oats, flour, whole wheat flour, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon. Add melted butter and stir until the mixture forms streusel-like crumbs. (I used a round pie pan and an 8 x 8-inch square pan, dividing layers between the two and baked them for 35 minutes.)
• Press 2/3 of the crumb mixture into an even layer on the bottom of the prepared pan. Spread cooked plum jam in an even layer over the crust, then sprinkle remaining crumb mixture evenly over the top of the jam. Sprinkle with sanding sugar, if desired.
• Bake until the jam bubbles at the edges and the streusel is lightly browned, 45-55 minutes. Cool completely before slicing into 12 pieces.
• The jam can be made up to 1 week ahead and stored, refrigerated until ready to use. The bars can be made up to 2 days ahead, and leftovers can be stored for up to 5 days.