Serves: 6

• Ingredients

a 1-inch piece vanilla bean split lengthwise
1 tablespoon sugar
a pinch cinnamon
1/2-pound frozen puff pastry sheet, thawed
4 plums, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
6 fresh apricots, cut into 1/4-inch thick slices
3 tablespoons apricot jam, melted, strained, and kept warm
vanilla ice cream as an accompaniment if desired

• preparation

Preheat oven to 400°F. Scrape seeds from vanilla bean with a knife into a small bowl, discarding pod, and stir in sugar and cinnamon.
On a lightly floured surface roll out pastry 1/8 inch thick and drape pastry over tart pan, pressing dough gently onto pan.
On pastry arrange plum and apricot slices, overlapping them slightly, in rows and sprinkle with sugar mixture.
Bake tart in middle of oven until pastry is golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.
Cool tarts on a rack and brush with jam. Serve tarts warm with ice cream.

Serves: 12

• Ingredients

18 large Italian plums
4 ounces butter, unsalted

3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
3 egg yolks
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

Topping:
1 1/4 cups flour, all purpose
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
4 ounces unsalted butter

• preparation

Preheat oven at 350 degrees.
Rinse, and pit plums. Cut in halves and set aside.
Butter a 10 inch round cake pan, 2 inch deep with a removable bottom.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, whisk the butter, and sugar until creamy.
Add egg and egg yolks until creamy and light. Beat in vanilla.
Stir flour and baking powder into the batter.
Spread batter in prepared pan.
Arrange plums on batter, cut side up in concentric rows, overlapping slightly, leaving a margin of about an inch around the edge.

Topping:
In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar and cinnamon.
Rub mixture to coarse crumbs. Melt butter and stir in.
Scatter crumbs over plums.
Bake for 1 hour or until center is firm.
Cool cake in pan for 15 minutes.

Serves: 8

• Ingredients

For pastry:
1 recipe Quick and easy pie crust

for frangipane:
3/4 cup toasted almond slivers
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 teaspoons flour
1 large egg
1 teaspoon Brandy
1 pound pitted plums

• preparation

Pastry:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll the dough inch thick to fit an 8 inch fluted removable-bottom tart pan. Cover with parchment paper, fill the center with weights, and bake until the edges start to brown. Remove weights and paper. Bake crust for 15 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool.
For Frangipane:
Mix almonds in a food processor to obtain a powder. In a mixing bowl, beat 1/2 cup sugar and butter until smooth. Mix in almonds and flour. Add egg and brandy and blend well. Spread evenly in crust. Overlap plum slices atop filling, covering completely. Sprinkle plums with additional sugar.
Bake tart until filling is brown and set and plums are tender, about 50 minutes. Cool on rack at least 15 minutes. Serve tart with sweetened whipped cream.

Serves: 8

• Ingredients

3/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup water
1 1/4 pounds pitted plums
1 cup raspberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice

• preparation

Stir sugar and water in heavy small saucepan over low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to high; boil syrup 1 minute. Chill until cold, about 1 hour.
Puree plums and raspberries in food processor. Strain puree through fine sieve into medium bowl. Add syrup, lemon juice to taste and salt and blend well.
Process in ice cream machine according to manufacturers instructions. Spoon sorbet into covered container and freeze. (can be prepared 2 days ahead.) Scoop sorbet into bowls.
Garnish with plums, raspberries and mint.