👨🍳 Instructions
1. Prepare plums
Wash, halve, and pit plums. If large, cut into quarters. Mix with cinnamon and set aside.
2. Make the batter
Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each.
Stir in vanilla sugar and lemon zest.
3. Add dry ingredients
In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Alternately add the dry mixture and milk to the butter mixture, starting and ending with dry ingredients. Mix until just combined.
4. Assemble
Preheat oven to 180°C / 350°F. Line a 9×13-inch (23×33 cm) baking pan with parchment.
Spread batter evenly into pan. Arrange plums cut-side up over the top, pressing them slightly into the batter. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.
5. Bake
Bake for 35–40 minutes, or until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the batter (not a plum) comes out clean.
6. Serve
Cool slightly before slicing. Delicious warm or at room temperature, plain or with a dusting of powdered sugar.
📝 Hungarian kitchen notes:
- For extra aroma, some add ground walnuts under the plums to soak up juice.
- Works with apricots, cherries, or apples when plums aren’t in season.
- This is a píté-style cake—thicker than a sponge but softer than a pie crust.
If you want, I can also give you the Szilvás Lepény version, which uses a yeast dough base instead of cake batter for a more old-fashioned bakery style. That’s the one most Hungarian grandmothers grew up making. Would you like me to share it?