*Plum and Almond Frangipane Bake*
Makes 16 servings

It's scrummy almond crumb cake loaded with tasty plums and a crumble topping!

250g COLD butter ( 1 cup plus 1 1/2 TBS)
227g castor sugar, plus a bit extra for sprinkling (1 cup plus 3 TBS)
284g ground almonds (3 cups plus 6 TBS)
210g plain flour, plus 4 1/2 TBS extra flour (1 1/2 cups plus 4 1/2 TBS)
2 large free range eggs
1 tsp ground cinnamon, plus extra to sprinkle on top
1 tsp baking powder
6 firm plums, stone and cut into sixths
60g flaked almonds (2/3 cup)

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/Gas mark 4.  Butter an 8 by 12 inch baking tin and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Place the butter, sugar and ground almonds in a food processor.  Pulse them together until the mixture resembles a rough crumble.  Remove half of this mixture to a bowl and set aside.  To the remaining mixture in the processor, add the 210g (1 1/2 cups) ounces of flour and whiz this together until it forms a dough.  Tip this into the prepared baking tin and press it out evenly, pressing it down well.  Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.  Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

To make the filling, tip the remaining crumble mixture back into the food processor, reserving 2 TBS aside for the topping.  Add the remaining 4 1/2 TBS of flour, the baking powder, the eggs, and the cinnamon.  Whiz until it forms a soft batter.  Spread this batter over the cooled base.

Top the batter with the prepared plums and sprinkle with a little extra sugar and cinnamon.  Bake for 20 minutes. 

Mix the remaining crumbs with the flaked almonds.  Sprinkle this over top of the baked plums and return to the oven to bake for a further 20 minutes, until golden brown and the batter and plums are thoroughly cooked.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before cutting into slices to serve.