Plum and Marzipan Tart Tatin

Sugar sweet chunks of molten marzipan harmonise beautifully with the sharp fruity flavour of plum in this autumn tart. Choose firm plums, if they are over ripe they will oooze too much juice and you will have a flood on your kitchen countertop!

• Ready In: 1 hr 10 mins
• Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

• 1  ounce butter
• 1  ounce  golden light brown sugar
• 28  ounces  firm plums, not too ripe,halved and stoned
• 4  ounces  golden marzipan
• 1 1⁄2 ounces  ground almonds
• 1 (500 g) package puff pastry, thawed if frozen
•  pouring  cream or   whipped  cream, to serve

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 200*C (400*F).
2. Melt the butter in a 28 cm tart tin over a medium heat.
3. Tip in the sugar and 1 TBS water and cook for a few minutes, stirring all the time until lightly browned.
4. If it looks slightly crumbly at this stage don't be put off, it will right itself in the oven.
5. Remove from the heat and put the plums in, cut side up.
6. Chop the marzipan into as many chuncks as tehre are plum halves and put a chunk of marzipan in the hole in each plum left by the stone.
7. Sprinkle a small pile of ground almonds over each plum half.
8. Roll out the pastry and trim to 3 cm larger than the tin all around.
9. Lift the pastry on to the tin and tuck it down between the plums and the inside of the tin.
10. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until the pastry is risen, crisp and golden.
11. Cool for 10 minutes in the tin, then place a large flat plate with a rim over the tin.
12. Holding it over the sink, incase of drips, carefully invert the tart onto the plate.
13. Some juice from the plums is likely to escape, but it's delicious, especially when mingled with pouring cream.