Melie's plum & ricotta cake

This is almost like a baked ricotta cheesecake. Although orange blossom water is an unusual ingredient and can be overpowering if too much is used, it works well with the plums and is very subtle here. I love cakes with the fruit baked into the sponge, as the fruit itself often gets lovely and jam-like, and it prevents the cake from being too rich. This cake is gluten free, made with ground almonds instead of regular flour, which gives a denser texture.

PLUM, RICOTTA AND ALMOND CAKE WITH ORANGE BLOSSOM CREAM CHEESE ICING
Recipe excerpt from Melie's Kitchen

For the plum, ricotta and almond cake 
150g butter, softened
¾ cup caster sugar
4 eggs, separated
1 cup ground almonds
¼ cup cornflour
zest of 1 orange
¾ cup ricotta
½ cup plain unsweetened yoghurt
pinch of salt
8 tinned Black Doris plums, pitted and cut into quarters

For the orange blossom cream cheese icing
125g white chocolate
¼ cup cream
250g cream cheese
2 teaspoons orange blossom water

To decorate
A handful of sliced almonds
1 small plum, sliced (optional)
roses and sprigs of mint to decorate (optional)

Preheat the oven to 160°C. Grease a 20cm cake tin and line the base and sides with baking paper. Set aside.

To make the plum, ricotta and almond cake, use electric beaters to cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the ground almonds, cornflour and orange zest, and beat to combine. Add the ricotta and yoghurt and beat until well combined. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites and salt until stiff peaks form. Fold into the cake batter until there are no visible streaks. Pour half of the batter into the prepared tin and spread out evenly. Arrange half of the plums on top. Pour over the rest of the batter and spread out carefully. Arrange the remaining plums on top.

Bake in the oven for 50–65 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out with moist crumbs. It will look a bit jiggly, but that’s normal. Leave in the tin to cool completely.

To make the orange blossom cream cheese icing, put the white chocolate and cream into a heatproof bowl and place over a pot of simmering water. Heat gently for about 4 minutes, whisking occasionally, until the chocolate has fully melted and the mixture is smooth and glossy. Remove from the heat and transfer to a large bowl. Add the cream cheese and orange blossom water and, using electric beaters on a high speed, beat until the cream cheese is fully incorporated and the icing is creamy and fluffy. Cover and set aside.

Carefully turn the cake out onto a wire rack and peel away the baking paper. Place a plate on top of the cake and carefully flip it over so that the cake is sitting upright on the plate. Pile the orange blossom icing on and spread out to the edges. Sprinkle the sliced almonds around the outer edge and, if desired, decorate with plum slices, roses and mint.