Plum Coffee Cake Recipe – Easy and Delicious!

Published: Oct 12, 2025 by Anna 2 Comments · This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through links on our site, we may earn a commission.

This quick and easy Plum Coffee Cake is filled with ripe plums and topped with crunchy streusel! Enjoy it with coffee or tea, and savor the flavors of late summer in every bite.

Close up photo of slices of coffee cake with plums on a white dessert plate, fresh plums in the back.

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Why you’ll love this recipe!

It’s plum season! You know, the season between summer peaches and fall apples? Yes, that one! And when it comes to plums, I always have to bake with them at least once. So let me take another bite of this delicious plum coffee cake and tell you why you have to make it too!

I am the first to tell you to enjoy the fruit fresh first and bake with it later. Once I got my fill of this season’s plums, I knew I wanted to make the coffee cake that I remember my mom always making. The cake is perfect to enjoy with afternoon tea or to share with friends and neighbors, to spread the sweet joy!

Ingredients:

dry ingredients: all-purpose flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and soda;
wet ingredients: large eggs, vanilla, melted butter (or oil), and buttermilk (or whole milk and a splash of vinegar);
fresh plums, even if they are still a little firm; wash, pit, and quarter all plums.

How to make a coffee cake with plums?

This is an overview of the recipe steps. All ingredient measurements and detailed process steps are provided in the recipe box below.

This cake is as easy as they get! All you need to do is whisk the dry ingredients together, mix the wet ingredients, and combine them all. No mixer needed! Whisk until smooth and pour the cake batter into a baking pan.
Arrange plum quarters on the batter.
Make the streusel topping and sprinkle it over the cake and plums.
Bake the cake until golden brown.

Two photos, side by side, of cake batter in a baking pan and plums and crumb topping on the batter.

Helpful tips!

streusel topping: I highly recommend making the topping first and placing it in the fridge while you make the cake batter and prepare the plums. The colder it is, the crunchier!
plums: you can use ripe, soft plums or still firm plums; either way, they will soften during baking.
butter: in this cake, I used melted butter instead of oil, which made the cake richer in flavor.
buttermilk: I never buy it in the store because it is just too easy to make my own! Use my buttermilk recipe linked in the recipe box.

Three pieces of plum cake on a dessert plate, with fresh plums in the background.

Recipe FAQs:

Do you have to peel plums before baking?

Nope, you can leave the skin on the plums for this recipe. The fruit softens perfectly during baking.

What other fruit can I use in this recipe?

Any stone fruit works well! Peaches, nectarines, apricots, or cherries.

How to store plum cake?

I always store fresh cake on the counter for the first 2 days. After that, I keep the leftovers in a container with a lid in the fridge.

Can I skip the strusel topping?

Yes, of course! The streusel in this cake is just an extra fancy addition that adds a crunch and dresses up the cake. You can skip it if you like!

More desserts with fruit:

If you like this recipe and make it, let me know in the comments below! Don’t forget to rate it if you enjoyed it!

Please, read the tips and FAQs posted above before making this recipe.

Plum Coffee Cake

This quick and easy Plum Coffee Cake is filled with ripe plums and topped with crunchy streusel! Enjoy it with coffee or tea, and savor the flavors of late summer in every bite.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 45 minutes

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 8 servings

Calories 419 kcal

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

Remove eggs and milk from the fridge.

2 large eggs, ¾ cup whole milk
Wash the plums. Cut each one in half, remove the pit and cut each half in half again.

1 lb plums
Mix milk and vinegar in a glass. Set aside. This will be your buttermilk.

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Melt butter, one for the cake and one for streusel.

½ cup unsalted butter, ¼ cup unsalted butter
Make streusel, by mixing all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Stir it with a fork until coarse crumbs form. Set aside.

¾ cup all-purpose flour, ⅓ cup granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ cup unsalted butter
Preheat oven to 375℉. Line a 9″ x 13″ baking pan with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and soda.

1 ½ cup all-purpose flour, ½ cup granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons baking powder, ¼ teaspoon baking soda
In a large measuring cup, whisk together eggsm buttermilk, vanilla and melted butter.

1 teaspoon vanilla, ½ cup unsalted butter
Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and whisk until smooth. Mix it well with a whisk or use a hand mixer.
Pour the cake batter into prepared pan.
Arrange plums in the batter.
Sprinkle the streusel on top.
Bake the cake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until golden brown on top. Check the cake with a toothpick. If it comes out clean, it is done.

Notes

The nutritional value can vary depending on what products you use. The information below is an estimate.
You can use vegetable oil instead of melted butter.
You can use other stone fruit in this recipe: peaches, apricots, nectarines or cherries.

Nutrition

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