Baked Plums

Begin by preheating the oven to 225 F. Wash the plums and halve them removing the stones. I use a melon ball scoop to take out the stones. It leaves the flesh intact and creates a uniform and nice shape on each fruit. Lay the plums skin side down in a rimmed baking pan or baking dish and sprinkle with the vanilla bean seeds, brown sugar and one tablespoon of granulated sugar.

It’s important to cook the fruit at low heat for a long time or else you’ll be eating prunes. Bake the plums for about an hour before you remove them from the oven and coat them with the remaining granulated sugar. At this stage I baste the plums with the butter to give them a nice shine.

Put dish back into the oven. Cook for another 35 minutes or until the plums have curled up just a bit and have that beautiful golden shimmer. Eat them straight away with ice cream if you choose and enjoy.