Mascarpone Cake with Red Wine Prunes

I’m looking forward to making some of these recipes in Dessert Person just because they are so freaking pretty. The Mascarpone Cake with Red Wine Prunes recipe is one of them.

Prunes were one of those things I always thought were for babies. I honestly didn’t know much about them; in fact, I had to Google what a package of prunes looked like as a grocery store item before I went shopping! The ones I found were in the raisin aisle; I think I’ve seen fresh prunes in the produce section before, but not this time since I made it out of season. For the wine I used Meiomi, a Pino noir out of California. I was not able to find star anise, but I did include 1/8 teaspoon of ground cloves, as Claire mentioned you can add different warm spices.

Another fun experience with this recipe was using my food scale for the first time! I got it as a bridal shower gift, and it is a game changer. I had just watched Claire’s Youtube video about her favorite kitchen gadgets, and now I understand why she’s all for the scale.

The process of making this recipe was pretty simple, but it is a little timely. I’m used to cooking down raspberries or blackberries, which doesn’t take too long; the prunes are cooked in sugar and other ingredients to make a syrup for about 45 minutes. I was a little concerned the syrup was not going to produce the ¼ cup Claire says you’ll be left with, but by the end it appeared successful (when I ran my spoon through the sauce it separated so I knew the ingredients had dissolved). I also covered the pan while it simmered, which I felt was helpful.

While the prune syrup mixture was cooking, I worked on the batter. This was very simple, and you can definitely whisk it by hand if you use a little muscle. The only 9-inch cake pan I had was a cheesecake pan, and it worked perfectly fine. When placing the prunes on the cake batter, I used a fork instead of a spoon, which I found to be very helpful to avoid getting excess syrup on the batter. My cake took about 53 minutes to bake (I have found a mid-range time on the suggested baking times works best for my gas oven). The cake came out of the oven and was stunning! With my cheesecake pan, it was extremely easy to take out once it was completely cooled. Make sure to save the rest of your prune syrup and some mascarpone cheese for the final product (I strained my syrup from extra prunes)

If you haven’t had prunes before, you may be expecting the tart flavors that are associated with blackberry, raspberry or strawberry desserts. The prunes did not have that same sharpness; instead of Fourth of July, I got warm, autumn vibes. The cinnamon and added cloves really come through and pair perfectly with the prunes, and the hint of orange zest gives just enough punch. With the added prune syrup and a touch of mascarpone, this dessert is sure to be a hit at any dinner party. I think this would be a great alternative to a Thanksgiving dessert, as it brings those inviting flavors you want near the holidays, but won’t make you overwhelmingly full after a huge meal. From looks to taste, this one was a hit that I’ll be making again!

If Claire makes a video on this recipe I'll be sure to post!